Health and Wellness

Lactose free products continued to be of interest to consumers in Denmark, with sales of these products driven by large brands, such as Arla, Naturmælk and Thise. Lactose free is a strong trend because of food allergies and lactose intolerance, while…

More Belgians are becoming flexitarian, which is having two major impacts on the dairy products and alternatives category. On one hand, consumers are seeking dairy products that contain more proteins. Indeed, flexitarians need to find another source…

2022 saw further expansion of the subgroup of Austrian consumers who are paying significant attention to their physical and mental health and the role that their diet plays in maintaining good physical and mental health. This has supported rising…

Turkey has a long history of consumers enjoying dips, although these are often either made from scratch at home, or consumed in neighbourhood restaurants. However, recently there has been an increase in the availability of packaged dips, which are…

New lifestyles, including flexible working models, have encouraged local consumers to cook more often at home. This is in addition to rising inflation in the UK, which has been pushing up the cost of meals through consumer foodservice. This trend…

In general, there has been long-term growth in vegetarian cooking ingredients and meals. In 2022, there was a temporary dip in retail sales of these products, although this was mainly an adjustment after a sharp increase in retail sales of vegetarian…

2022 saw demand continue to increase across numerous categories of health and wellness cooking ingredients and meals, with these positive growth trends very much in line with the prevailing attitudes among Swiss consumers towards the dangers of…

Vegetarian, vegan and plant-based alternatives saw a boom in popularity in several packaged food categories towards the end of the review period with ready meals being no exception. There is a strong demand for healthier food alternatives in Sweden,…

In an inflationary environment, unevenly rising prices inevitably affected the purchasing power of many Spanish consumers in 2022, hampering the growth of certain health and wellness cooking ingredients and meals. Despite the temporary downhill…

2022 saw suppressed demand across Norway’s cooking ingredients and meals industry due to the resumption of the cross-border shopping that was extremely popular among local consumers prior to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. This also adversely…

Organic products came to the fore in several categories within cooking ingredients and meals in 2022. As demand has risen retailers’ shelves have become increasingly crowded with organic products with many stores creating specific areas of their…

The pandemic strengthened an already growing health and wellness trend within cooking ingredients and meals in Ireland. The HFSS (High Fat, Salt and Sugar) regulations, which were unveiled in December 2021 by the Advertising Standards Authority for…

The ready meals category is not as strong in Greece as in other Western countries due to the fact that Greek households still remain fairly traditional, with families eating primarily home cooked meals instead of buying packaged ready meals. This…

Cooking ingredients and meals in Germany saw several significant developments in 2022, including a growing focus on sustainability, convenience, and health. Sustainability has become an essential factor in the German market, with many consumers…

Overall volume sales of low fat cooking ingredients and meals continued to increase in France in 2022. Buoyant demand reflected rising consumer awareness of the health risks associated with being overweight or obese, a well-established trend that…

Nordic rapeseed oil is benefiting from being seen as a locally sourced superfood, boosting sales of domestic cooking oils. It is noteworthy that, as the global supply of sunflower oil suffered shortages in 2022, Finns increasingly turned to locally…

Environmental and animal welfare care, as well as health concerns, are providing a boost to sales of plant-based, meat free, and vegan cooking ingredients and meals. Organic-focused consumers also often look for foods to enable them to substitute…

Demand for healthy cooking ingredients and ready meals is on the rise in Belgium. Indeed, the Nutri-Score given to products is becoming more important for consumers, who are increasingly buying products with better Nutri-Scores especially concerning…

During 2022, convenience and health and wellness remained two of the most important megatrends influencing demand patterns among Austrian consumers and this combination of a desire to eat healthier types of convenience food supported strong growth in…

The health and wellness industry continues to grow in importance post-pandemic as consumers become more aware of the negative health impact of processed foods, seeking healthier foods and beverages from a range of claims such as natural, organic,…