Britain’s top 10 yoghurt brands are in volume decline as fears over sugar and range rationalisation take their toll.
Brits splashed out an extra £41.7m on yoghurts and fromage frais last year, but value growth was driven by a 2.9% increase in average prices, with volumes falling 0.3% year on year [Kantar 52 w/e 3 December 2017].
This reflected falling consumption in the evening and at lunch, with fears over sugar also resulting in children eating less yoghurt and fromage frais, said Kantar analyst Bertie Lewis. “Yoghurt and fromage frais consumed at breakfast, teatime or as a snack have seen consistent growth over the past two years. But this isn’t enough to offset the decline from other occasions.”
Watch: The Grocer 1:20 category briefing sponsored by Müller
Brands were worst hit, with value sales of branded yoghurt falling 0.6% on volumes down 2.7%, compared with 6.5% growth in volume sales of own label. “Range rationalisation continues to put pressure on yoghurt brands,” said Danone head of market strategy & category management Clare Denham.
The breakfast grub: Yoghurt Category Report 2018
Among the biggest losers were Müller Crunch Corner and Müller Fruit Corner, which saw volume sales plummet by 11.1% and 11.7% respectively. This reflected a wider move away from split-pot yoghurts as shoppers opted for “more natural, less processed” pots, said Lewis.
Changing health perceptions also drove a drop in sales of active health yoghurts, with volumes of Danone’s Activia down 5.7%.
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