​Focus On Butters & Spreads: 16 May

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butter spread

Focus On: Butters & Spreads by Henry Sandercock

Publishing: 16 May

Download the synopsis here

Advertising deadline: 6 May

Submissions deadline: 29 April

The story

As coronavirus-hit UK settled into its lockdown, Celebrity Bake Off hit TV, followed by Easter. This triple-whammy inspired confined Brits to bake with abandon, as they passed the time making comfort food. Of course, these cakes and biscuits largely rely on one key ingredient: butters and spreads. So how are sales doing? Which brands are doing best? How are they faring against cheaper own label? And finally, how are suppliers keeping up with demand?

Key themes

Lockdown Britain: How has the coronavirus pandemic driven sales of butter? Home baking will be a key factor, but what about the huge increase in at-home breakfast and lunch occasions? Are Brits also chowing down on more buttery toast and sarnies? How are dairy businesses keeping up with increased demand?

Health: Before Covid-19 hit, veganism was a super-trend – and butters & spreads were not untouched by its influence. Upfield, for one, dropped all dairy from its Flora range. Is plant-based spread abiding now, or are shoppers returning to the comforting classics? It’s not just vegan lines that could be threatened. In regular butter, how are low-fat and low-salt options doing?

Prices: As a commodity, butter generally weakened in price in March, according to AHDB, as export orders fell and foodservice firms closed across the EU. But demand for volumes in retail were high. So where does that leave the retail price of butter, a commodity notoriously susceptible to market influences? And how is that influencing shopper behaviour?

Kantar: Using Kantar data, we explain the reasons behind the rise and fall of the butter & spread sub-categories.

Nielsen: Using Nielsen data, we explain how the top 10 butters and spreads brands are faring.

Innovations: we dentify four new butter & spread products or product ranges that have ideally not appeared in The Grocer before, including launch date and RSP, and a hi-res picture of each.