Hard times for ordinary and traditional foods: nowadays Italians prefer “specialty foods”, those “free-from” and “rich-in” particular ingredients.
As much has been confirmed by the second edition of the Nielsen/GS1 Italy project Osservatorio Immagino. Analysis of the information reported on the labels of over 46,600 wide consumption food products reveals that free-from and rich-in products, which at first glance would appear to be polar opposites, are together the most successful phenomenon in Italian food purchases.
This polarization of purchase choices is reaching every category of food product and transforming the way Italians approach groceries.
Free-from food has become the most representative wide consumption food among Italian consumers, in terms of turnover: during the year ending in June 2017, this category generated over 6.5 billion euro in sales at supermarkets and hypermarkets, with 3.1% growth.
Sale of palm oil-free products grew (+17.6%), but also the latest trend of salt-free or reduced sodium foods (+7.2%). Foods labeled preservative-free declined, but remain the most sold products.
At the same time, sales of “rich-in” products rose by 7.8%, with a turnover of over 2.2 billion euro. The hottest are whole wheat products and those rich in calcium, with the most outstanding growth trends of all wide consumption goods (+14.2% and +10.1%, respectively).
(source:
osservatorioimmagino.it)
