Product innovation in the Spanish FMCG industry helped grow GDP and expand employment in the primary industrial sector, according to a KPMG report released by Spanish consumer goods sector association, Promarca.
The study analysed 22 product categories for the period between January 2012 and January 2016.
It found that the more innovative a category is, the more consumers spend, resulting in higher GDP and employment rates.
Maintaining the same level of innovation displayed in 2010, household spend in the 22 FMCG categories analysed would have increased by more than €1.1 million, resulting in 2,700 additional direct jobs and possibly surpassing 8,000 jobs if it had a similar effect on indirect employment.
Chocolate, cafe, dairy, and water were among the most innovative categories, as well as biscuits, cereal, and fried foods.
Soft drinks, oils, margarine spreads, and juices came second in terms of ingenuity. Tinned and frozen vegetables were the least inventive, according to the study.
Another revelation was that the arrival of a new item doesn't only increase that product's sales; it also brings up sales for other products in that category.
Ignacio Larracoechea, president of Promarca, commented that: "The study makes it clear that innovation is fundamental for the growth of GDP and employment in the primary industrial sector of Spain and is a driver of the economy as a whole. On their part, brand names must strive to be competitive, to innovate and create added value: they are responsible for 9 out of 10 new products on the market, generating more than 1 million jobs and making up 7.4% of GDP."
© 2017 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Karen Henderson. To subscribe to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine, click here.
