Chilled savoury spreads have benefited from the trend towards naturalness in Germany, and the overall consumer perception that fresh foods are intrinsically less processed. Over half (52%) of German consumers are likely to find chilled spreads fresher compared to non-chilled formats, whereas over one-third (36%) say that chilled spreads taste better than shelf-stable options.
While there appears to be a clear consumer preference for fresh products, only a small fraction of all vegetable spreads launched in Germany in the past year were in a chilled format. The predominance of shelf-stable products in the German savoury vegetable spread segment seems to stand in contradiction with the fresh nature of vegetables and a growing consumer focus on the benefits of natural, unprocessed and plant-based diets.
With currently just over a fifth of German consumers reporting eating savoury vegetable spreads, opportunities exist to drive usage beyond the existing consumer base. Chilled vegetable spreads could benefit from an additional nutritional boost, appealing to over one-quarter of German spread buyers who are interested in and would pay more for spreads with added health benefits.This opens new opportunities for chilled vegetable spread producers to develop new formulations featuring superfoods to help boost the wholesomeness of their products.
Such formulations can benefit from the addition of ancient grains, seeds and nutritious greens, such as kale or spinach to improve the nutritional value of vegetable spreads. Superfoods can also help to position chilled vegetable spreads beyond their core vegetarian and vegan claims, leveraging increased protein, fibre and/or vitamin content for a more premium positioning.
With a dedicated field of focus on Germany, Katya draws on her comprehensive knowledge of this market to identify and explore the major trends across various FMCG categories. She runs regular field research trips in Germany and brings hands-on experience from her previous role in the strategic development of private label at METRO Group.
