Super sales for superfoods

Citation

(2007), "Super sales for superfoods", Nutrition & Food Science, Vol. 37 No. 5. https://doi.org/10.1108/nfs.2007.01737eab.024

Super sales for superfoods

Super sales for superfoods

Amidst claims about the health benefits of certain foods, recent reporting by Nielsen highlights that the sales of some named "superfoods" have shown incredible growth in the past two years. Nutritional experts and medical professionals have named a dozen easy-to-find superfoods which, if worked into the diet, can do wonders for the health. The 14, include beans, blueberries, broccoli, oats, oranges, pumpkin, salmon, soy, spinach, green or black tea, tomatoes, turkey, walnuts and yogurt.

Jonathan Banks, Business Insight Director at Nielsen commented, "Because these are fairly ordinary foods, experts believe it is easy for people to benefit from their goodness and with retailers such as Tesco endorsing these superfoods as part of their Healthy Living drive, sales of many have increased dramatically over the past two years".

The biggest growing superfood is the blueberry whose sales have more than doubled (132 per cent) in the last two years. Nielsen's Scantrack service, which monitors sales out of supermarkets and convenience stores via EPoS checkout scanners and accounts for sales in over 74,000 stores nationwide has identified that in the 12 months to May 2005 we spent just over £40 million on blueberries in Britain. This has now soared to around £95 million in the latest 12 months. "Blueberries contain antioxidants which help with circulation, keeping the heart healthy and maintaining youthful looking skin.These are all important to today's health and youth conscious consumer", added Banks.

Spinach sales have grown 26 per cent in the same period with the market being worth £42 million now, growing from £32 million in the year to May 2005. In the last year alone over 800,000 more households have bought spinach than the previous year. And tomato sales have also increased by 16 per cent – the tomato market is worth £625 million and so this accounts for an additional £86 million in sales. "In the case of tomatoes, our data is showing that people are willing to spend more here. There are a lot of varieties available and consumers are willing to `trade up' to more expensive varieties such as `on the vine' which is pushing sales values up", observed Banks.

Salmon is another big grower – sales here have increased 31 per cent in the past two years to around £450 million per year, an increase of £105 million versus 2005. Banks continues, "This growth rate does not surprise me. Salmon is a rich natural source of Omega-3 which helps heart health and joints – it is also believed that Omega-3 can increase brain development in children".

Among other superfoods, sales of shelled walnuts, described as "nutritional powerhouses" which are high in fibre and polyunsaturated fats and are believed to help lower cholesterol have grown over 30 per cent in the last two years and sales of fresh beans have grown 13 per cent – this market being worth around £160 million.

In packaged goods there have been significant rises in sales of another antioxidant, green tea, (45 per cent in two years) which was worth just over £11 million in the year to May 2005, but is now worth over £16 million. Oat cereals have also shown significant growth. "Oats have been named as a superfood because they can contribute to lowering cholesterol, maintain healthy hearts and are high in fiber and protein", commented Banks. He continued, "Manufacturers have recognised that consumers understand the benefits of a healthy breakfast and have innovated in oat cereals with the development of a number of ready to eat options such as Oatibix and Nestle's Oats & More. Museli, which is oat based is growing well also".

Soy is another star grower. Non-dairy soy drinks have seen growth of almost 50 per cent in the last two years and the market is now worth over £70 million. Soy is another cholesterol-lowering foodstuff and also a powerful antioxidant and a rich source of Omega-3.

The Nielsen Company is a global information and media company with leading market positions and recognised brands in marketing information (ACNielsen), media information (Nielsen Media Research), business publications (Billboard, The Hollywood Reporter, Adweek) and trade shows. The privately held company is active in more than 100 countries, with headquarters in Haarlem, the Netherlands, and New York, USA.