Dairy Products and Alternatives

A decrease in births in 2022 impacted baby food in 2023, translating into slower growth than the previous year. Breastfeeding continues to be positively encouraged in the country, with mothers being aided to continue breastfeeding for longer periods.…

In 2023 baby food overall in Norway is recording a dip in retail volume sales. This trend is not isolated, however - a strong uptick in unit prices echoes the broader surge in food costs observed across various categories and product areas.…

The yoghurt and sour milk landscape is a mature one in Sweden. Inflation and increasing production costs hiked up the unit prices in 2022 and continued to do so at the beginning of 2023. Players reacted to the new demands as consumers began comparing…

Plant-based dairy product selections have been expanded, as new trendy launches and focused marketing efforts boost sales. The cooking and eating-at-home trend is being met with new launches aligning with this rising trend, especially within…

The unit prices in the other dairy category have experienced price hikes, due to inflation and increased production costs. In addition, sales have fallen back into the pre-pandemic area, as consumption habits normalised and Swedes ventured back into…

Drinking milk products in Sweden witness relative stability in 2023. Nonetheless, cow's milk consumption continues to drop as plant-based milks, new launches, and strong marketing allure consumers away. In addition, Swedes are often eating out,…

Following the outbreak of COVID-19, sales have continued to normalise, with Swedes ventured back to their workplaces, and eating out more often. However, the unit prices hikes seen in 2022, continued to grow in 2023, driven by the inflation and…

Swedes consume cheese on many occasions during the day; for breakfast with sandwiches and using it in meals, while premium cheese is often indulged on and offered on cheese platters. As such, some cheeses are specifically positioned to be indulgent…

As Swedes spent more time outside homes and ate out more, the elevated need for butter and spreads, as witnessed during the pandemic, was normalised. Nonetheless, while the demand declined, the unit prices increased due to inflation and growing…

Baby food is facing challenges in Sweden, with the declining birth rate dampening retail volume sales. However, due to inflation and increasing production costs, baby food saw fast price rises in 2022 and continued to face growing prices at the…

Yoghurt has not been spared from the severe price increases that have characterised dairy in the UK. The increasing input costs, with commodities such as fertilisers, energy and animal feed, have slashed profit margins across the supply and…

Flavoured yogurt, which is the largest category, is seeing declining sales in retail volume terms in 2023. This in turn is leading to a small decrease in sales of yoghurt and sour milk products in 2023. The maturity of the category and generational…

Retail volume sales of yoghurt saw fairly modest growth in 2023, continuing the trend of the previous year. Despite manufacturers and retailers continuing to run price promotions, these were not as attractive as in previous years, as they sought to…

The inflationary climate has had a strong impact on yoghurt, not least in pushing retail current value over volume sales. Indeed, the anticipated drop in retail volume sales of by far the main type, flavoured yoghurt, is expected to lead to…

Inflation and increased prices of milk resulted in price hikes in yoghurt. This led to consumers turning to private labels, being unable to afford branded options. As a result, private label gained a significant market share, occupying the second…

In 2023, there appears to be a notable shift in German consumer preferences in terms of plain yoghurt gaining popularity over flavoured options. This change can be attributed to various factors, including health concerns, changing tastes and a desire…

Yoghurt and sour milk products, with the exception of drinking yoghurt, is experiencing declining retail volume sales in 2023, as inflation and price rises influence consumers’ purchasing declines. However, the decline has not been as severe as…

The sale of yoghurt and sour milk continued to normalise following the outbreak of COVID-19, when consumers stayed at home, leading to increased snacking. In 2023, yoghurt and sour milk is also facing the increasing challenge of being a mature…

Plant-based dairy is marginally benefiting from the severe pressures that are impacting the local dairy industry. As Brexit continues to hinder stability and the ongoing war in Ukraine impacts supply chains, high production costs of dairy farming…

Plant-based dairy has been less affected by inflation because it does not depend on raw milk prices, which skyrocketed in 2022. Furthermore, the prices of other plant-based ingredients have remained within reasonable margins. Additionally, producers…

Plant-based dairy continued to see healthy growth in retail volume terms in 2023. As the number of lactose-intolerant, flexitarian and vegan consumers continues to grow in Portugal, demand for plant-based alternatives to traditional dairy products is…

Plant-based dairy is projected to see further strong retail volume and current value growth in 2023. While almost all product areas are set to record positive growth, “other” plant-based milk is expected to see the fastest increments (ongoing…

Plant-based milk is rising in popularity; the consumer base is widening with a growing number of people shifting to plant-based diets for reasons of health and wellness, in addition to avoiding products with lactose. As seen with vegan cheese,…

Plant-based dairy has made significant progress in Germany, gradually evolving and expanding to cover various categories within a market with a very strong tradition of consuming dairy products of animal origin. While dairy consumption is deeply…

