We were most interested to read the Q&A by Martin Glenn, Birds Eye Iglo Group CEO, in last week's issue. It's great to hear from our main competitor that we're all on the same page when it comes to the task of invigorating frozen that job needs the focus of several big players for the category to realise its huge potential.
But Young's is quite different to Birds Eye it's a fish specialist brand and consumers appreciate it as such. That gives us strength in depth and a licence for real innovation. It also provides credibility to really lead in sustainability with our Fish for Life programme.
Far from underinvesting, we're running savvy and effective marketing that builds both our brands and the frozen category. That means Young's is still running at 12% value growth year-on-year despite the tough climate of the past 12 months.
Fish fingers are clearly close to Martin's heart but we don't agree with his comments and neither do consumers. Our research shows two out of three kids prefer the taste of Young's and we're the ones growing the market up 2.6% by value overall but down 3% if you take out Young's [Nielsen 2008 vs 2009]. Our microwaveable version is clearly not "horrible" it performs well in consumer research and got a four-star thumbs up in The Grocer's own Acid Test back in November.
As Martin also says, talk is indeed cheap. No doubt, then, he'll be delighted to see how we're also supporting the category this year with new marketing investment to give both Young's and Findus major national exposure on TV.
Birds Eye is a great brand with tremendous heritage. So is Young's. So is Findus. There's plenty of room for all of us to work to our own unique strengths and jointly grow the category.
Mark Escolme, MD Young's Seafood and Findus UK, The Findus Group
But Young's is quite different to Birds Eye it's a fish specialist brand and consumers appreciate it as such. That gives us strength in depth and a licence for real innovation. It also provides credibility to really lead in sustainability with our Fish for Life programme.
Far from underinvesting, we're running savvy and effective marketing that builds both our brands and the frozen category. That means Young's is still running at 12% value growth year-on-year despite the tough climate of the past 12 months.
Fish fingers are clearly close to Martin's heart but we don't agree with his comments and neither do consumers. Our research shows two out of three kids prefer the taste of Young's and we're the ones growing the market up 2.6% by value overall but down 3% if you take out Young's [Nielsen 2008 vs 2009]. Our microwaveable version is clearly not "horrible" it performs well in consumer research and got a four-star thumbs up in The Grocer's own Acid Test back in November.
As Martin also says, talk is indeed cheap. No doubt, then, he'll be delighted to see how we're also supporting the category this year with new marketing investment to give both Young's and Findus major national exposure on TV.
Birds Eye is a great brand with tremendous heritage. So is Young's. So is Findus. There's plenty of room for all of us to work to our own unique strengths and jointly grow the category.
Mark Escolme, MD Young's Seafood and Findus UK, The Findus Group
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