A tsunami of double-digit inflation, Michel-Edouard Leclerc persists and signs. The head of Leclerc’s centers expressed his concern in a tweet that went viral on Monday.
As on BFMTV two weeks ago, the distributor wants to bring public opinion to witness the confrontation between it and the consumer industries. According to him, the increases offered by Nestlé, Mars and other Unilever for 2023 are unacceptable.
After a year of inflation in which food prices rose 11% in supermarkets, next year could be even worse.
+41% by 2023?
If there is an increase that challenges, it is that of animal feed products. +41% required by manufacturers according to Leclerc after already an increase of 13% in 2022.
Why so much increase in kibble for dogs and cats? First of all, you should know that the so-called pet food market is very uncompetitive. Almost 80% of the market is in the hands of the two giants, the Swiss Nestlé (Purina, Friskies, Fido…) and the American Mars (Whiskas, Royal Canin, Pedigree…). An activity that generates more than comfortable margins (20% on average) that these two groups are reluctant to compress.
Because at the same time the costs have increased considerably. +42% for birds due to bird flu. Strong rise in the price of cereals that are also used to make the starch of the croquettes. But also animal fat (+200% in two years) essential to coat the croquettes and which is increasingly scarce due to the growing interest of oil companies in using it in biofuels. Added to this, the prices of energy and in particular of the gas to cook all these foods and we end up with a concentrate of all the inflationary tensions in the food sector.
14% are considering giving up their pet.
Increases that hurt the purchasing power of pet owners. According to an IFOP survey, the average annual budget spent by the French on their animals increased by 15% in the last two years to €943. Only the food item increased by 201 euros compared to 2020 to 643 euros.
French people who are more and more numerous in owning an animal. The number of domestic cats has increased by 6% since Covid. Animals that tend to be pampered and for which the owners spend increasing amounts. The animal feed market amounted to 5.4 billion euros in 2021, more than a billion in five years.
But with inflation, the most modest households fear being forced to make concessions. According to the IFOP survey, two thirds of people who earn less than 900 euros a month claim to have already changed their purchasing behaviour, either by restricting themselves or cutting certain expenses for their pet.
Almost 20% say they have reduced the amount of food their pet eats and 14% would even consider giving it up.
Source: BFM TV
