The British appetite for convenience is pushing sales of prepared fruit and vegetables, with consumers willing to pay that little bit extra for saving time.
According to Kantar Worldpanel the market is currently valued at £1.018 billion. In the past year, 222,000 tonnes were sold at retail.
Within that market, salad bowls are leading the way with an impressive 22.7 per cent increase in value sales, while prepared potatoes, against a backdrop of general decline, have increased by 5.9 per cent.
Kevin Woods, group business development manager at QV Foods, reports that it has seen increased sales for its prepared potato products, which include wedges. “In the last six to eight years the market has developed innovative ingredients and flavours for the products,” he explains.
“This has really pushed interest in the products. This is where we see future growth now, in delivering new and exciting flavours.”
QV Foods is currently working on the re-launch of its Inspire brand, which will see new products added to the range.
The prepared produce market’s overall value sales have increased by 5.2 per cent, while volume sales have increased by 0.9 per cent. Despite the lack of sunny days, bagged salad appears to have held its own with a 2.1 per cent increase.
Florette’s commercial director Sandy Sewell says the company’s Duo range has performed brilliantly, delivering £3 million worth of incremental sales to the category and accounting for 48 per cent of the premium salad sector’s growth this year. “Increasing frequency of purchase remains the key opportunity for the salad category. This will be realised through bringing inspiration to the category, engaging with and exciting consumers so they purchase regularly year-round, regardless of the weather.”
Lasting Leaf marketing manager Melanie Dean also attributes steady sales of its products to new marketing campaigns. “Despite patchy weather this summer, sales of Lasting Leaf bagged salad have remained buoyant,” she adds. “We attribute this to our on-pack ‘longer-lasting weekend breaks’ promotion, which has encouraged shoppers to try Lasting Leaf (by switching from private labels or adding it to their repertoire) and has even recruited shoppers who never used to buy bagged salad before. This, coupled with our British-grown leaves and Union Jack packaging, have helped to give Lasting Leaf stand out at point of purchase.”
In value terms, 46.3 per cent of all prepared produce is vegetables, yet that segment has only achieved a 1.7 per cent value growth. Despite the low growth rate, there are sections of the market that appear to be gaining sales, such as organic prepared vegetables.
Stewart Miller, brand and business development manager for TIO (This Is Organics), says the company recently conducted consumer research asking what was the biggest ethical concern. Overwhelmingly, people said it was potential pesticide residues in food. “Mothers in particular are looking to save time but still feed their children food that they see as nutritional and safe,” he adds. “Sales of our Bare Necessities brand carrot sticks and snack packs are very successful.”
Also handy for lunchboxes is prepared fruit, which was the fastest-growing sector, increasing value by 10.5 per cent since last year. While Marks & Spencer is the undoubted reigning champion of this market, Waitrose is coming up fast with a 43 per cent increase.
Richard Bickerton, Waitrose buying manager for salads and prepared produce, explains: “We’re really pleased with the way the prepared fruit category is performing for Waitrose. This is down to the quality of our produce, which is outstanding, combined with very successful promotional activity which has highlighted the quality of our offer.” Waitrose has invested in NPD, launching a 5 A DAY platter this year and creating an Essentials Waitrose pack that retails at just £1.
Marketing director for G’s Fresh, Anthony Gardiner, says the company is actively looking for opportunities to further take wholehead crops down a more added-value route. -
A CELTIC TIGER ROARS
While many businesses are struggling though the recession, Northern Irish firm Willowbrook Farm recently opened a £5.5m factory to cope with customer demand for its prepared products. And the move is paying off, reports Samantha Lyster
rish eyes are certainly smiling in Killinchy, a village near Belfast where Willowbrook Farm, which grows and processes vegetables, salads, stir fry and mash products, has just opened a new factory, creating 25 jobs and doubling its output capacity.
The family-run business counts Tesco, The Co-operative and Iceland among its clients and says the trend for convenient yet healthy products has driven its success, leading to the need for the 32,000 sq ft salad and vegetable processing facility.
At a time when the fresh produce industry has been inundated with weather-related disasters, the investment is positive news and a great sign that there are still growth areas of the market.
The new facility is also home to an innovation centre, which includes a development kitchen and function room to meet and work in partnership with Willowbrook’s customers.
“The expertise gained over the many years has lead to the establishment of an advanced innovation facility now covering all of the UK and Ireland,” says managing director John McCann.
“We’re working with some of the top food companies in innovation and design of fresh convenience products. People are working harder and for longer, so they are seeking fresh convenience products they can trust.”
Last year Willowbrook strengthened its NPD department with three new appointments, adding Amanda Ferguson, formally with Moy Park, Denise Curry, who had previously worked with Northern Foods and Oscar Mayer, and Jennifer Gray, whose background includes Allied Bakeries and Ashers, to the team.
Colin Ferguson, Willowbrook’s sales and NPD director, says that the investment in innovation would hugely help with keeping the company ahead of its competition.
“By investing in product development and providing the customers and their consumers with the ranges of products they require the company will remain at the forefront of the prepared produce market well into the future,” he added.
Work on the new factory started some three years ago and McCann says the company has ensured that it is equipped with state-of-the-art, bespoke technology including optical sorting equipment.
“This is the first of its kind in Ireland, it provides added control for more efficient and effective quality control,” adds McCann.
“As an exporting company in a very competitive market we needed to make our processing more efficient and increase capacity - the design is highly developed for hygiene and efficient production.
“Research was extensive in Holland where we worked with Dutch engineers and specialists to get the more modern facility for vegetable and salad processing. The Killinchy factory is one of the most modern and technologically advanced in Europe.” -
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