According to TNS data, the UK grape sector is now worth £407.7 million having increased 8.7 per cent since 2004, and volume has climbed at a similar rate of 7.8 per cent, from 167m kg to 180m kg.
According to the market research company, the growth is down to 563,000 new buyers entering the market, more frequent purchasing and a slight increase in price.
Further research from TNS Family Food Panel shows that there were around 873m occasions where grapes were eaten in the last year.
In total, TNS says the category has increased by almost a quarter, or 23 per cent, year-on-year over the last three years.
But despite this good news, the sector is starting to show signs of that growth slowing - last year, the rise in the number of those consumption occasions was just one per cent.
Within total fruit, grapes make up 8.5 per cent of all fruit eating occasions, making them a key category within the sector.
Half of all grape consumption is with adult females, while men and children each eat around a quarter. This reflects the consumption rate of total fruit by women.
The group which over-indexes the most on grapes is young children, with those under six eating 70 per cent more grapes than total fruit, possibly down to the growth in seedless fruit and the subsequent ease of consumption.
Children aged between six and 10 also over-index, compared with total fruit, by 50 per cent.
According to the TNS figures, the over-65s consume a quarter of grapes, but within that, both males and females have dropped their consumption by 3.5 per cent, compared with last year.
The fastest growing consumers are women aged between 17 and 24, who have increased their grape consumption by 43 per cent in the last year. In second place were men, aged between 17 and 24, who ate 25 per cent more grapes. However, despite the impressive rise, both these groups still only account for less than five per cent of total grape consumption.
Adult men account for a quarter of grape consumption, around 26 per cent, or 227m meal occasions. However, when this is compared with total fruit consumption, they are under-consuming by 23 per cent, offering an opportunity for growth in that sector. TNS point to the fact that men are generally slower than women in responding to health awareness issues.
The major driver behind the boost in grape consumption has been health, with this factor being attributed as the reason behind two-thirds of occasions. One-fifth of grapes are eaten because they are a favourite fruit and both health and favouritism or preference are more important among grape-eaters than fruit-consumers in general.
Health and preference really define grape consumption, with other factors only adding up to 13 per cent of motivation drivers.
When it comes to market share, Tesco is far and away in the lead, with a whopping 31.1 per cent stake, for the 52 weeks ending November 6. Sainsbury’s is second with 16.7 per cent, Asda has 11.9 per cent and Morrisons comes in fourth with 10.7 per cent.
No comments yet