The last 12 months (July 2021 to June 2022) have seen a dramatic collapse in the consumption of blackberries by Italian households: according to GfK data - Italian Berry, the quantity has in fact dropped by 21.9% and the total market value has decreased by 22.0%.
DIMENSIONS FROM THE CRISIS
In the period under review, the consumption of blackberries in fact decreased from 698 tons to 545 tons, a loss of 153 tons (-21.9%). Against a backdrop of substantially stable prices (from €13.81/kg to €13.80/kg), the drop in consumption was all reflected in a drop in spending, which fell from €9.634 million to €7.515 million, with an estimated drop of more than €2.1 million over the past 12 months.
TWO POSITIVE INDICATORS
Household purchasing behavior shows two positive indicators: frequency of purchase and annual quantity purchased per household.
The frequency of purchase increased over the past 12 months from 2.0 to 2.2 (+8.9%), showing that the number of acts of purchase of blackberries increased during the year.
The amount purchased per household during the period analyzed increased from 0.37 kg to 0.40 kg, an increase of 7.1 percent.
PENETRATION, HALF A MILLION HOUSEHOLDS GONE
These indicators, however, have not been enough to offset the drastic drop in penetration, which has fallen from 7.2 percent to 5.3 percent in 12 months: this means that while until a year ago one in every 14 households was buying blackberries , in the last 12 months it has dropped to one in every 19 households. In absolute terms it means a net loss of more than half a million households, equivalent to twice the population of a city like Verona.
IT IS NOT A GLOBAL CRISIS
The overall picture thus sees a crisis that has lasted for some time in Italy. The causes need to be investigated because this is a trend that, for example, runs counter to what has been shown in France according to data from a panel test conducted by BerryWorld. In the UK then there is talk of a real boom, with consumption being 8 times higher than in Italy and spending £51 million in the period 2020-21. How have they achieved this? New varieties, proper management of seasonality and attention to quality. Is this a recipe for reviving a product that is losing steam year after year in Italy?
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