Latin America

Technological advances in 2024 will continue to reshape consumer behaviour. This annual report explores the top five digital shopper trends that will redefine commerce the most in the year ahead. Some of the trends included in this report’s edition…

In spite of rising costs and prices in recent years, sales of dairy products and alternatives have continued to grow in real value terms in Latin America. The essential nature of products like cheese has helped maintain demand for them, while sales…

The briefing examines how the milk commodity performs globally and in the largest countries in terms of supply and production. The report also provides data and analysis on milk price dynamics, as well as trends across key commodity consuming…

This report examines inflation levels and drivers globally and in key countries in Q4 2023 and 2024. Global inflation is moderating, although divergence remains among the key economies. Higher volatility in the energy markets and disruption of…

In 2020 Mexico introduced black seals on labels that alert consumers about excess sugar, calories, sodium, and other potentially harmful ingredients as part of its efforts to improve the health of the nation and to tackle the obesity epidemic.…

High inflation and a rise in the cost of living has put the squeeze on consumers’ disposable income in 2023 with the prices of food and services shooting up. With consumers being faced with more limited budgets this has encouraged them to prioritise…

The expansion of modern retailers has noticeably increased the refrigerated space available at stores. In addition to the new stores that are constantly opening across the country, many existing supermarkets and hypermarkets have also invested in…

The consumption of milk has decreased for the third year in a row in 2023. This is explained, in part, by the evolution of the demographics in the country. The population of children (aged 0 to 14 years old) has been declining consistently and this…

In 2023 consumers have remained cautious with their spending due to prevailing economic uncertainty. This has resulted in households prioritising essential products and limiting their consumption of non-essentials. Many dairy products are perceived…

Cheese has been the most dynamic category in dairy in current value and retail volume terms in 2023. The shift from unpackaged to packaged formats is an important driver of this trend, but also the positioning of cheese as an affordable source of…

In 2023, inflationary pressures have had a noticeable impact on the price of butter and spreads. This has encouraged some consumers to shift towards lower priced options such as cooking oils which resulted in a slowdown in the growth of butter and…

With the health crisis finally being declared over by the WHO in 2023 many companies decided to bring their staff back to the office. While some companies deployed hybrid work arrangements others have brought their staff back into the office full…

With ongoing disruptions in global supply chains, the impact of rising prices in the Brazilian dairy production chain echoed through virtually all dairy derivatives in 2022, including yoghurt, albeit at a much slower rate than seen in 2021.…

In 2021, Brazil had a thriving foodtech industry, with 1,125 active companies. Amongst them, approximately 332 were dedicated to producing nutrition products, and a significant proportion of these were believed to be focused on developing plant-based…

With the ongoing disruptions in the global supply chain, the impact of rising prices on the Brazilian dairy production chain echoed through virtually all dairy categories in 2022, albeit at a much slower rate than seen in 2021. Production costs in…

As inflation impacted the Brazilian economy, the price of milk experienced a significant increase, leading to up to an 80% hike. This surge in prices put pressure on the disposable incomes of Brazilian consumers, making milk unaffordable for many…

The Brazilian dairy industry has experienced a challenging scenario in recent years, marked by concerns over the exit of medium and small dairy producers, and a decline in the dairy cattle population. This trend is primarily driven by the absence of…

Amongst the key categories within dairy, cheese stands out as one of the primary products derived from pure milk. Given its significance in the dairy chain, this category has been one of the most affected by significant structural changes imposed on…

The Brazilian dairy industry has historically had negative results in its balance of trade. The country’s dairy production has not been sufficient to supply all its needs in terms of dairy products. In the past year, for some categories it has been…

Despite constant discussion on the benefits of breastfeeding, milk formula has increased its market size constantly in Brazil, with manufacturers offering a wide range of options for children. The historic growth and change in infant feeding have…

Retail volume sales of yoghurt and sour milk products is expected to recover in 2023, following production problems in the previous year. Conflicts between the leading companies and trade unions resulted in general strikes and a reduced supply of raw…

While current value sales of yoghurt is expected to grow in 2023, constant value sales are expected to fall. This weak performance is reflected in the economy, which contracted in the first half of 2023. An unpopular government, bad weather, high…

Plant-based dairy is still underdeveloped in Uruguay with brand and products focused mainly in plant-based milk. However, consumers are becoming more aware about healthier and sustainable options, with new local producers emerging as well as…

Peru’s economy continues to be sluggish in 2023 and this is dampening growth of plant-based dairy, as products are more expensive than traditional dairy products. An unpopular government, bad weather, high interest rates and inflation are all…

Chilled and shelf stable dairy desserts registered a decrease in retail volume terms in 2022, but a modest rebound is expected in 2023. During the second half of 2022, the second leading player Cooperativa Nacional de Productores de Leche (Conaprole)…

