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Diet and Fat Free Foods Market Assessment 1999
Key Note Publications Ltd, Jan 1999
The market for reduced-fat, reduced-sugar and calorie-counted meals was estimated to be worth in excess of £5.2bn in 1999, with the reduced-fat sector showing the most growth. While some fat and carbohydrate is essential to the diet, this report looks at the way in which the food industry has reacted to, and perhaps provoked, a slow but sure increase in demand for reduced-fat and reduced-sugar foods. Although expenditure has been increasing in recent years, it still accounts for a relatively small percentage of overall expenditure on food.
Despite an increased awareness of the link between diet and health, an NOP survey commissioned for this report found a surprisingly low degree of penetration for reduced-fat food, with the one exception of dairy products. This implies considerable potential for further growth in the sector. The market may be developed in one of two ways. Firstly, it may be possible to persuade consumers to change to healthier alternatives. A second option is to tempt people to buy reduced-fat or low-fat and low-calorie versions of foods that they might previously have considered out of bounds. The latter is obviously the preferred option for manufacturers and retailers, as it will increase the total market size, rather than detract from existing sales.
Changing lifestyles have resulted in increased demand for ready meals and other processed foods, but this is no longer at the expense of quality and is as true of reduced-fat and reduced-sugar variants as it is of standard foods. With a more adventurous palate, thanks to a global food industry, more foreign travel and a plethora of ethnic cuisine, the health-conscious consumer wants the same extensive choice of healthy food in the same convenient format that he or she has come to expect in standard versions. However, it is sometimes the case that what is perceived as a healthy option is not always so. Unless the consumer is conversant with the difference between types of fats and sugars, and scrutinises food labelling, it is easy to be blissfully unaware of calorific count and the amount of 'hidden' fat and sugar in processed food.
Unfortunately, it is often the fat content of food that gives it a pleasing taste and texture, and a main factor behind a reluctance to choose a reduced-fat or reduced-sugar variant, rather than the standard version, is that the flavour and consistency often simply do not match up to expectation. Manufacturers are, therefore, putting considerable research into developing reduced-fat, reduced-sugar and calorie-counted products that do not compromise on taste.
There are a number of major brands in this market. Many standard food brands are now available in lower-fat variants - for example, dairy spreads and salad accompaniments. The major stand-alone brands include Weight Watchers from Heinz, Go Ahead! and Vitalinea from Jacobs Bakery. Retailer own-label healthy eating brands include Marks and Spencer 'Count On Us' and Sainsbury's 'Be Good To Yourself', which is rapidly becoming a top UK grocery brand. Extensive research carried out by J. Sainsbury, before launching its low-fat range, found that consumers did indeed want more choice, but they also wanted easily identifiable healthy meals, clearly labelled.
Main media advertising on some of these brands is considerable. For example, the Go Ahead! range was supported by a £5m television campaign launched in July 1999.
Exclusive consumer research was commissioned to ascertain the incidence of purchase of the categories of reduced-fat and reduced-sugar foods considered in this report: ready meals, frozen foods, dairy products, desserts, confectionery, cakes and biscuits, and sauces and condiments. Findings from this and previous polls, commissioned for related Market Assessment reports, conclude that those in the lower socio-economic groups are the least likely to pay heed to their diet, yet are the ones most at risk. It is also evident that healthy food is often comparatively expensive, a prime example being that of the cholesterol-lowering range of Benecol products.
It would seem that there remains further opportunity to emphasise the established link between health and a daily diet, despite a sizeable proportion of people who feel the issue is already afforded too much importance.
Recent years have seen a number of health scares, which have left the consumer concerned about food ingredients and processing, and feeling less than confident in some of the claims and assurances meted out by the food industry and the Government. The dramatic increase in the popularity of organic produce is testament to the fact that more and more people are becoming wary of practices such as genetically modifying food.
Extensive media attention has focused on techniques developed in food processing. The development of a synthetic fat substitute that contributes no fat or calories to the body might appear to be the dieter's dream, but it has, in fact, yet to be licensed in Europe, amid fears of possible adverse physiological and nutritional effects. The 'fat-free fat', named Olestra, is not digestible and can cause gastric upset and reduce the absorption of nutrients. Given the consumer's growing suspicion of food modification, any introduction into the UK is likely to be surrounded by controversy.
Consumers' heightened interest in the origins and contents of their food may be potentially both advantageous and disadvantageous to the market for reduced-fat, reduced-sugar and calorie-counted food. On the one hand, consumers will be more inclined to study labels and will realise just how high the 'hidden' fat and sugar content can be in processed foods, perhaps persuading them to choose a reduced version. On the other hand, some may be inclined to shun processed foods in favour of preparing food from scratch - although, given their importance to busy lifestyles, this is unlikely to be on any significant scale.
Food retailing in the UK is fiercely competitive and there is limited potential to increase total food sales substantially, except through value-added products. The value of the market for reduced-fat, reduced-sugar and calorie-counted food is expected to grow at a slightly higher rate than the food market as a whole, and to be worth around £6bn by 2003.
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