Western Europe

Cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies are enjoying strong growth in 2023 as the category continues to recover from the sharp declines seen during the COVID-19 pandemic. Flu, common coughs and colds and seasonal allergies in the Irish…

In May 2022, Greece lifted all COVID-19 related regulations. This included the compulsory use of face masks and social distancing rules, and although use of face masks remains fairly high in Greece compared to other European countries, it appears…

Within OTC consumer health in France, value sales of cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies are continuing to record the fastest growth in 2023, following a dynamic performance the previous year. Within the category, demand for various formats…

Cough remedies and decongestants, which had seen strong growth during the pandemic period, saw more moderate growth in 2022 and 2023 as the contagion receded and public concern waned. Current value sales growth partly reflects inflationary pressures,…

Sales of cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies are seeing strong growth in current value terms in 2023. This is partly due to inflation-driven price increases (also the consequence of supply shortages in some cases) and an increase in cough,…

The Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic had a major impact on almost every category within consumer health in the Netherlands. While the COVID-19 situation eased by 2022, 2023 is the first full year after the pandemic in which players, retailers and…

2023 saw a repeat of the moderate, sustainable growth that was registered in most categories of consumer health during 2022, with the prevailing background trends characterised by a return to some semblance of pre-pandemic normality in the daily…

Consumer health is set to record moderate single-digit growth in current value terms in 2023. With the pandemic officially over, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), Italians are keen to get back to their pre-COVID-19 lifestyles and this…

Consumer health is witnessing another strong performance in 2023 as the category continues to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic following the removal of all pandemic-related restrictions. As Irish people shift back to normal living habits without…

Inflation is a key factor influencing the consumer health market in Greece, with price hikes being seen across most categories. Even though increases in prices vary by brand, most products have been subject to hikes. This has not had the same effect…

Consumer health in France continues to experience growth in 2023. Due to the pandemic, consumers’ immune systems have been negatively impacted. The French healthcare system remains weak and 2022 and 2023 have faced multiple challenges, including a…

Consumer health in Denmark is registering solid current value growth in 2023, albeit at a slightly slower rate than seen in the latter half of the review period; however, this growth is partly driven by strong inflation, which has resulted in price…

Consumer health in Belgium continues to see steady growth in current value terms in 2023, albeit at a slightly slower pace than in the previous year. Among the most dynamic categories are analgesics, sleep aids (driven by high stress levels among the…

While most categories of analgesics are set to witness decreases in retail volume sales over 2023, this is largely due to spikes in sales in the wake of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic as stress and anxiety levels increased. In 2023, many…

Per capita consumption of analgesics continued to increase in Norway during 2023 after 2022 saw significant increases in consumption of these products. While there was some stockpiling of analgesics seen in Norway during the early stages of the…

Analgesics is expected to see a single-digit growth in current value terms in 2023. Sales are benefiting from the stable demand for analgesics and unit price increases linked to rising price lists as a result of the higher cost of production faced by…

Analgesics sales are returning to more normal patterns in 2023, following the fluctuations caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and the sharp price rises seen in 2022. On balance, current value growth rates are still elevated compared to pre-pandemic…

Upon the lifting of all COVID-19 related regulations, including the compulsory use of face masks, social distancing rules and compulsory self-isolation, there has been a surge in illness which has been a major contributor to sales growth for…

Value sales of analgesics in France continue to record solid growth in 2023 following a dynamic performance the previous year. The key growth driver is the increasing demand for acetaminophen, with the brand Doliprane from Sanofi, convincingly…

Following strong growth between 2020 and 2022, analgesics saw much more moderate current value growth in 2023 as the COVID-19 pandemic began to wane. Rising inflation as a result of the energy crisis stemming in part from the war in Ukraine is…