Category Analysis: Food to Go

The Food to Go market, which in Circana’s market definition includes sandwiches and prepared fruit, is worth £1.4Bn annually.

The market is dominated by the Major Multiple Grocer Channel which has 84% market share. The market is in growth up 2.4% in value sales in the latest 12 months (L12M) vs last year (LY), but growth is some way behind the market food growth which stands at 4.3% in the L12M vs LY. Food to go value sales have slipped into decline in the latest 4 weeks (L4W) vs LY, down 2.2%, well behind the market food performance which saw growth of 1.6%.

Food growth was boosted by beer and lager performance driven by the Euros which likely depressed food to go performance further.

Symbols and Independent stores hold just 4.5% of the food to go market and with value sales growth of -3.1% in the L12M vs LY, Symbol and independent stores have lost 0.24PP of value share in the L12M. Albeit performance in the L4W was still down on last year by 3.8%, value share performance did improve, with symbols and independents down just 0.07PP in the L4W vs LY.

Given its under-performance relative to the overall food sector, food to go isn’t a top growth opportunity for symbols and independents. However, as a crucial shopping mission, it holds significant importance, presenting a unique opportunity for differentiation that could be highly valuable.