According to a new report from Bord Bia, the cost of living crisis has led Irish consumers to make lists, adopt private brands, stay away from certain foods and focus on frugal living, making shopping and cooking more difficult. method has been reformulated.
Since the start of the pandemic in March 2020, Bord Bia has been tracking consumers in Ireland and across major markets for Irish food producers, including the UK, US and Germany, and its new Research focuses on the cost of living crisis.
The Inflationary Impact 2022 survey was conducted among nearly 10,000 consumers in Ireland, the UK, Germany, the US and France, with 44% believing their current financial situation is bad or very bad. and only 7% say they believe it. Being good.
The remaining 50% say they are comfortable, down 9% in 12 months.
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According to the study, discount shoppers globally saw a net increase of 22 percentage points last year. In Ireland, the increase is even higher at he 30%.
The number of people buying private label products is also on the rise, with 44% of those taking part in the survey looking to store private brands to save money by shifting to the “value” range offered by supermarkets. says there is. The so-called premium range is attracting attention.
The survey also highlighted a rise in the number of Irish consumers making lists before shopping, with 54% of Irish consumers saying they were more likely to make a list in recent months. said to be important.
Cooking from scratch remains unique, with Ireland ahead of the rest of the world, with 41% of people in the UK, Germany, France and the US saying they mostly cook from scratch, but per capita It has risen to 48%. Cents in Ireland and 31% in Germany.
People are also cooking smarter and eating less food that is single-use or less recognized for its variety and shelf life.
The study suggests that sales of prepackaged bakery items with short shelf lives have plummeted.
Meanwhile, more expensive meats such as lamb and seafood have also performed poorly as consumers look for foods that can serve multiple dishes or a single meal.
Lamb sales were down 32% and seafood sales were down 33%.
People are doing more cooking and meal preparation, with 39% of Irish consumers saying that heavy cooking and meal preparation has become more important in recent months, and several times suggesting that you are looking for a product that can be spread across your diet.
Bord Bia’s trends and insights specialist Grace Binchy said the report shows that people are “scrutinizing how they spend their money.” [and] Shop more at multiple stores to get the best deals. ”
She said 51% of Irish consumers now shop at multiple stores, with a larger percentage going to discount stores, while specialty and local stores “lose a bit of momentum”. I’m here.
“We create a shopping list and stick to it. It keeps us in control and we know people like it during uncertain times.”
