Fat is back and premium butter makers are taking the cream

Sydney

CONSUMERS aren't just eating more butter, they are willing to pay more for it, a boon that's giving outsized gains to makers of premium brands.

Global retail butter sales will expand 2.9 per cent to US$19.4 billion in 2018, outpacing the 1.9 per cent growth in sales volumes, according to Euromonitor International. The trend is fanning the expansion of international brands benefiting from a consumer shift to more natural fats, according to Raphael Moreau, a senior research analyst with the research firm in London.

Demand for butter, cream and other commodities rich in butterfat has increased after consumer perceptions were swayed by studies indicating lower health risks from consuming dairy-fat and the detrimental effects of alt…