The smallgoods category in the Australian grocery market has grown at 12.3% in value compared with last year, with the latest quarter showing a “surge” of 19.6% compared with the corresponding period in 2019 (MarketEdge, Smallgoods Deli+Dairy Database, National Grocery, dollar growth % MAT To 9/8/20 versus YA, supplied by IRI).
According to IRI Senior Consultant Akash Ramesh, this is primarily a result of panic buying and increased consumption at home.
“The packaged section has been instrumental in driving this, seeing a 21.3% increase vs last year, and overshadowing deli (up 6.4% versus last year), which has grown at a much slower pace [MarketEdge, Smallgoods Deli+Dairy Database, National Grocery, dollar growth % MAT To 9/8/20 versus YA],” he says.
“With the fast-changing pandemic situation and social distancing rules, shoppers aren’t keen to spend too much time in the supermarket and have a preference for pre-packaged meats. This has made the dairy section a fast and convenient route to purchase the category.
“Additionally, we’re seeing the smallgoods segments of bacon (up 15.3%), ham (up 9.1%) and salami (up 21.8%) adding incremental growth to the category [MarketEdge, Smallgoods Deli+Dairy Database, National Grocery, dollar growth % MAT To 9/8/20 versus YA]. These segments are reflective of the rise of increased breakfast and snacking occasions at home.”
Read more about deli & smallgoods in the October issue of Retail World.