Fresh Fruit and vegetable sales are up by 1.7% so far this year according to the latest market survey by Kantar Worldpanel, despite recent trends showing a consumer preference for stocking up.
They now account for 14.7% of total grocery spend in Ireland, with the fresh produce category valued at €1.25bn.
Bord Bia horticulture manager Mike Neary told the Irish Examiner, "In the year ending September 2013, the value of the fresh vegetable and potato category increased due to a higher average unit price, but volume is back when compared with the previous year.
For the same period the value of fresh fruit sales has remained similar, but volume is up by 1.7% due to a rise in the volume purchased per buyer and an increase in the shopping frequency."
The total Irish grocery market is currently valued at €8.99bn to the year ending September 15, 2013, showing an increase of 1.2% on the previous 12 months while market volume was back marginally by 0.2%.
© 2013 - Checkout Magazine by Genna Patterson
