The good news is that berries have proven to be extraordinarily resilient to the inflationary wave that hit Italy in 2023. Thus, they have challenged a perception among industry professionals that prices are the real critical factor for the category.
A challenging economic context
In 2023, the berry category, like all other consumer goods, experienced an unfavorable economic climate, burdened by inflation that, according to Istat, pushed consumer prices up by 5.7%.
Beyond the general economic uncertainty, berries saw double-digit price increases. While the category price index recorded a +15.6% in 2023, both blueberries and raspberries grew by over 17%, and blackberries by a surprising 26%.
The increase in the average unit value is mainly due to contingent factors related to the limited global availability observed in various seasons of the year. For example, blueberries faced a significant reduction in supply due to spring rains in Chile and later the El Niño phenomenon, which hindered product availability from Peru.
But the market responded positively
The reduced supply drove global prices higher, and Italy followed the same trend. Nevertheless, the market responded positively, and consumers continued to put berries in their shopping carts.
Consumers overall increased spending on berries per household by 6.1% (only raspberries recorded a decline), with increases for blueberries (+2.8%), blackberries (with a surprising +41%), and red currants (+3.9%).
Moreover, higher price tags did not deter the expansion of consumer base: in 2023, Italian families purchasing berries at least once increased by 12.3%.
These are buyers who, looking at the shelves and the offered product, assessed that the price/quality ratio was attractive enough to try something they may not have considered before.
A pleasant surprise, let's make the most of it!
Between us, in a 2023 with rising prices and uncertain quality, this result is pleasantly surprising. And perhaps it gives us the courage to believe together that prices are a false problem. Let's focus on taste and quality, involve consumers more, and consumption will soar!
Image by ededchechine on Freepik
