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United Kingdom, 27 February 2009
“With consumer attitudes and shopping habits changing, it is up to the
entire supply chain to work together to promote a consistent message that
exploits current retail opportunities while protecting the long-term future of
the industry.”
That’s the view of Potato Council chairman, Allan Stevenson, who spoke to an
audience of growers, suppliers, packers, distributors and retailers at a special
one day conference held in London recently.
Entitled
‘S’mashing The Credit Crunch’ the conference examined how the potato
category needs to adapt following the dramatic shift in the economic landscape
and how potatoes can best perform in the economic climate, now and in the
future.
Leading a range of expert speakers, Potato Council chief executive officer,
Helen Priestley, set the scene with a review of market predictions based on
consumer research carried out ten years ago - and compared that with the
reality. Health and growing the younger customer base, along with convenience
and locality were significant factors then and Potato Council has been
successful in raising awareness of potatoes in these key areas. While still
important, the recent economic climate has now pushed value to the forefront of
activity but the warning from the Potato Council was that while this may be a
short term gain for the category is it likely to be of long term benefit of the
industry?
Helen said: “What we have seen in the recent months is a return to commodity
marketing in the potato sector; potatoes being marketed as economy products and
consumers encouraged to buy in bulk. You only have to witness the increase in
the ‘value’ offer from retailers. But is this really what consumers want? What
might be seen as cheap and filling when times are hard – and they won’t be hard
forever – can so easily be seen as cheap boring and inconvenient when money
ceases to be a key motivator.”
 Research
is of paramount importance to the work undertaken by Potato Council and a unique
look at changing household attitudes and purchasing behaviours was unveiled by
the Oxford Partnership and TNS.
Consumers are increasingly looking for ‘value for money’ and going ‘back to
basics’ with traditional, hearty British dishes, and this plays into the hands
of potatoes – but it is keeping them in the spotlight that is important. While
consumers will ‘trade down’ in times of recession it is vital to recognise that
potatoes are not a price sensitive category making value offerings an
impractical long term solution. Instead, driving usage, particularly amongst
younger shoppers is key to the future of the fresh potato category.
Guest speaker and financial expert Jasmine Birtles predicted that the credit
crunch would continue for another two years and as consumers remain focused on
getting the best value for money the opportunity for potatoes lies in their
versatility and ability to feed a family for longer.
Kathryn Race, Potato Council marketing director agreed, but encouraged
greater unison amongst the entire supply chain. Kathryn said: “Household
penetration for potatoes is already high, what we need to focus on is increasing
the frequency of purchase amongst key shoppers – namely the young and pre-family
groups, who often choose pasta and rice over potatoes, believing them to be more
convenient and healthy. This can be best achieved by the industry adopting a
cohesive message about the benefits of potatoes –they’re filling, great value
for money, versatile, healthy and convenient.
“Research plays a vital role in the development of our strategies, as well
as providing many suppliers and their retailer partners with strategic input
into their own plans. By making use of the information and research that we have
been building on for a number of years, the message to consumers is really
strong and the backdrop is perfect, with the return to a more ‘back to basics’
approach and the resurgence in traditional British meals – this is an ideal
setting for potatoes to flourish.”
More News from the Potato
Council
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