The ‘westernisation’ of Chinese diets presents an opportunity for Irish firms to drive exports of pizza cheese, according to a report from the Irish Independent.
Citing Ireland’s food board, Bord Bia, who is due to undertake market research on the topic, pizza cheese accounts for 10% of Irish dairy exports.
According to the report, there are approximately 3,700 pizza outlets in China, mostly chain outlets, and the number is expected to reach 4,300 by 2022.
New Opportunities
Irish dairy exports to China are dominated by specialised nutritional powders, according to the food board, particularly in the infant milk formula category.
However, beyond infant formula, the 'westernisation' of diets has been identified as an opportunity for Irish dairy in China, it said.
The pizza foodservice market is said to be worth €3 billion in 2017, but it is expected to reach €4.2 billion by 2022.
“We believe from industry consultation that the customer base for pizza cheese is fragmented and we wish to build this understanding of customers' needs or routes to building successful supplier relationships in this space,” said Bord Bia.
© 2019 Checkout – your source for the latest Irish retail news. Article by Aidan O’Sullivan. Click sign-up to subscribe to Checkout.
