Obesity problem? What obesity problem? Families are filling up on traditional puddings and microwaveable twin pots as comfort eating, coupled with eating in, heat up the hot desserts market, says Vince Bamford
It's grim out there. Swine flu, floods and recession. No wonder consumers are staying inside and seeking solace in hot desserts.
A lot of solace. Value sales in the overall hot-served chilled deserts market have leapt 11.4% to £150m over the past year [TNS 52w/e 6 September 2009]. While commodity price increases are responsible for some of this growth, volume sales have also risen, by 7.8%, over the same period.
The recession-driven renaissance of family mealtimes has undoubtedly played a part. "The market has been driven by the increase in people eating at home and, when they do so, looking for something that isn't second-best," says Andrew Ovens, group marketing director for Farmhouse Fare. "They don't want to compromise."
A key factor pushing consumers towards hot desserts rather than other sweet treats is nostalgia, adds Paul Heritage, MD at frozen food brand Aunt Bessie's. "Once consumers try their old favourites they remember how good they are," he says.
This was one of the reasons shoppers warmed so quickly to the 500g Tate & Lyle syrup pudding Farmhouse Fare launched in September, believes Ovens.
But price is key. Own label continues to dominate with its 88.1% share of market value [TNS 52w/e 6 September] up from 87.4% the previous year and both own-label and branded sales have been boosted by heavy promotional activity.
This year has been the year of the £5 and £10 meal deal and hot desserts have featured prominently. Gü's hot desserts have featured in a £10 Valentine's Day deal at Waitrose, while Farmhouse Fare's twin pots have been included in Sainsbury's £5 deal, and Kensey Foods launched a range of premium twin-pot sponges to support a Tesco Finest meal deal this year.
"We make about 20 different twin-pack hot-eating desserts for Tesco, from classic syrup sponges to seasonal lines such as toffee apple crumbles," says Kensey Foods commercial manager Stuart Crowther.
While meal deals have been good news for consumers, the level of promotional activity that has accompanied the plethora of product launches has been a double-edged sword for the more premium brands. Although Gü has been fairly heavily promoted, the level of activity has been nowhere near that of Cadbury's hot chocolate and caramel sponge pudding twin pots in either frequency or depth. With an rsp of £2 and promotional price of £1, the new puddings, which were launched by Kensey Foods a year ago, have helped Cadbury overtake Gü in the TNS ranking of top hot-served chilled dessert brands.
"The Cadbury sponge puddings are breaking all records for the category and are helping to introduce new consumers to the category," says Crowther.
Gü isn't taking the situation lying down, however in October it launched a twin-pot pack of Gü Saucy Caramel puddings with a separate pot of caramel sauce. Sales director Amelia Macleod says its twin-pot chocolate and sticky toffee puddings have been the company's bestsellers over the past year.
The pricing activity has, to a certain extent, benefited the whole sub-category. The twin-pot format holds the largest share of the hot desserts market by value and volume and has been one of the main drivers of category growth, with sales up 10.1% to £58m [TNS 52w/e 6 September].
But individual desserts have shown the greatest growth in percentage terms, up 39.4% by value and 77.5% by volume. Many suppliers expect further growth from the format and Gü reveals it is looking at launching individual products next year.
This doesn't mean shoppers are turning their back on family-sized desserts, though, with sales of large-format puddings up 27.9% to £39m [TNS 52w/e 6 September 2009]. Volume growth is also up by 17.4% suggesting shoppers have opted to buy more premium puds.
These are traditionally eaten at a family meal such as Sunday lunch but are increasingly being served at, or taken to, dinner parties, says Ovens.
"It has become more acceptable to serve a bought pudding as part of a dinner party," he adds. "It is becoming recognised that making such puddings requires a level of skill that many people simply do not have."
With all this talk of soufflé and sticky toffee, aren't suppliers worried that government and public concerns over the nation's drift towards obesity will eventually turn consumers off the category? Apparently not. "Most consumers recognise that it is healthy to eat a balanced meal," says Ovens. "Snacking and grazing are more of an issue than eating a pudding, as long as it is part of a balanced diet."
Macleod echoes this. "There is a real trend for consumers eating healthy, fresh food and having the occasional treat," she says. "When they do indulge, they go for quality. This trend has also been seen across ice cream, chocolate and crisps & snacks, where premium products have been selling very well despite the economic environment."
There are exceptions, organic products to name one. Farmhouse Fare, which produces organic versions of its sticky toffee and sticky chocolate puddings, confirms that retailers have cut back on the number of organic hot desserts. "The organic market is not as strong as it was 12 months ago, although there remains a core of consumers who are loyal," says Ovens.
The success of traditional favourites appears to have come at the expense of some niche sub-sectors of the market, with value sales of patisserie tarts crashing 47.9% and those of pancakes falling 15.2% [TNS 52w/e 6 September 2009].
Such figures serve as a warning that, no matter how successful the overall market, suppliers cannot afford to be complacent. But the indications are that the overall market will continue to flourish in the short term. "Despite having had a mild start to the winter, sales have been strong and I'm sure they will continue to surge as people seek nostalgic, comforting food," says Ovens.
With the recession rolling on, swine flu continuing to spread and the British weather doing what it does best, there's every chance shoppers will be seeking comfort for some time to come.
