Food sales growth in Ireland more than doubled in February as food inflation reached a new high of 16.4%, the latest data from consultancy Kantar showed, Agriland reported on March 6.
Analysts point out that record inflation, rather than a rise in consumption, led to a 10.2% rise in sales, with food sales growth more than doubling in four weeks. Irish consumers are trying to cope with the rising cost of living by shopping little and often, as purchases per trip fell 10.9% while frequency rose 7%, Kantar data shows.
Commenting on the current rate of inflation, Senior Retail Analyst Emer Healy stated: “In a year of rising costs and skyrocketing inflation, Irish consumers are looking for ways to manage their household budgets. This has resulted in the Irish grocery market being more competitive than ever, with shoppers seeking the best deals from retailers.”.
The recent shortage of fruits and vegetables led consumers to spend 2.3 million euros (185 million rubles) more on vegetables, but volumes fell 9.5%, especially in cucumbers (-17.2%) and tomatoes (-8.9%). On Valentine’s Day, shoppers spent an additional 1.2 million euros (96.5 million rubles) on wine, 1.5 million euros (120 million rubles) on chilled desserts, 3.8 million euros (305 million rubles) in refrigerated ready meals.
Sales of flour, eggs and butter rose 11.9%, 29.6% and 19.5% respectively as Irish consumers celebrated Shrove Tuesday. Sales of the cheapest products showed the highest growth at 35.8%, with shoppers here spending 19 million euros (1.5 billion rubles) more than usual, according to Kantar.
Online sales increased 5.2% and shoppers spent an additional 8 million euros (640 million rubles) on products online during the 12-week period. Nearly 18% of Irish households now shop remotely.
Source: Rossa Primavera
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