On the eve of Shavuot, milk prices in Israel are particularly expensive, due to the price increases of dairies in Israel. Ahead of the holiday, Tnuva presented the most prominent trends in the dairy market, based on Stornext data from the beginning of the year until April.
For the first time, oatmeal is the leader among dairy substitute drinks, overtaking soy. In addition, it is the 11th best-selling dairy product in supermarket refrigerators.
The company's data shows that even after the COVID-12 pandemic, Israelis continue to cook and bake. Thus, there has been a growth of 6.11% in the consumption of cheese flakes for cooking and baking since the beginning of the year, an increase of 9% in butter consumption and 6.4% in heavy cream. Another trend in the Israeli market is the growing need for diversity in the world of specialty cheeses, which showed growth of 6.<>% in the past year, which doubled in the past decade.
Sales are rising. Butter, Photo: Getty Images
The market for protein-enriched products is constantly on the rise in Israel and around the world, against the background of the increase in physical activity since the COVID-19 period and the demand for food adapted to sports nutrition. Tnuva notes that protein is one of the most sought-after components in the Israeli diet, from young athletes to senior citizens. Accordingly, this category shows steady growth in Israel as well, with an increase of more than 450% (January-April). It is expected that by the end of the year, the category of protein-enriched dairy products is expected to cross the NIS <> million threshold in the entire industry for the first time.
In addition, this year there was a quantitative increase in the cottage market, which stands at 4.1%. The quantitative increase of Tnuva itself is 11.3%, half of which is due to cottage fat 12%. The increase is explained by the company also because of the cottage ice cream trend and because of the various cottage cheese diets.
As for the leading products in milk refrigerators during these months, in first place is placed fresh Tnuva milk in a carton of 3% fat, in second place is cottage Tnuva 5% fat, and in third place Yotvata milk in a 3% fat bottle, which is not supervised like Tnuva milk, and therefore is more expensive. In fourth place is valley cheese 28% in the weight of Tnuva.
Dairy Products (Archive), Photo: Oren Nachshon
"Growth - regardless of Shavuot"
According to Michal Betzer, Director of Marketing in Tnuva's Dairy Division, the company has identified a number of prominent growth engines in the food market that also characterize the dairy world in Israel, some similar to the world and some driven by changes in the local consumer culture. "For example, the world of specialty cheeses in Israel, which doubled over the past decade, continued to grow this year as well, showing a cumulative increase of 4.6% in January-April 2023 compared to the same period last year," she said. "The specialty cheese category has also grown, both because they are part of the culinary trend and their integration in baking and home cooking, and due to the greater openness of Israelis to more complex flavors than in the past. In addition, there has been the development of a new culture of hospitality with special cheese platters, and not only on Shavuot."
Regarding the jump in the dairy substitutes market, Betzer says, "The dairy substitutes market is one of the fastest growing in the world, and we see more and more consumers looking for milk substitute solutions, whether for health, environmental or ideological reasons. In the past year, Tnuva has presented a number of significant moves that have led to growth in the dairy substitutes market in Israel, including the expansion of the tofu series and oat-based milk substitute drinks."
Milk, Photo: Thinkstock Photos
As for growth in coffee drinks, she says, "Israel is a country where people drink a lot of coffee, specifically iced coffee. According to the Great Food Survey, a study conducted by Tnuva last April in cooperation with the Kantar Institute, 82% of Israelis drink an average of about 3 cups of coffee per day per person. According to Stornext segment data, the coffee drinks market in Israel grew by a cumulative 17%. Over the coming year, Tnuva is expected to continue to expand its solutions in the world of iced coffee with fresh milk, as well as to deepen its hold on the worlds of cold personal beverages such as iced coffee with milk and iced coffee with plant-based milk."
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