Focus On Hot Desserts
It's grim out there. Swine flu, floods and recession. No wonder consumers are staying inside and seeking solace in hot desserts.
A lot of solace. Value sales in the overall hot-served chilled deserts market have leapt 11.4% to £150m over the past year [TNS 52w/e 6 September 2009]. While commodity price increases are responsible for some of this growth, volume sales have also risen, by 7.8%, over the same period.
The recession-driven renaissance of family mealtimes has undoubtedly played a part. "The market has been driven by the increase in people eating at home and, when they do so, looking for something that isn't second-best," says Andrew Ovens, group marketing director for Farmhouse Fare. "They don't want to compromise."
A key factor pushing consumers towards hot desserts rather than other sweet treats is nostalgia, adds Paul Heritage, MD at frozen food brand Aunt Bessie's. "Once consumers try their old favourites they remember how good they are," he says.
This was one of the reasons shoppers warmed so quickly to the 500g Tate & Lyle syrup pudding Farmhouse Fare launched in September, believes Ovens.
But price is key. Own label continues to dominate with its 88.1% share of market value [TNS 52w/e 6 September] up from 87.4% the previous year and both own-label and branded sales have been boosted by heavy promotional activity.
This year has been the year of the £5 and £10 meal deal and hot desserts have featured prominently. Gü's hot desserts have featured in a £10 Valentine's Day deal at Waitrose, while Farmhouse Fare's twin pots have been included in Sainsbury's £5 deal, and Kensey Foods launched a range of premium twin-pot sponges to support a Tesco Finest meal deal this year.
"We make about 20 different twin-pack hot-eating desserts for Tesco, from classic syrup sponges to seasonal lines such as toffee apple crumbles," says Kensey Foods commercial manager Stuart Crowther.
While meal deals have been good news for consumers, the level of promotional activity that has accompanied the plethora of product launches has been a double-edged sword for the more premium brands. Although Gü has been fairly heavily promoted, the level of activity has been nowhere near that of Cadbury's hot chocolate and caramel sponge pudding twin pots in either frequency or depth. With an rsp of £2 and promotional price of £1, the new puddings, which were launched by Kensey Foods a year ago, have helped Cadbury overtake Gü in the TNS ranking of top hot-served chilled dessert brands.
"The Cadbury sponge puddings are breaking all records for the category and are helping to introduce new consumers to the category," says Crowther.
Gü isn't taking the situation lying down, however in October it launched a twin-pot pack of Gü Saucy Caramel puddings with a separate pot of caramel sauce. Sales director Amelia Macleod says its twin-pot chocolate and sticky toffee puddings have been the company's bestsellers over the past year.
The pricing activity has, to a certain extent, benefited the whole sub-category. The twin-pot format holds the largest share of the hot desserts market by value and volume and has been one of the main drivers of category growth, with sales up 10.1% to £58m [TNS 52w/e 6 September].
But individual desserts have shown the greatest growth in percentage terms, up 39.4% by value and 77.5% by volume. Many suppliers expect further growth from the format and Gü reveals it is looking at launching individual products next year.
This doesn't mean shoppers are turning their back on family-sized desserts, though, with sales of large-format puddings up 27.9% to £39m [TNS 52w/e 6 September 2009]. Volume growth is also up by 17.4% suggesting shoppers have opted to buy more premium puds.
These are traditionally eaten at a family meal such as Sunday lunch but are increasingly being served at, or taken to, dinner parties, says Ovens.
"It has become more acceptable to serve a bought pudding as part of a dinner party," he adds. "It is becoming recognised that making such puddings requires a level of skill that many people simply do not have."
With all this talk of soufflé and sticky toffee, aren't suppliers worried that government and public concerns over the nation's drift towards obesity will eventually turn consumers off the category? Apparently not. "Most consumers recognise that it is healthy to eat a balanced meal," says Ovens. "Snacking and grazing are more of an issue than eating a pudding, as long as it is part of a balanced diet."
Macleod echoes this. "There is a real trend for consumers eating healthy, fresh food and having the occasional treat," she says. "When they do indulge, they go for quality. This trend has also been seen across ice cream, chocolate and crisps & snacks, where premium products have been selling very well despite the economic environment."
There are exceptions, organic products to name one. Farmhouse Fare, which produces organic versions of its sticky toffee and sticky chocolate puddings, confirms that retailers have cut back on the number of organic hot desserts. "The organic market is not as strong as it was 12 months ago, although there remains a core of consumers who are loyal," says Ovens.
The success of traditional favourites appears to have come at the expense of some niche sub-sectors of the market, with value sales of patisserie tarts crashing 47.9% and those of pancakes falling 15.2% [TNS 52w/e 6 September 2009].
Such figures serve as a warning that, no matter how successful the overall market, suppliers cannot afford to be complacent. But the indications are that the overall market will continue to flourish in the short term. "Despite having had a mild start to the winter, sales have been strong and I'm sure they will continue to surge as people seek nostalgic, comforting food," says Ovens.
With the recession rolling on, swine flu continuing to spread and the British weather doing what it does best, there's every chance shoppers will be seeking comfort for some time to come.
Focus On Hot Desserts
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