February 2024 - Insights to Action

A solid and stable start to the year

Consumers continue to adjust to the new norms in pricing and promotions:

  • Within produce, dollar sales grew 1.0%, volume increased +0.7% vs. prior year
  • Fruit finished +3.3% dollar sales, down slightly in volume as consumers focused on healthier snacking
  • Vegetables dollar sales were down, volume rebounded

 

Bar graph of year to date thru 4 weeks of dollars and lbs of fruit, vegetables, produce, and edible.

 

Regional Performance YTD (4 weeks)1

The Mid-South and West are early leaders in regional rankings, while California continues to lag the country.

 

Map of the United States and a table of regional breakdown of dollar share of produce, dollar percent change vs 2023, and volume percent change vs 2023.

 

Top 10 Fruit and Vegetables YTD2

($ sales)

  • Berries drove dollar sales growth in fruit, but grapes were the only commodity that grew dollars and lbs. through the first 4 weeks
  • Within vegetables, potatoes, onions, and peppers all had strong starts growing both dollars and volume

 

Bar graph of dollar sales of various fruits and vegetables.

 

The future of grocery retail

Deloitte Insights2

During June and July 2023, Deloitte surveyed 100 senior executives from U.S. grocery retailers with over 10,000 employees about the future of grocery retail. Below are highlights of their results:

The future of retail is no longer selling to the “average” consumer

  • Grocers should sell to the individual
  • Promotions and marketing have become increasingly targeted to support this
  • Many other processes (merchandising, distribution, service models, checkout, etc.) are still geared toward the masses

Create the right experience for each customer and service mode in each channel

  • Grocery merchants have traditionally curated over 30,000 SKUs, despite the average grocery customer only buying ~300 products
  • Assortments, provided in a combination of digital and physical experiences, will need to match individual (and family) needs more precisely

The store is your stage: Reconfigure quickly to capture changing needs and experiences

  • Endless aisles of many center store items can be provided in a low-touch format
  • Fresh and more differentiated offerings will become the new center of the in-store experience

There will be more than just one successful format

  • Blends of digital and physical, delivery and in-store, niche offerings, and high volume can be configured around local maximums for consumers who prioritize quality, value, choice, and convenience differently
  • 87% of grocery retail executives surveyed say the marketing of groceries will become hyper-personalized

 

Various families standing in front of the produce aisle holding baskets of produce.

What will grocery shopping be like in the next five to ten years?3

The top 5 technology-enabled changes coming to the grocery shopping experience:

 

Bar graph of top 5 technology enabled changes coming to grocery shopping.

 

Easter is Sunday, March 31, 2024

It’s the first major produce shopping holiday of the year

  • Gathering with family and friends will be the top way Easter shoppers plan to celebrate, followed by cooking or baking at home.
  • Easter week is the largest produce sales lift of the spring with many produce categories represented.
  • Historically, Easter demand is equivalent to Thanksgiving and usually only trails peak summer events.
  • Contact your local salesperson to finalize Easter activity

Bar graph of different Easter celebration intentions.

 

Total U.S. Easter Performance4

 

Bar graph of dollar sales and volume for Easter 2021 and 2023.

 

  1. Circana Integrated Fresh, Total U.S., MULO, Calendar Year 2023 Ending 1.28.24.
  2. Deloitte, “The Future of Grocery Retail,” January 2024.
  3. Numerator, “Shopper Holiday Intentions Survey,” January 2024.
  4. Circana Integrated Fresh, Total U.S., MULO, Calendar Year 2023 Ending 1.28.24.