Between January and August, commercial American cheese disappearance rose 6.2% over the 2020 comparable. That compares to a 2.9% lift in commercial disappearance of other cheese varieties (including mozzarella) over the same 8-month period.

In terms of stocks-to-use at the end of August, American cheese stood at 55.2, up 3.7% from the prior month and 2.8% from the same month last year. Butter was at 58.2 at the end of the month, down 13.4% from July and 16.8% from the 2020 comparable.

Butter commercial disappearance rose by 2.9% for the year to August, despite a weak April-June period – this mostly reflected strong prior-year comparables when retail sales surged during COVID lockdowns.

Among other key dairy products, domestic commercial disappearance of NFDM/SMP continues to be patchy but still trending lower, falling 23.5% for the year to date and 63.5% in August.