The closure of hospitality venues and shift towards at-home lifestyles that followed the coronavirus outbreak led consumers to redesign their diets and routines; since the introduction of COVID-19 restrictions, 54% of breakfast eaters have introduced some change in their breakfast eating. At the same time, lockdown periods and remote working practices determined a decline in on-the-go and out-of-home meals and an increase in home cooking and at-home eating occasions.

COVID-19 and the UK government’s “Better Health” campaign have put new emphasis on health and wellbeing, placing brands with a healthy and caring image, such as Ryvita, Actimel and Activia, in a particularly positive light. However, the emotional burden of the pandemic also generated a desire for small indulgences and premium food experiences. In line with the 2008-09 recession, this creates opportunities for affordable luxury concepts such as the Magnum Mini or Gü-Zillionaires’ Cheesecake as economic uncertainty leads to more conscious shopping behaviours.

The new focus on value makes it crucial for brands to highlight the original features of their products to prevent consumers from preferring own-label or lower-priced options, particularly as private-label brands tap into key trends such as health and nutrition. For example, in 2021 Waitrose & Partners launched its Gut Health: range specially designed to support gut health through formulations with Bacillus coagulans, calcium and chicory inulin.

Although brands with an established reputation such as Heinz, Cadbury Dairy Milk and Cathedral City can leverage consumers’ familiarity with their offering to maintain a relevant role in the market, ethical and sustainable considerations are becoming increasingly influential in determining final shopping choices. This means that both heritage and newer players will need to demonstrate their commitment towards social and environmental themes, while also ensuring that they deliver authentic messaging to promote a trustworthy image and resonate with consumers in the next normal.

Key issues covered in this Report

  • The impact of COVID-19 on consumer behaviour and how it will influence what consumers are looking from food brands.

  • How leading food brands score on metrics like usage, trust, satisfaction, likely recommendation and perceived differentiation.

  • The top scoring brands for particular personality traits, including innovation, value, quality and taste.

  • The leaders on hot topics in the food sector – natural, indulgence, ethics, and health and wellness.

Products covered in this Report

Since November 2018, Mintel has conducted brand research on more than 100 brands operating in food markets. As well as consumers’ attitudes towards brands, we investigate how many people have used those brands, how positive their experience of the brand was and whether they would recommend that brand.

Research is run at a brand level, rather than based on a particular product. So rather than asking specifically about people’s perception of Hovis’ bread loaves or Cathedral City’s extra mature Cheddar cheese, for example, we ask about their overall perception of the Hovis and Cathedral City brands.

Data in this Report is drawn from fieldwork conducted between November 2018 and December 2020. Many brands have been covered on multiple occasions and, unless otherwise stated, Mintel’s data refers to the most recent wave of research in which a given brand featured. Please refer to the Report Appendix for details of the Reports from which the brand data has been taken.

COVID-19: market context

The first COVID-19 cases were confirmed in the UK at the end of January 2020, with a small number of cases in February. Rapidly rising case numbers led to the first national lockdown, starting on 23 March. It wasn’t until 15 June that non-essential stores were allowed to reopen, followed by pubs, restaurants, hotels and hairdressers on 4 July, and many beauty businesses on 13 July.

By September, it had become clear that the UK was at the start of a second wave, and social-distancing measures were intensified. Continued increases in infection numbers led to Wales implementing a two-week national lockdown from 19 October, England announcing a month-long lockdown from 5 November, and Scotland introducing a new five-level system of coronavirus restrictions.

Despite these restrictions, however, case numbers continued to increase. All four UK nations tightened restrictions further in January 2021, effectively leading to a full UK-wide lockdown.

On 22 February, Boris Johnson announced the roadmap to an easing of restrictions in England, starting with the reopening of schools on 8 March, followed by easing of restrictions on outdoor gatherings on 29 March, and with a hoped end to all restrictions by 21 June. The Welsh and Scottish governments also gave more details on their plans to ease restrictions, with both nations taking a slightly more cautious approach to the one planned for England.

The UK’s vaccination programme started on 8 December, 2020, and with the Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccines licensed for use in the UK, the government aims to offer a first dose of the vaccine to 32m people by mid-April.

Economic and other assumptions

Mintel’s economic assumptions are based on the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR)’s central scenario included in its March 2021 Fiscal Sustainability Report. After the fall of 9.9% over the course of 2020, the scenario suggests that UK gross domestic product (GDP) will grow by 4% in 2021, and 7.3% in 2022.

GDP isn’t expected to return to pre-COVID levels until the second quarter of 2022, although this is six months earlier than the OBR forecast in November 2020, mainly because of the faster than expected roll-out of vaccines.

Unemployment is expected to peak at 6.5% in the fourth quarter of 2021. As with GDP, this is more positive than the OBR’s November forecast, but the OBR does raise the prospect of long-term scarring on employment, especially in the more exposed retail and hospitality sectors.

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