Trends in household purchases of pork products in different retail channels

Household food consumption patterns are influenced by many factors, most notably by consumer expectations, perceptions and buying behaviours. Using data from the Kantar Worldpanel, different indicators related to the purchases of fresh and processed pork products, from 2004 and 2009, were analyzed to gain some insight into the evolution of domestic pork consumption. The selected indicators were evaluated in the different retail channels. Households’ fresh pork purchases were impacted by special offers in supermarkets: the percentage of households buying fresh pork decreased, with each buying fresh pork less often but in slightly higher quantities. An increase in self-service processed meat products was observed. This was especially true in large supermarkets and linked with the availability and competitive pricing of popular products such as ham and sausages. In contrast, the sales of pre-packaged processed products decreased. Owing to the large variety of pork products available, particularly processed deli products, more accurate and comprehensive complementary analyses should be carried out to better understand trends in domestic pork consumption.