Eastern Europe

2023 is another year of the wound care category returning to its pre-pandemic sales level. Consumers have resumed their usual active lifestyles following the outbreak of COVID-19. Both adults and children have returned to sports, hiking and other…

Having experienced a slowdown during the height of the pandemic, wound care showed signs of greater stability in 2023. This was largely attributable to the rollback of stringent pandemic-related restrictions and a gradual decrease in the public's…

With Romanian consumers having returned to more active lifestyles in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis, there has been an increased incidence of minor injuries. The greater engagement in physical exercise amongst health conscious consumers and children…

Private label offerings like those of Dr Max, Tesco, Action, Lidl and Benu are steadily growing in popularity in sticking plasters/adhesive bandages. The economic shock of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and high inflationary pressure on prices…

In 2023, most baby food subcategories continue to show positive growth, both in retail volume and current value terms. Despite the country’s declining birth rate, there is growing demand for specialised baby food among Bulgarian mothers, with mothers…

Baby food is predicted to experience an increase in current value sales in 2023. Nonetheless, a significant portion of this value growth will be influenced by price hikes due to various factors, such as the escalation of energy prices and the ongoing…

Butter and spreads continue to witness decline in retail volume sales due to price inflation. Butter was among the food categories with the highest price growth in 2022 as players faced soaring costs. Retail prices continued to increase in the first…

Despite the recovery of pre-pandemic lifestyles, with Croatians returning to office workplaces and spending less time at home, margarine sales continue to decrease. In recent years, margarine has been labelled as a less healthy option than butter,…

The consumption of cheese rose marginally in 2023 after two years of decline caused by a shift back towards out-of-home entertaining and travelling in the post-pandemic era. Foodservice sales grew significantly and are exceeding pre-pandemic levels…

Lactose-free varieties have gained popularity at the expense of standard cheese in 2023. While this is partly due to the well-established tendency towards rising health awareness among the population, many consumers have also become more willing to…

The dairy and alternatives category in Bulgaria has been severely impacted by high inflation rates against the backdrop of the war in Ukraine and the country’s political crisis. Dairy prices increased enormously in 2022 and continued to grow slightly…

The dairy products and alternatives category is on course to experience limited growth in retail volume and current value sales in 2023. The unstable economic climate is hindering retail volume sales with the increase in fuel prices and the war in…

In 2023, drinking milk products continued to witness negative volume growth, due in part to reduced time spent at home cooking and a falling population. On the other hand, drinking milk products saw positive growth in current value terms, as…

Consumers are paying more attention to the safety and origin of food and drinking milk products, and are looking to support local brands as much as possible. This is especially true as the economy falters. A national food designation scheme entitled…

In 2023, chilled dairy desserts and chilled snacks started to see consumption recover after the previous year’s decline, whilst other categories remain in decline. Current value growth was driven by further inflation and price growth, especially at…

Despite the growing importance of health and wellness, the price hikes, and general economic instability, both coffee whiteners and cream are witnessing healthy growth in 2023. When it comes to coffee drinking in Croatia, tradition always outweighs…

In 2023, plant-based dairy continues to enjoy healthy growth in Bulgaria, both in retail volume and current value terms. Plant-based products were less affected by the previous year’s inflation than the dairy category, as they are generally consumed…

Plant-based milk is gaining popularity in Croatia, as evidenced by the growing percentage of the population now purchasing them. Plant-based milk products are most commonly purchased by higher-income groups living in urban areas. Even though the…

Yoghurt and sour milk products decreased slightly in 2023 as inflation pushed up retail prices and the declining population trend reduced potential consumers. At the same time, current value sales were slightly positive based on higher unit prices,…

As the Croatian population was required to stay at home for extended periods in 2020 and 2021, due to COVID-19 regulations, yoghurt experienced a shift in consumer perception and usage. Historically, yoghurt was mainly considered a convenient…