Sales of gluten-free bakery products in Italy have seen a 20% growth in last year, reaching €56 million, driven by snacks, crackers and biscuits, according to data from Nielsen.
Overall, the wellness segment, which includes general health, organic and gluten-free products, has seen 2% growth during the last two years.
Sales of gluten-free rusks, while worth only €3.4 million, grew by 36.6% in value and 20% in volume. Snacks are also gaining more visibility in this segment, growing by 37.2% in value and 45.4% in volume.
Sales of gluten-free biscuits dropped by about 1%, however, they are still the most important product in the bakery market, with a 46.9% share. Also down were sales of cereals (-9.4%), crackers (-9.1%) and pastries (-12%).
Changing Trends
Gluten-free bread and pasta have also recorded growth in the full-year ending in May 2017. The bread segment, which is about half the size of the pasta, grew by 30.7% in value and 40.8% in volume. The market is worth €20.2 million, compared to last year’s €15.5 million. The average price, which is higher than that of the pasta, fell by about 7%.
The prices of gluten-free products are higher than others wellness segment as a whole, especially pastries, snacks and rusks.
© 2017 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Branislav Pekic. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
