New research from market intelligence agency Mintel reveals that in the German flour market grain-free flour launches have more than doubled in the last year, accounting for 23% of all new flour launches in 2015, compared to only 10% in 2014.
Moreover, Mintel research shows that grain-free is also an increasingly popular choice when it comes to bread and bakery products, where newly launched grain-free options have risen from 6% in 2011 to 9% of total bread and bakery launches in Germany in 2015.
Currently, awareness and popularity of certain free-from claims are strong in Germany, which is promising for the growth of the grain-free claim. One in ten (10%) Germans aged 25-34 say they have eaten gluten-free bread in the last 6 months prior to April 2015, whilst on average 7% of Germans now claim they follow a gluten-free diet, rising to 11% among 16-24 year olds.
Even though Germany’s packaged bread and bread products market is the second largest in Europe after the UK, it has been in decline for years. According to Mintel market forecasts, the average German consumed 11.7 kg of bread and bread products in 2015, down from a total of 14.2 kg back in 2008. What’s more, the packaged bread and bread products retail market value is expected to fall below the 2bn Eur mark, declining from 2.04bn Eur in 2014 to 1.99bn Eur in 2018.
Katya Witham, senior food and drink analyst at Mintel, said: “There is a significant opportunity for grain-free flour in Germany, with the growing gluten-free market and rising health awareness among consumers laying the foundation for grain-free innovation. As grain-free flour has a considerably higher protein content than wheat flour, this could be a key attribute for this claim to appeal to consumers following a high protein and low carbohydrate diet”.