The meat snacking category is set to grow by 49% and be worth £454 million by 2027, a new study has revealed.
According to new analysis by Pilgrim’s Food Masters, owner of leading brands like Richmond and Fridge Raiders, meat snacking has grown by a whopping 38% since 2020 – making it the fastest-growing food and drink category in the UK.
Pilgrim’s brands have been “instrumental” in driving sustained growth for retailers, and now has 32.7% share of the overall meat snacking category.
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As the UK’s largest meat producer, Pilgrim’s Food Masters predicts that the category can attract an additional 4.4million households over the next five years, growing penetration to 53.8%.
While shopper penetration is predicted to increase, it’s clear there’s still space for future growth; as only a third (35.4%) of UK shoppers purchased a meat snack in the past year, the report says.
When taking a broader look at the snacking industry, Pilgrim’s found that UK shoppers spend more than £21bn a year on snacks. In fact, 28% of all food and drink consumed in the UK are now snacks.
“Over the last few years, we’ve seen a huge boom in snacking overall, but meat snacking has carved itself out a niche and, thanks to explosive growth, become a category in its own right,” category controller at Pilgrim’s Food Masters, Conor Lowry said.
He added: “Our figures show there is still lots of headroom for growth and we’re committed to developing the space, as evidenced by Fridge Raiders’ continued expansion into new formats and debuting our popular Richmond sausages in a ready-to-eat snacking format.
“Catering to different times of day and occasions will be crucial to bringing new shoppers into the category and boosting basket spend for retailers,” Lowry said.
The news comes as Richmond announced the addition of new limited-edition Meat-Free Sage and Onion Sausages back in September, which will be available until March 2023.
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This makes fascinating reading. Almost one-third of all food and drink consumed in the UK is in the form of a snack. As a dietitian, I find it intriguing to think of the opportunities we could have to introduce healthy ingredients into the snacking category, both from a health perspective and from the point of view of targetting further niches. ‘Hidden’ ingredients such as fibre and micronutrients that don’t alter either the taste or texture would be an excellent starting point.