Evaporated milk is Peru’s most popular dairy product. However, it is increasingly getting bad press, as consumers realise how unhealthy the ingredients are. As such, evaporated milk has registered volume decline in recent years and is also expected…

After a decline in supply in 2022, improved milk production is pushing retail volume sales back into growth in 2023. Conflict between the leader supplier Cooperativa Nacional de Productores de Leche (Conaprole) and trade unions reduced the supply of…

Shelf stable milk continues to benefit from the decline in consumption of evaporated milk. Consumers are increasingly switching to shelf stable milk, as it is healthier and the range is also increasing, in terms of packaging formats, as well as…

In 2023, dairy products and alternatives registered modest growth in volume terms, following a contraction in 2022. The poor performance in both years can be partly explained by a conflict between the leading company Cooperativa Nacional de…

The dairy sector continues to be under strain in Peru in 2023 and while current value is expected to grow, volume sales are expected to fall, dragged down by the weak performance of evaporated milk, which is Peru’s most popular dairy product. This…

Per capita cheese consumption in Uruguay is among the highest in Latin America and the world, due to its long tradition of cheese production. After a soft contraction in 2022, retail volume sales is expected to achieve positive growth in 2023.…

While current value sales of cheese is expected to grow in 2023, constant value sales are expected to fall. This weak performance is reflected in the economy, which contracted in the first half of 2023. An unpopular government, bad weather, high…

Butter and spreads registered a modest increase in retail volume terms in 2022 and a similar performance is expected in 2023. As a mature category, there is little room for growth in butter and spreads. However, the category experienced high demand…

Even though consumers are increasingly aware of the health benefits of butter, margarine and spreads continues to account for most volume sales and registers the highest value and volume growth in 2023. Consumers are price sensitive, as the economy…

Milk formula registered positive retail volume growth for the third consecutive year in 2023. Price increases are creating some changes to demand, with budget-conscious parents shifting to cheaper alternatives, such as cow´s milk. Since the COVID-19…

Baby food is expected to register both healthy constant value and volume growth. With society being fully opened up, young parents appreciate the convenience of baby food. Milk formula continues to account for the vast majority of value sales, with…

Both plain and flavoured yoghurt have benefited from rising health and wellness concerns in the country. Greek yoghurt has grown considerably as players, including Tonicorp, Karuu, Chivería and Rey Lácteos, offer a wide variety of products. Premium…

Plant-based milk has experienced significant growth in recent years in Ecuador. This growth has been driven by various factors, including an increasing awareness of the health benefits of plant-based diets, environmental concerns, and changing…

Cream was negatively impacted by the national strike in 2022 as many players in the category do not offer shelf stable presentations and therefore cannot have large inventories. This made them the first products to run out when there was a shortage.…

In 2022, milk consumption in Ecuador was limited by the national strike that took place in the middle of the year, which complicated the logistics chain. With no national strikes in 2023, consumption returned to normal; however, category growth in…

Sales of dairy products and alternatives are set to register marginal growth in 2023. Despite the resumption of society in the wake of the pandemic, the consumer base for dairy products and alternatives remains small, comprised of the growing middle…

High inflation led to significant unit price rises in dairy products and alternatives during 2023 putting pressure on household incomes. This in turn forced consumers to adopt a more conservative approach to their spending. Manufacturers were also…

Sales of dairy products and alternatives achieved only moderate growth in 2023. However, the market was affected by inflationary pressures, particularly in the prices of imported products such as milk formula, a category that is solely dependent on…

Dairy products has been negatively impacted by the recent social problems that the country has endured. In mid-2022, an 18-day national strike greatly complicated the logistics chain. As milk is a perishable item, much of the industry’s raw material…

Queso fresco (fresh cheese) is the most consumer cheese in Ecuador. In this category, the participation of the informal industry is very pronounced as cheese consumption is very regional. Each area is accustomed to the type of cheese that is produced…

Butter consumption in Ecuador is relatively low compared to other countries in the region. This is due in part to the availability of cheaper alternatives such as margarine, which are more commonly used for both cooking and baking. Margarine has a…

The declining birth rate during the pandemic has had a significant impact on the baby food industry in Ecuador. With fewer babies being born, there is a smaller target market for baby food manufacturers. The high cost of baby food products has…

Yoghurt is expected to register both a decline in current and constant value sales in 2023, though volume sales are expected to increase moderately. With inflation continuing to be an issue, consumers look to trade down and opt for cheaper brands. In…

Yoghurt and sour milk products is expected to register healthy current value and volume growth. While there is still economic uncertainty, as a result of rising inflation, the growth in inflation is expected to ease. That being said, consumers are…

Current value sales are expected to increase, along with a healthy increase in volume sales. While there is still economic uncertainty, as a result of rising inflation, the growth in inflation is expected to ease. That being said, consumers are…