Dr
Marian O'Reilly, Chief Specialist in Nutrition at safefood, said: “We know that
everybody loves a bargain and shoppers involved in the research told us that
they made use of promotional offers to help manage the household budget.
"They
also said they enjoyed the buzz of a bargain. But with more than a third of
foods on offer being unhealthy it’s not surprising that last year Kantar data
showed that the average household with children spend more on ‘treat’ foods
(19pc spend) than on fruit (10pc) and vegetables (7pc).”
More
than a third of products on special offer in Irish supermarkets are high in
fat, sugar or salt according to new research.
Some
35pc of food and drink being sold at bargain prices was found to fall into this
category.
Worryingly,
the balance is even further skewed in convenience stores where it is as high as
56pc, according to the study commissioned by safefood.
The
research also showed that shoppers wanted to see fewer promotions on things
like confectionery (69pc), biscuits (70pc) and sugary drinks (66pc).
Instead
they want more frequent promotion of fruit and vegetables (92pc), fresh meats
(80pc) and fish (70pc).
“These
results highlight that people really don’t want to be tempted by unhealthy food
offers, they’d much rather see healthy foods, and particularly fruit and
vegetables, on special offer”, added Dr O’Reilly.
The
research looked at almost 70,000 food products on special offer, and comprised
interviews with retailers and shoppers, accompanied shopping trips and a
consumer survey.
The
research found d that price reductions (59pc) and multi-buys (24pc) are the
most frequent type of price promotion.
In
addition it showed that 85% of promotional offers were located in standard
shopping aisles alongside regularly priced products, as opposed to end-of-aisle
or special promotional stands.
The
research was launched to coincide with safefood’s new Transform Your Trolley
campaign as part of their sponsorship of RTÉ’s Operation Transformation.
The
campaign aims to encourage people to rebalance their food shopping habits, and
transform their trolleys into healthier ones.
Supporting
the campaign, Aoife Hearne, dietitian for Operation Transformation, added:
“This research reveals just how hard it is for people to make healthier choices
when shopping when these unhealthy offers are literally everywhere.
"Tips
like making a list, being more aware of these promotions and having a plan for
your meals and snacks are all great places to start."
safefood’s
Transform Your Trolley campaign includes practical tips and strategies at
safefood.eu/transformyourtrolley to help with food shopping and getting a
healthier balance back into baskets and trolleys.
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