As the pressures of weak consumer spending continues and major UK retailers embark on a promotional war to win shoppers, the lowly loaf of bread is at the centre of a fierce price battle on grocery shelves.And the UK’s three major players in what is a static bread category, Premier Foods plc, family-owned Warburtons and Associated British Foods, all believe they are holding their own in a category where the recovery has been a longer process than expected. ABF chief executive George Weston... ...Read more »

The battle for the supermarket floor between private label and branded goods is heating up with private label reaching a record share of the grocery market in Australia, according to new research by market insight and information group TNS. The news comes as supermarkets push their own labels harder than ever. The largest Australian chains, including the likes of Woolworths, Coles, and IGA, have all reported the strong growth of private label this year and have continued to boost their expenditure... ...Read more »

In the beer industry, superior market share leads to superior margins, according to a new Rabobank report on the largest global brewers. In the next five years, market share will become increasingly important for all the major brewers, so it is no suprise to see continued consolidation in the sector. Margins and lower consumption Major brewers’ operating margins have not suffered from the economic downturn. On the contrary, restructuring, better pricing and lower production costs have helped... ...Read more »

The latest grocery market share figures, published by TNS Worldpanel for the 12 weeks ending 5th October 2008 confirm that the growth of value-based grocery retailers continues apace. Total Grocers grew at 6.7% year-on-year which reflected food price inflation rather than any real growth. Aldi continue their strong run with growth of 22.1% for the latest 12 weeks, which is a record as the share reaches 3.0%. The German discounter has also begun to make inroads within Australia, as many consumers... ...Read more »