Bottled Water in Norway

2020 IMPACT

COVID-19 restrictions and fear of contagion shift volume sales from the on-trade to the off-trade

Growth in off-trade volume sales of bottled water will accelerate during 2020, with COVID-19 leading to a significant shift from the on-trade to the off-trade. The decline in on-trade volume sales was greater than the increase in off-trade volume sales.

Sustainability, natural ingredients and convenience are key demand drivers

Sustainability and natural ingredients remain the most notable positioning strategies in bottled water. Leading player Ringnes AS dedicates a large proportion of the product labels of the flavoured bottled water variants of its Farris and Isklar brands to pictures of fruit, positioning them as alternatives to more indulgent soft drinks, such as carbonates.

Private label puts downward pressure on unit price and poses a growing threat to branded products

Private label continues to grow in importance in bottled water, putting downward pressure on unit price. It is particularly important in purified bottled water, which continues to grow in importance within bottled water: Purified bottled water will outperform both natural mineral and spring bottled water in 2020.

RECOVERY AND OPPORTUNITIES

Post-pandemic recovery will drive rebound in on-trade demand

With daily life set to gradually normalise during 2021, on-trade volume sales of bottled water will rebound as consumers pay more visits to restaurants, bars and cafés. However, even by the end of the forecast period, they will not have recovered to their pre-pandemic level.

Functional bottled water will continue to enjoy strong growth as a healthier alternative to such soft drinks as carbonates

Functional bottled water is set to see the highest rate of growth in bottled water during the forecast period, albeit from a relatively low base. Flavoured bottled water producers will continue to reposition their products as healthier alternatives to such soft drinks like carbonates, with awareness of the benefits of these functional ingredients on the rise.

With consumers increasingly comfortable shopping online, e-commerce will continue to grow in importance as a distribution channel

The importance of e-commerce as a distribution channel for bottle water has significantly increased as a result of the pandemic, and this channel is likely to see renewed growth during the forecast period. With a growing number of consumers increasingly comfortable shopping for groceries online and investment in this channel increasing, e-commerce is set to continue to grow in importance in bottled water over the course of the forecast period.