New figures from Kantar Worldpanel for GB lamb purchasing trends in 2019 show that the total spend on lamb at retail has been relatively stable during this period. The volume of lamb purchased in GB decreased by 1.7% on year-earlier levels to stand at 61,200 tonnes.
The volume sales of lamb varied between each category, with lamb mince seeing the biggest increase – up 4.9% on 2018. This is aligned with a likely increased demand from consumers for more convenience-based lamb products and a shift to include more lamb mid-week, in addition to the traditional Sunday roast.
This uplift in mince volume sales for the year occurred despite an increase of 17p/kg in the average price. The lamb leg roasting joints accounted for the highest share of spend at 38.2% (up 1.8% on the previous year), whilst the proportion of spend on lamb mince increased by 7.4% on 2018 to total £50.9 million.
Glesni Phillips, Data Analyst at Hybu Cig Cymru – Meat Promotion Wales (HCC), commented, “If we look at household demographics, the data suggests that over 45s and those without children account for a high proportion of lamb sales.
“Chops and steaks are still strong performers, contributing just over 29% of spend on lamb during 2019. We’re also seeing growth in families purchasing lamb mince which is important for future long-term engagement with lamb.
“Engaging with younger families and those who don’t currently purchase as much lamb is an important long-term strategy for HCC. That’s why they are a key demographic for our current consumer campaign explaining the positive environmental story around red meat from Wales.”
HCC’s monthly market bulletin gives regular insight into consumer and market trends, including this month an analysis of the current high prices for lamb at auction markets.
This story was originally published on a previous version of the Meat Management website and so there may be some missing images and formatting issues.
