COVID19 & the food retail industry

Cleaning supplies and paper goods were the first targets of panic buying, but supply chain challenges are easing

The COVID-19 pandemic has increased demand for local products in France and could have a positive effect on the development of funcional foods, according to Mintel.

The latest barometer analysing effects of the VOCID-19 crisis on food and beverage companies in France has revealed a 22% loss in turnover globally.

The “biggest question facing anyone in retail across the country” right now is what will stores look like post-coronavirus, Stew Leonard’s CEO, Stew Leonard Jr. told FOX Business.

Two clear sets of consumers will also emerge, according to Nielsen — those with insulated levels of spending, often those who have maintained employment and remain shielded from day-to-day economic impact and those who will be restrained in their spending habits due to unemployment, furloughing or other COVID-19-related challenges.

The largest year-over-year percentage-point increases in online grocery shoppers are not occurring at traditional supermarkets.

Encountering empty shelves and disarray at their regular stores, many U.S. consumers turned to other retailers or went online to buy groceries and daily essentials as the coronavirus outbreak started and then escalated, a study by market research firm Kantar revealed.

The fresh food departments of the supermarket have undergone a remarkable change in the past two months, since the first outbreaks of coronavirus in the United States in February through the quarantine panic buying of March and April, and now the slow opening up of some regions of the country.

Home delivery and store pickup online grocery sales reached a new 30-day record for April, hitting $5.3 billion and marking a 37% increase from $4 billion in March, according to the latest Brick Meets Click and Symphony RetailAI Online Grocery Survey.

64% of consumers said they’re focusing more on limiting food waste and will likely continue to do so going forward, and 50% said they’re shopping more health-consciously and will likely to continue to do so

An increase in snacking is one of the observed changes in actual purchase and consumption behaviour we have summarised in ten points this week.

Inevitably, COVID-19 will fade and life (and business) will resume. However, experts generally agree there will be a “new normal” where things won’t quite be the same as they were pre-outbreak.

Online grocery sales for home delivery and store pickup in April 2020 reached a new record.

Already seeing growth before the pandemic, frozen and refrigerated categories drive sales during COVID-19 crisis

PLMA says private label eclipsed national brands in growth during the quarter

Due to the pandemic, retailers are currently struggling with finances, logistics and maintaining relevance. With stay-at-home orders still in place indefinitely, many companies are wondering when they can get back to business as usual.

Supermarkets are being told where they could do better to help customers and suppliers during lockdown. The big four in the UK were rated in three key areas – supporting the supply chain, working with charities and prioritising the vulnerable.

Traditional grocers are showing their strength during the COVID-19 outbreak.

U.S. organic fresh produce sales jumped 22% in March and 8% overall for the first quarter “in retail conditions unlike any ever experienced in the modern era of grocery retailing,” according to the “2020 Q1 Organic Produce Performance Report,” released by the Organic Produce Network and Category Partners.