Providing market research reports, industry analysis, company profiles and country reports for strategic planning, competitive intelligence, marketing and business research.
Search for Market Research Reports:    

Eating Habits: Improving the Appeal of Convenience Options - Italy

Published by: Mintel International Group Ltd.

Published: May. 1, 2007 - 65 Pages


Table of Contents


Issues in the Market


Definition

Abbreviations



Market in Brief

Italians and convenience foods

Sales level, but consumers shift from frozen to chilled options

The competitive scenario

Distribution

Future



Internal Market Environment

Key points

Social trends that drive sales of convenience foods

Alternatives to convenience foods

Focus on quality hampers growth of convenience food

Convenience vs quality

The fast growing market of fresh pasta

Italians spend more on fish, and less on sugar, coffee and vegetables

Figure 1: Average family spending per month, by category, 2003-05

Figure 2: Average family spending per month, by category, by region, 2003-05

Figure 3: Sector spending as % of total, by occupation, 2005.



Broader Market Environment

Key Points

The Italian population is ageing

Figure 4: Trends in Italian population, by age, 2001-11

Italian households are smaller

Figure 5: Trends in household size in Italy, 2000-02

Economy is improving but any benefit for sales of consumer goods?

Figure 6: Trends in Italian PDI, consumer expenditure and GDP, at 2006 prices, 2001-11

Liberalisation laws favour supermarkets and hypermarkets

Towards ethical, environmentally-friendly and safer packaging



Who’s Innovating?

Key points

Low innovation as quality drives purchases

Ready meals

Frozen and fresh soups

Pasta sauces

Frozen pizza



Market Size and Forecast - Convenience Foods

Key Points

Figure 7: Italian retail value sales of selected convenience foods, by type, through H-S-S, 2004-06

Convenience foods to Italians mostly means …

Ethnic foods have to battle traditional attitudes

Organic meals may do well

Will chilled options overtake frozen ones?

Figure 8: Italian retail value sales of selected convenience foods* frozen vs chilled, through H-S-S, 2004-06

Forecast

Figure 9: Forecast of Italian retail value sales of selected convenience foods, at current prices, 2001-11

Figure 10: Forecast of Italian retail value sales of selected convenience foods, at 2006 prices, 2001-11

Factors used in the forecast

Prospects

Regional differences may level out

Rising purchasing power of low-income population

Men increasingly involved in household chores

Expanding the target market

Chilled ready meals will drive growth



Segment Performance

Key Points

Ready meals

Figure 11: Italian retail value sales of ready meals, chilled and frozen, through H-S-S, 2004-06

Frozen ready meals

Figure 12: Italian retail value sales of frozen ready meals, by type, through H-S-S, 2004-06

Chilled ready meals

Figure 13: Italian retail value sales of chilled ready meals, by type, through H-S-S, 2004-06

Fish-based dishes lead for second courses and starters

Figure 14: Italian retail value sales of chilled second courses and starters by primary ingredient, through H-S-S, 2004-06

Figure 15: Italian retail value sales of chilled second courses and starters, % by primary ingredient, through H-S-S, 2005-06

Chilled first courses: pasta leads, but fresh soups are growing faster

Figure 16: Italian retail value sales of chilled ready first courses, by type, through H-S-S, 2004-06

Frozen pizza

Figure 17: Italian retail value sales of frozen pizza, by size, through H-S-S, 2004-06

Frozen soups and cooking mixes

Ambient pasta sauces

Figure 18: Italian retail value sales of ambient pasta sauces, by type, H-S-S, 2005-06



Market Share

Key Points

Ready meals

Frozen and chilled first courses

Figure 19: Manufacturers' value shares of frozen first courses, through H-S-S, 2004-06

Figure 20: Manufacturers’ value shares of chilled first courses, through H-S-S, 2004-06

Frozen and chilled second courses and side dishes

Figure 21: Manufacturers’ value shares of frozen second courses and side dishes, through H-S-S, 2004-06

Figure 22: Brands’ value shares of chilled second courses, through H-S-S, 2004-06

Chilled side dishes

Chilled ready-prepared starters

Figure 23: Manufacturers’ value shares of chilled starters, through H-S-S, 2004-06

Frozen pizza

Figure 24: Manufacturers’ value shares of frozen pizza, through H-S-S, 2004-06

Frozen soups and cooking mixes

Figure 25: Manufacturers’ value shares of frozen soups and cooking mixes, through H-S-S, 2004-06

Pasta sauces

Own-labels in the convenience foods market

Figure 26: Italian retail value sales of selected frozen and chilled convenience foods, own-label vs brands, 2004-06

Figure 27: Italian retail value sales of frozen ready meals, own-label vs brands, 2004-06

Figure 28: Italian retail value sales of chilled ready meals, own-label vs brands, 2004-06



Companies and Products

Arena Holding

Barilla

Fratelli Beretta

La Linea Verde

Nestlé Italiana Spa/Buitoni

Unilever Italia Srl/Findus

Own-label - Coop Italia



Channels to Market

Key Points

Figure 29: Number of food retail outlets in Italy, by type, 2000-03

Supermarkets and hypermarkets for packaged and frozen food and traditional shops for bread and meat

Coop Italia is the leader in grocery distribution

Hard discounts are still synonymous with low quality

Frozen food is bought on-line

New distributors will probably enter the Italian market

Abstract

Chilled ready meals registered double-digit growth while sales of frozen meals are struggling as consumers look for quality, which they associate mainly with freshness, thus manufacturers have been able to market chilled ready meals based on traditional Italian recipes as offering the closest replica of food cooked from scratch at home. This is all happening despite the chilled category having few large players that can invest largely in advertising and marketing, such as Fratelli Beretta and Galbani, while the frozen category is extremely concentrated and can rely on the presence of multinationals such as Findus, Buitoni and Barilla.

Riding on the wave of healthy lifestyles, sales of soups, both frozen and fresh, reported good performance, as have pasta sauces, which surely have good potential for further growth in a country with the highest global pasta consumption and where pasta is an everyday meal.



Get Full Details About This Report >>
US: 800.298.5699
Int'l: +1.240.747.3093
Buy this Report
Price and Delivery Options

Search Inside Report


 

About MarketResearch.com
MarketResearch.com is an online aggregator selling over 160,000 market research reports, company profiles and country profiles from over 600 research firms. Our reports will provide you with the critical business and competitive intelligence you need for strategic planning and marketing research. Coverage includes the US, UK, Europe, Asia and global markets.

 

© MarketResearch.com 2008