Latest Meat, Fish & Poultry release now available

Sales are punctured by deflation, but some categories remain buoyant…

The latest Meat, Fish and Poultry (MFP) figures from Kantar Worldpanel are published today, for the 12 weeks ending 31st January 2016. We are seeing continued deflation across Chilled Fish and the Primary and Processed categories. This deflation holding back value growth, with underlying volume growth a really positive trend for the category.

Nathan Ward, Business Unit Director for MFP explains “Consumers often start the year with good intentions and we’ve seen an overall trend towards fresh foods, with fruit and vegetables leading the way. Chilled Fish, Chicken and more niche meats (such as Duck) are seeing strong growth, not just in volume, but also in value despite deflation hitting these categories.”

Ward continued “Chicken and Fish have kept up the momentum they saw at Christmas into the new year, with Chicken Breasts and Added Value Fish the key sectors driving their growth”. Chicken has seen 600,000 more shoppers buying Breasts compared to last year. From our consumption data, we know that Chicken Breasts provide a versatile base for both meal centres and dishes such as Indian or Oriental cuisine. Chilled Fish growth is coming through more shoppers buying Salmon, Haddock and Prawns. Added Value Fish is seeing strong growth with hearty meals such as Mornay and Fish Pie the key drivers of growth. Pre-family and Young Family shoppers are behind growth for Chilled Fish, with the Pre-Family shoppers more important to Added Value Fish performance.

In Fresh Primary Meat, Beef and Pork are both struggling in the latest update, with Beef now seeing three periods of decline. Beef Joints did perform well at Christmas, but have seen a stronger decline in this update, driving the overall decline of Beef. At the same time, the Pork decline is slowing – is this the first sign of a revival for Pork in 2016?

Deflationary pressures still affect Meat, Fish and Poultry. The next release will be in 4 weeks time. Will deflation be the key story then, or will the new year bring a new dynamic to the category?