At the beginning of the decade, spanning from 2010 to 2019, the average American consumed 32.7 pounds of cheese. That per capita consumption total grew every year to reach 38.3 pounds per person last year. This 5.6 pound improvement yielded a 17% growth rate for the entire cheese category.

Drilling a bit deeper into the data, the “Other-than-American” cheese category showed the largest growth on a per-pound basis. That “Other-than-American” term is USDA jargon for Italian cheeses . . . largely Mozzarella. From 2010 to 2019, that category grew from 19.4 pounds to 22.8 pounds for a gain of 3.4 pounds or 17.5%.

Meanwhile, the American category climbed from 2010’s 13.3 pounds to 15.5 pounds. Most of the 2.2% net improvement came largely from more sales of Cheddar cheese. Overall, the American cheese category grew 16.5%.