Sainsbury’s launches new vegan cheeses as part of its Gary range

UK retailer Sainsbury’s is expanding its milk-free cheese alternatives range as it targets vegans and consumers with allergies and intolerances.

As part of its Deliciously FreeFrom portfolio, the supermarket launched Gary – a range of coconut-based alterantives to cheese – a year ago, with sales exceeding expectations.

Among the new products joining the range this autumn are a new blue cheese, a cheddar-style with chives as well as branded products like Violife’s Mediterranean-style block.

The range already includes cheddar-style with caramelised onion, Greek-style and wensleydale-style with cranberries.

Sainsbury’s product developer for Deliciously FreeFrom Alexa Masterson said: “When Gary went viral last year, the positive response from customers was fantastic.

“It became very clear that the Deliciously FreeFrom range, as well as being a great option for customers with allergies or intolerances, is also increasingly popular with those who choose to avoid certain foods – vegans were among the earliest adopters of our coconut-based alternatives to cheese.”

Following an overhaul of the FreeFrom range last year, the portfolio was expanded to include over 100 products in total across the whole store, including a range of chilled desserts, cheese-alternative products and ready meal options.

Masterson concluded: “FreeFrom is a rapidly growing category and we have to be planning for what our customers want now, as well as thinking ahead to what they may want in the next few years. Much of my knowledge of food trends and customer needs is built up through continually listening to what our customers have to say, including social media.”