Schreiber Foods partnered with Datassential to conduct qualitative and quantitative research on the role cheese plays in creating a more craveable and better-tasting burger.
Meat may be #1, but cheese is the ultimate differentiator.
Consumers unsurprisingly indicate that patty type is the most important component of a cheeseburger. However, after the patty, cheese is the factor with the greatest potential to create a better burger. As many foodservice operations are limited in offering one patty type, cheese becomes the simplest and most cost-effective alternative to elevate current burger offerings. Consumers indicate specific preferences about the cheese on their burgers—specifically, more melted cheese and more cheese (volume) in general. By manipulating the amount and type of cheese on the burger to fit consumers’ preferences, operators can easily build a competitive advantage.
The presence of cheese alone indicates a better burger.
Across all key metrics (expected taste, visual appeal, premium-ness), burgers with cheese of any kind outperform that of burgers with no cheese. 6 out of 10 consumers prefer more than one slice of cheese on their burger, but preference is nearly evenly split between those who want two slices of the same type of cheese and those who prefer two different cheese types altogether. This suggests that it’s more about having extra cheese, and less about the type of cheese itself. This is in line with qualitative results, which found that cheese is the key driver for perceptions around every aspect of the burger, from overall quality and taste to texture, doneness, flavor intensity, and sodium level.
The more cheese, the better the burger.
Consumers simply want more cheese on their burgers. Unequivocally, consumers told us that the burgers with more American cheese tasted better and were more craveable than the burgers with less cheese or natural cheese. When surveyed, consumers prefer cheeseburger descriptions that indicate the burger has “more cheese”, ranking descriptions like double cheese or extra cheese as the most appealing. This was further validated in the qualitative phase of this research, where consumers described burgers with less cheese as dry and/or overcooked, while those with more cheese were rated as juicier or more flavorful. American cheese was the halo experience that made every other aspect of the burger a bit better.
