Grocers accounted for 21 per cent of retail activity in 2020, leaping up from a five year average of seven per cent, according to a Savills report.

Despite the decline in retail sales growth by 2.2 per cent, grocery sales increased by 7.5 per cent.

While future growth is thought to be less dramatic, grocery sales are predicted to rise by 2.2 per cent per annum for the next five years.

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The UK saw the second-largest investment in the sector with €1.7 billion in funding, while Germany came out on top with €3.1 billion.

Germany also saw the sharpest rise in sales growth at 217 per cent.

“The defensive characteristics and the operational resilience of the sector will continue to attract an increasing number of buyers,” Savills regional investment advisory George Coleman said.

He added that property supply for grocery stores “may not be able to meet demand”.

Other data, from market research company Forrester, show online grocery sales increased from 19.5 per cent in 2019 to 56.1 per cent in 2020.

“Unlike much of the rest of retail, online grocery orders are typically serviced by the stores themselves, making the true value of the store much greater,” Savills research director Eri Mitsostergiou said.

The news comes after major supermarkets revealed how their sales surged over 2020.

For example, Tesco reported overall sales growth of nine per cent, and online sales growth of 77 per cent.