Dairy free: A significant and growing category

by Helena Velliades/Leah Larwood - 15/03/2011

"Dairy free is a significant and growing category, worth over £136 million in 2010 (source: Nielsen, MAT to 30.10.10) and set to grow further as it becomes increasingly mainstream."

Soya dominates the category with a 90% value share, a testament to continued marketing investment and strong NPD in the sector. Alpro is the clear soya market leader with a 69% value share and with continued recipe improvements, new advertising, and boundary-pushing NPD the Alpro brand is set for continued growth in 2011.

Alpro is committed to major marketing investment in the year ahead aimed at driving household penetration through the existing range and new product innovation. A heavyweight integrated marketing campaign was developed in 2010. The key challenge for the category is to continue to attract new consumers, hence the roll out of an integrated campaign and excellent in-store execution at point of purchase through clear signage and added ‘theatre’.

Among competitors, So Good has had a difficult year and is still in major decline. Private label continues to offer consumer choice in the recession, while rice and oat milks offer additional choices and are growing from a small base.

“Consumers are increasingly turning to dairy free as a plant-based lifestyle choice,” comments Alpro commercial director John Allaway. “There is clear future growth potential as the benefits of dairy free alternatives become better understood. The consumer is increasingly looking for healthier alternatives as part of a balanced diet.”

Continued marketing investment making soya mainstream

Soya is now bought by almost four million households, placing it firmly in the mainstream of consumer purchasing. But the category can’t afford to remain complacent and the key challenge for Alpro, the brand driving growth, is to attract new consumers.

2011 will be Alpro’s busiest year yet in terms of marketing support, starting in January with Alpro’s biggest ever TV campaign, supported by press, PR and experiential activity, sampling, online and direct marketing.

“We have supported the growth of the UK soya market consistently for the last 10 years with serious marketing and promotional investment,” says commercial director John Allaway, “initially alongside competitors, but now largely on our own. From being a strong no.2 in the sector, our sales are now over 9 times greater than our nearest branded competitor which is a remarkable achievement.

“The exciting thing is that there is still so much more to go for in the market. Soya has a regular place on the shopping list for a lot of consumers, but we will continue to develop exciting marketing campaigns to ensure that more and more appreciate its benefits.”

Growth drivers

•        Consumers increasingly looking for healthy alternatives
•        Soya naturally low in saturated fat
•        Soya helps lower cholesterol
•        Trend towards more plant-based diets for health and planet benefits

Driving the soya category forwards
One of the big opportunities for soya market growth lies in the convenience sector. At present, the impulse channel only takes 3.4% of soya sales (and even less of the total dairy free market), at a value of around £3.2m, showing clear room for improvement if independent retailers get their soya ranging right.

Fresh soya milk has grown by almost 30% in the impulse sector in the last year, demonstrating that while total sales are still low, there is latent consumer demand which is being captured by savvy independent operators as distribution grows. It would also be worth stores with more chiller space considering stocking soya yogurts, which have seen 68% growth in sales in impulse in the last year.

Of course, there are great pressures on independent retailers to free up space to stock healthier products and offer greater consumer choice. However, soya is a proven way to both meet customer needs in this area and generate incremental revenue.

NPD to fuel further growth

Alpro has an ambitious programme of product improvements and NPD planned for 2011 including upgrades to recipes and new flavours in key product segments.

A recent innovation which launched this February, is the introduction of Alpro soya plus, a new soya milk with added plant sterols to help lower cholesterol. “Over two thirds of the UK adult population has high cholesterol and this new product offers three benefits to consumers,” explains commercial director, John Allaway. “The plant sterols which help to lower cholesterol, the plant goodness you receive from any Alpro product and the reassurance that because it’s an Alpro product you also know its good for the planet.”

The launch has been supported by a consumer and health care professional website - www.alproplus.com - which will offer advice on a range of health topics.

“2010 saw the first stage of the upgrade of Alpro’s yogurt recipes and changes to its flavour portfolio which have proved popular with our consumers,” explains commercial director John Allaway. “2011 sees a further upgrade of our yogurts to create the best recipe yet in terms of great texture and taste. We will also be looking to innovate our range of flavours to cater for the need for variety expected from yogurt shoppers.”

After identifying a gap in the market for children on a dairy free diet, Alpro launched a Junior milk in 2010 aimed specifically at children aged 12 months and older. “There was no dairy alternative milk suitable for children post weaning and parents are often confused as to whether they should keep their child on soya formula or switch to a standard dairy alternative milk” explains Allaway. “Alpro Junior 1+ has increased calories versus standard soya milk to help meet the energy requirements of a child of that age to develop well.” One 200ml serving provides over half of a child’s daily required calcium intake and is also a source of iron, and vitamins D and C. Alpro Junior 1+ has been on the market for six months and is receiving great feedback from parents and healthcare professionals alike.

Meanwhile, a 250ml single serve soya milk pack has been launched into UK retail for the first time in 2010. “We often heard from consumers via our careline that it was frustrating having to take a 1 litre pack with them when they were away from home, whether on holiday, at work or visiting friends and families,” says Allaway. “The 250ml pack enables consumers to take the soya milk with them wherever they go with minimal inconvenience.” Plans are in place to trial this pack in 2011 in the food-to-go/sandwich areas of stores with a health conscious customer base as a healthier lunchtime drink option. The format also provides a useful lunchbox solution for younger Alpro users.

In tune with the trends on sustainability

Progress towards our goal of carbon neutral production has been good during the past year with some real achievements in our quest for ever better sustainability.

Highlights have included achieving ISO 14001 accreditation at our UK factory, significantly reducing CO2 emissions (and a range of other SD indicators such as energy and water use) for the third year in a row, and becoming more closely engaged in promoting plant-based eating and eco-nutrition as a sustainable lifestyle choice.

Although sustainability has been at the heart of our business since it was founded 30 years ago, it was in April 2007 that Alpro became the first UK food manufacturer to publicly declare that it would become carbon neutral, and set a target for its production facilities of 2020.

We have recently produced our second annual Alpro UK Sustainable Development Report to provide an update on our progress as we try to improve sustainability in everything that we do as a brand and a business. For a free copy call the Alpro helpline on 0800 0188 180.

Building soya sales at the point of purchase

Consumers usually enter the soya market as a result of lifestyle or dietary choices and sometimes as a combination of both. Factors such as general health and wellbeing, a desire to lose weight and a dislike of milk and other dairy products, sit alongside lactose intolerance, vegetarianism and GP recommendation as significant motivators.

Lifestyle shoppers are looking for healthier choices and Alpro shopper research shows soya is an ideal platform to satisfy consumer needs. Soya is certainly perceived as a healthy alternative to dairy: Both ambient and fresh soya milks are now regarded as staples in healthy dairy retailing.
Putting beacon brands such as Alpro soya at the centre of the fixture signposts the category for consumers. Soya yogurt is also seen to have clear health benefits that fit today’s lifestyle choices and breakfast presents a clear occasion opportunity for the product.

For further information:
Helena Velliades/Leah Larwood
Richmond Towers Communications
26 Fitzroy Square
London
W1T 6BT
020 7388 7421
helena@rt-com.com / leah@rt-com.com

More Details: http://www.foodindustrycarees.co.uk