The Cheese Renaissance: State and Prospects of the Russian Cheese Market

On the Rise

Russia's cheese market today is one of the most dynamic segments of the food industry. In 2024, the country produced approximately 860,000 tons of cheese—7% more than the previous year and double the 2014 level of 384,000 tons. Consumption is also growing at a rapid pace: in 2024, it reached 1.13 million tons, or 7.9 kg per person. Cheese is increasingly securing its position as a staple product in the Russian diet.

Much of this growth was driven by the sanctions pressure that hit the dairy industry in 2014. Before the embargo, foreign cheeses accounted for roughly half of the Russian market; today, their share has dropped to 24%. As Maria Zhebit, Director of Public Relations at the National Dairy Producers Union (Soyuzmoloko), told Argument, it was precisely after the ban on imports of certain dairy products from non-CIS countries in 2014 that Russia saw an active investment cycle in cheesemaking begin. Still, imports continue to shape supply in niche categories.

"A high share of imports still remains in niche segments—blue cheeses, aged premium varieties, and certain functional ingredients. The main supplies of traditional cheeses come from Belarus, which remains Russia's key partner for dairy products. But across most mass-market categories, Russia is largely self-sufficient in meeting domestic needs," the expert emphasized.

Major Players vs. Small Cheese Makers

Following the 2014 embargo, several foreign cheese producers announced their departure from the Russian market in 2022, with their assets subsequently sold to Russian management. For example, the former Finnish producer Valio (Oltermanni and Viola brands) became part of Velkom Group, French company Danone sold its Russian business to Vamin R, and the Danish-Swedish cooperative Arla Foods became Natura.

With the exit of major foreign brands, the Russian cheese market has become highly consolidated: the 20 largest producers account for about 75% of total hard and semi-hard cheese output. Among the leaders maintaining steady positions are Yugovskoy Dairy Products Plant—approximately 44,700 tons in 2024, Foodland Group (31,600 tons), and Vamin Group (23,000 tons). That said, it would be incorrect to claim that local cheese makers have lost this battle.

Airat Mukhamadeev, Commercial Director of Vamin Group, responding to Argument's questions, noted that competition in the domestic market has always been high, so it's important for producers to differentiate through product "focus," since customers primarily rely on the taste and quality of cheese, and only then on price.

"Large holdings are less agile and tend toward product standardization to optimize costs, while small cheese makers can choose an unusual format (a restaurant-cheese shop, for example) or product range. However, as sales increase, a growth and scaling crisis inevitably arises. And here, the winner will be whoever can make the business technological, seamless, and maximally independent of human and other subjective factors," the expert reasons.

Thus, major brands targeting mass consumers form the foundation of the cheese market, while niche small cheese makers enhance its diversity and maintain the interest of more demanding audiences.

Prices Under Pressure

Nevertheless, under current conditions, the cheese industry faces serious pressure from pricing factors. As Airat Mukhamadeev (Vamin Group) notes, raw milk prices, which constitute 85% of cheese production costs, are extremely volatile due to fluctuations in animal feed costs. Vamin's self-sufficiency in milk from its own agricultural complexes stands at 24%, with the remainder purchased from local farms in Tatarstan. To compensate for the raw material deficit at current production and sales volumes, the group is actively expanding capacity and building additional agricultural complexes (the latest for 5,200 dairy cows).

These risks are confirmed by Maria Zhebit (Soyuzmoloko): prices for raw materials (milk), energy, packaging, and labor are pushing up the cost of the final product. Since 2022, milk production costs have risen by 24%, while the average price of cheese, according to Rosstat, increased 15% in 2024 alone. This trend continued in the first half of 2025. "In 2025, it was precisely retail price adjustments that became the factor limiting consumption growth," Maria notes.

The Future Is Hazy... Or Is It?

Already we can note particularly strong consumption growth dynamics in the segments of soft, fresh and brined cheeses, as well as blue cheeses and aged varieties. And according to Maria Zhebit (Soyuzmoloko), these categories hold the greatest growth potential in coming years. This is actively facilitated by the boom in the HoReCa segment (food service), delivery, and the prepared food market.

The food service segment generates stable demand, since cheeses are a basic ingredient for restaurant and café businesses—from pizza and pasta to appetizers and desserts, with both mass-market and premium varieties in demand. Meanwhile, online retail and marketplaces have opened direct consumer access for producers, especially local and craft cheese makers, without the need to enter federal retail chains, which stimulates development of niche products and increases competition. Fast delivery services have added an impulse demand factor: cheese has become an everyday basket item that people increasingly buy "on the go," without planning.

According to Soyuzmoloko's forecast, by 2035 consumption could grow another 30-40%, exceeding 10 kg per person per year. True, even these figures would only match today's levels in Hungary or Romania, not France, where about 25 kg of cheese per year is consumed. So the Russian market still has significant growth potential—the main thing is to increase production of the currently scarce raw milk that forms the foundation of the cheese industry.