New figures on food sales over the festive period suggests that shoppers switched away from turkey during Christmas 2022 towards other meats such as lamb.
The data from retail data specialists Kantar show that consumers across Great Britain spent £2.7m less on turkey crowns and joints compared with the previous Christmas period. The main beneficiaries were chicken and lamb, with £1.2m more spent on lamb in December 2022.
Welsh promotional body Hybu Cig Cymru – Meat Promotion Wales (HCC) hailed the positive figures for lamb, which came in a period where the British retail environment is tougher than it has been for a number of years due to cost of living pressures.
“Our research showed that consumers were potentially switching away from turkey in 2022, so the focus of our marketing campaigns for PGI Welsh Lamb was to encourage people to try a ‘New Christmas Tradition’, with strong promotions for festive recipes with lamb across a range of media,” said HCC Head of Strategic Marketing, Laura Pickup.
“It’s pleasing to see that this, alongside promotions by retailers, has had an impact in what is a difficult retail environment for premium proteins where shoppers are feeling the squeeze on living standards,” she said.
“It’s likely that 2023 will continue to see tough times in both the retail and foodservice sectors, and it’s significant that another sector of growth over Christmas was in frozen foods,” Laura explained. “HCC will be planning campaigns to keep top-quality fresh Welsh Lamb in people’s shopping baskets instead of frozen imports.”
