South Africa cheese market

South Africa is the fourth largest cheese market in Africa in the database. Zenith puts consumption at more than 88,000 tonnes in 2025, or around 1.4 kg per person.

Consumption eased slightly between 2020 and 2025. Zenith expects a recovery, with consumption growing by close to 2% a year to pass 97,000 tonnes by 2030.

South Africa is self-sufficient in cheese. Cheddar and gouda are the main varieties, alongside processed cheese, and the country exports a share of its output to neighbouring markets while imports remain small.

The Zenith Global Cheese Database 2026 covers South Africa with production, imports, exports and consumption for 39 cheese types, actuals from 2020 to 2025 and forecasts to 2030. Volume data covers totals, broad categories and separately measured cheese types, in tonnes. Consumer retail value covers total cheese only, in local currency and USD; import and export trade values cover HS 0406 total only, in USD. Monetary values are not broken down by individual cheese type or broad category. Retail shelf prices cover total cheese and five broad categories: hard and semi-hard, fresh, mould, processed, and other non-specified cheese, in local currency/kg and USD/kg, not individual prices for all 39 cheese types. Import and export unit prices cover HS 0406 total and available HS subheadings, in USD/kg. Retail value is estimated retail volume multiplied by regular shelf prices, including sales tax. Trade values are customs values, using CIF for imports and FOB for exports. Production is measured as formally manufactured cheese.