Interest in private label continues to grow

With sales of 340 bn euros in the 17 countries surveyed, private labels accounted for 38.5 per cent of the European food market in 2023. The international private label association PLMA points this out with the publication of its latest Private Label Yearbook.

“In 2023, consumers switched to private labels due to concerns about high inflation,” the PLMA reports. Retailers sold two per cent more private label products overall, with Portugal (+9 per cent), the Czech Republic (+8 per cent), Poland (+6 per cent) and Spain (+5 per cent) well above the average. Only in the Netherlands and Belgium (both -1 per cent) and in Hungary (-8 per cent) were private labels less popular.

The share of pet food in the Euro­­pean private label business also remains at a high level. The share by volume for Hungary is reported at 71.8 per cent, followed by Norway (69.2 per cent) and Portugal (68.2 per cent). By way of comparison, the total private label business by volume accounts for 35.7 per cent in Hungary, 24.6 per cent in Norway and 55.2 per cent in Portugal.