Focus On Pasta: 29 October

By Harry Holmes Harry.Holmes@thegrocer.co.uk 

Publishing: 29 October 2022
Advertising deadline: 14 October 2022
Submissions deadline: 7 October 2022

For a dry category, pasta has experienced a lot of twists and turns of late. Heavily stockpiled at the height of the pandemic, last year it was hit by wheat shortages which sent prices upwards. The disruption has proved a fertile time for challenger brands. Two new entrants have notched several million pounds of growth in the past year, while other established brands have had success by pivoting to convenience. Never let a crisis go to waste, as the saying goes. So will these challengers and changers be able to redefine pasta? Can convenience continue to thrive at a time of rising living costs? And how will own label adapt to the disruption?

Supply chain disruption: Last year a shortage of durum wheat had big implications for pasta. How have supply chains adapted in the time since? And how are the shifts affecting the category?

Convenience: Busier post-lockdown lifestyles are incentivising convenience. How are suppliers and retailers catering to these new appetites?

Own label: The value of own label has gone up considerably in the last year, although volumes remain fairly flat. How are retailers’ own ranges capitalising on shoppers’ desire for cheaper products?

Pasta sauces: Retailers are rationalising sauce ranges as shoppers seek to trade down. How can brands appeal to shoppers and stay competitive on supermarket shelves?

Innovations: We will profile 4 new products or ranges that have ideally not appeared in The Grocer before. We need launch date, rsp, and a hi-res picture of each