What you need to know
Irish consumers show a preference for butter over butter-like spreads. This reflects the growing distrust in the food industry in recent years and that they are turning to ‘real’, less processed food. However, consumers have noticed that the cost of this household staple has increased significantly in the last 12 months, particularly in NI. This may see cash-constrained consumers in the region switch to typically lower-cost own-label products as they look to manage their household grocery budgets, indicating that there are growth opportunities for own-label butters and spreads within the market.
Issues covered in the Report
This Report covers the NI and RoI retail market for butters and spreads, focusing on butters and spreads to be used at home. Butter usage and sales data for butter used via foodservice establishments is not examined within this Report.
Industry definitions of butter, margarine and spreads are as follows:
Butter – The product with a milk fat content of not less than 80% but less than 90%, a maximum water content of 16% and a maximum dry non-fat milk-material content of 2%.
Half-fat butter – The product with a milk fat content of not less than 39% but not more than 41%.
Dairy spread – Products with the following milk fat contents: less than 39%; more than 41% but less than 60%; more than 62% but less than 80%.
Margarine – The product obtained from vegetable and/or animal fats with a fat content of not less than 80% but less than 90%.
Half-fat margarine – Products obtained from vegetable and/or animal fats with a fat content of not less than 39% but not more than 41%.
Fat spreads – The product obtained from vegetable and/or animal fats with the following fat contents: less than 39%; more than 41% but less than 60%; more than 62% but less than 80%.
The product claim ‘High in polyunsaturates/monounsaturates’ (normally accompanied by ‘low in saturates’) refers to a product which contains at least 35% fat by weight, of which at least 45% of the fatty acids are polyunsaturated/monounsaturated and not more than 25% of the fatty acids are saturated and trans-fat.
The product claim ‘Low in saturates’ refers to a product where the fat contains not more than 25% saturated and trans-fat.
For the purposes of this Report, sweet spreads include jam, marmalade, honey, peanut butter/nut spreads, chocolate/chocolate and nut spreads.
The Market Size and Forecast section of this Report includes estimates for the value of the all-Ireland retail butter and spreads market including both NI and RoI data. Trade sources and government statistics have been used to verify market estimates, and have also been used for market forecasts.
