Grocery Eye Q2 2024

From high protein cereals to immunity boosting soups, functional foods are slowly making their mark in supermarkets. Add to this the proliferation of health check kits from testing allergens and food sensitivities or supplements helping with IBS symptoms, the health and food industries are capitalising on our growing interest in eating better to feel better.

Many dietary requirements to cater for:
With 42% of UK households catering for at least one dietary requirement, but none of those impacting more than 11% of the UK population, prioritising which diets to cater for and how to communicate about it is a challenge.

Need-based vs. choice based:
Although need-based diets, mostly ‘free-from’, are stable year on year, the real change is happening in the functional food category with interest in gut health, immunity boosting or high protein products increasing consistently and is reflected on shelves. It will be interesting to see which of the functional food trends we monitor in TrendVue, our trend monitoring tool, will be the next big hits.

Simplifying choice:
And although three quarters of those dealing with dietary requirements find it fairly easy to order when eating out, only 57% of UK shoppers find it as straightforward in supermarkets, showing room for improvement for both brands and retailers. Location of these sub-categories remains a point of contention

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Grocery Eye is a quarterly report produced by Savanta to track attitudes and behaviours in the grocery sector. It is based on the views of a nationally representative sample of 500 UK residents.