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<pre>UK: Gourmet food market set to grow 30% in five years - report
13 Feb 2004
Source: just-food.com

The UK gourmet food market is set to grow by 30% in the next five years
as consumers become increasingly uninspired by mass-produced food,
according to a new report from market analyst Datamonitor.

The UK is Europe’s second-largest gourmet food market, behind France.
In terms of per capita consumption, however, British fine food consumers
take the lead, spending over £900 (US$1,700) per year each on fine
foods.

"One of the most important trends in grocery over the past ten years has
been the emergence of the market for organic, natural and fresh
produce. This rapidly growing market stands as proof that today’s
consumers are prepared to spend a premium on food provided that they can
see a clear value in it for them," said Datamonitor’s Andrew Russell,
author of the report.

According to Datamonitor, 2003 sales of fine dining foods were worth
£4.2bn in the UK and are forecast to increase by 31%, to £5.5bn in
2008. France is far and away the biggest market, in Europe, followed by
the UK, Germany and Italy. The fastest growing markets, however, are
Italy (+33%), the Netherlands (+32%) and the UK (+31%).

Datamonitor’s research reveals that other consumer groups, such as
wealthy seniors and urban singles, are now taking an interest in fine
dining at home, especially now that premium foods, such as such as
shiitake mushrooms, corn-fed free range chicken and rosemary flavoured
cold pressed extra virgin olive oil are appearing on supermarket
shelves.
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