Spend on FMCG rose by 8.2% in Portugal in the third quarter of the year, from July to September, new data from NIQ has found.
According to the NIQ Retail Spend Barometer, the growth was largely driven by more Portuguese consumers dining at home due to higher prices in the HoReCa channel, as well as increased spending on quick, convenient meal options.
Customers Choose Convenience
As the data showed, sales of chilled pasta rose by 18% in volume terms in the quarter, while fresh prepared vegetables were up 11.7% and freshly-prepared ready meals rose 4.5%.
Other categories to see an increase included frozen ready meals, which rose 7.1%, frozen potatoes (+8.3%), frozen vegetables (+2.9%) and ice cream (+2.4%). The latter category also saw a price increase of more than 5%, resulting in total additional spend of 7.6%.
"We observe a similar trend for products used to prepare desserts," commented Ana Barbosa, retail vertical director at NIQ in Portugal. "Although the quantities sold here only increased by 7% the total value of the additional expenditure amounts to almost 16% due to a price increase of more than 8%."
Sales of alcoholic beverages declined in the period, affected by price hikes and shifting consumer habits, while cocoa products saw the highest price inflation, with a 24% increase leading to a 20% rise in spending, despite a 3.5% volume drop.
Overall consumer spend on FMCG combined with tech and durables (T&D) increased by 7.3% compared to the same period in 2023, totalling €6.5 billion. This growth reflects both price inflation and sales volume changes, NIQ said.
Within T&D specifically, spend was up 2.9%, with DIY supplies and household appliances leading growth, specifically air fryers. Sales of electronics saw modest growth meanwhile.
'Massive Increase'
"We expect to see an ongoing massive increase in spending in the fourth quarter in both the FMCG and T&D segments," commented Pedro Oliveira, retail manager for Tech & Durables at NIQ/GfK in Portugal. "Black Friday and the Christmas season will strongly boost sales.
"However, sustainability plays a subordinate role in consumer behaviour. Consumers in this country only accept higher prices for environmentally friendly products if there are other advantages associated with them."