Retail demand for plant-based dairy in France continues to fall in 2023, with the exception of plant-based cheese, which only entered the local market in 2020 and thus is growing from a low base. Plant-based dairy enjoyed significant growth earlier…

While plant-based dairy performed well, especially plant-based milk and barista options, not all products are set to post positive retail volume growth. Plant-based yoghurt is struggling as the competition is fierce from standard yoghurt, puddings,…

The local dairy industry has been characterised by severe price increases, with products featuring milk as their primary ingredient suffering the highest hikes. Indeed, as input costs have become increasingly expensive, profit margins have been…

Other dairy continues to experience declining sales in retail volume terms in 2023. The one exception is evaporated milk, which is still a relatively new category in Spain and is seeing an increase in retail distribution. The largest category, which…

Consumption of cream and condensed milk is in Portugal, as both are commonly used in dessert preparation. During the first half of the review period, cream also benefitted from a rising interest in new cooking experiences, assisted by the popularity…

Having spiked during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis, retail volume sales of other dairy products stabilised towards the end of the review period. Retail volume sales of other dairy were exceptionally high in 2020 as consumers spent more time…

The consumption of cream has decreased, with prices increasing, leading consumers to reduce their purchases. In addition to high price points, consumers have turned to healthier options, so they are looking for alternative creams that are better for…

In recent years, Germany has witnessed an increasing trend towards the development of protein-enriched dairy desserts. The growing segment is being driven by the rising demand for healthier and more nutritious food options among local consumers,…

While cream is one of the most important and traditional products within other dairy, retail volume sales are declining in line with another rise in the average unit price. While cream remains a mainstay of French cooking, stronger demand is being…

Other dairy in Finland continues to see normalisation, following the jump in consumption during COVID-19, when consumers were cooking and eating more meals at home. The quark and protein boom seen in the review period is stabilising; however, high in…

The dairy industry was among the most severely impacted in 2022. The lingering impact of the pandemic, continued Brexit-related issues and most importantly, the start of the war in Ukraine, pushed up production costs with utilities, fertiliser, and…

In 2022 inflation, which was exacerbated by Russia’s war in Ukraine and a national transportation strike, negatively affected per capita milk consumption in Spain. As such, sales of milk saw a decline in retail volume terms in 2022. Moreover, a…

Milk producers continued to struggle with high production costs in 2023. The main factors contributing to this trend were rising energy and transport prices and adverse weather conditions, with the country having suffered a severe drought during the…

In 2023, overall milk consumption is projected to see a slight increase in retail volume sales, led by goat milk, fat-free and semi skimmed shelf stable milk and fat-free fresh milk. However, fresh milk, overall, is set to continue to post a dip in…

2022 was a challenging year for milk production due to high price points. In particular, fodder got much more expensive, and livestock farmers could not feed their animals, leading to a higher proportion of being slaughtered. As a result, the number…

The demand for drinking milk products in Germany is declining following certain shifts in consumer patterns. With an increasing number of local consumers adopting alternative diets, such as veganism or flexitarianism, the evolution of dietary…

Having experienced a marginal boost during the pandemic due to prolonged home seclusion in 2020, retail volume sales of drinking milk products in France continue on their declining trajectory in 2023, a trend already emerging prior to COVID-19. This…

Drinking milk products in Finland continued to see normalising sales after the heightened demand that was the COVID-19 pandemic, when consumers stockpiled goods. Inflation and increasing production costs drove up the milk prices in 2022 and continued…

The dairy industry in the UK is being severely impacted by the lingering effects of the pandemic, and political, social and economic challenges. Firstly, Brexit continues to hamper import and export operations between the UK and European markets,…

The performance of dairy products and alternatives continues to be shaped by the elevated inflation being seen in 2023, which has led to strong growth in current value terms, albeit at a slightly more modest rate compared to 2022. However, sales…

Retail sales of dairy products and alternatives in Portugal saw modest growth in volume terms in 2023, a slight improvement over the previous year. While inflationary pressures, driven by surging energy and food prices, receded slightly, demand was…

In 2022 and early 2023, dairy in Italy was particularly affected by price increases due to inflation. This has seen a drop in consumption in some categories, such as butter and spreads. This situation was aggravated by lower milk production in Italy,…

Increasing product costs, rising energy prices, and inflation led to price rises across all dairy products in Greece. This has impacted consumer behaviour, hindered volume demand and limited purchases in line with reduced disposable incomes. There…

Dairy products and alternatives in Germany is a significant and dynamic space that has experienced various shifts and transformations in recent years. While traditional dairy products continue to dominate the local market, there has been a notable…

2023 is being marked by an overall decrease in retail volume sales for many dairy products and alternatives in France, accompanied by an increase in value sales. The latter is being driven by notable price rises, due to the combination of increased…

Inflation and increasing production costs drove unit prices up in 2022 and this continued during the beginning of 2023. As a result, competition became more intense, as consumers paid attention to price points, working on reduced disposable budgets.…