Among the emerging European countries, Poland turns out to be the highest potential pool of consumers thanks to a population of just under 40 million inhabitants and one of the lowest unemployment rates (3.5%). The dynamism of the market is even more evident if we analyze the trend in the flow of imported food and agricultural products, which has increased by approximately 40% over a five-year period ranging from 2012-2017. Specifically, ‘Nomisma’ carried out an analysis on the demand for cured meat in Poland through market intelligence and consumer insight, the latter aimed at evaluating positioning, reputation and perception of Italian cured meats. The data on cured meat sales reveal that, in Poland, substantial quantities of local products are consumed (about 8 kg per capita against 17 in Italy) by virtue of a local tradition that sees fresh sausages, cooked and smoked hams as the most common products.
ITALIAN CURED MEAT, THE DRIVING FORCE IN POLAND
The Nomisma survey, which interviewed 800 purchasing managers, additionally shows how the consumption of cured meat is already widespread among the population (about 80% of those responsible for purchasing in fact bought cured meat at least 2-3 times a week) even if, as a result of the constant limited purchasing capacity of families, price is one of the main discriminating factors in the choice of products, so much so that the main purchasing channel is represented by discounters (31% of those who buy cured meats do so in this type of points of sale). The second criterion that drives the purchase decision is the Polish origin of the product, yet at the same time, more than 70% of those who buy meat derivatives declared to have bought foreign cured meat at least once in the last 12 months. Italy stands as one of the first countries of origin for imported products, both for purchasing managers (36% in fact declared to have consumed Italian cured meat in the last 12 months) and for perceived quality.
GENERATION X, THE MAIN TARGET
Currently, 59% of Polish cured meat consumers expressed they would be willing to spend at least 5% more to buy a product of Italian origin. These are mainly male consumers, aged between 40 and 60 (Generation X), who live in the central part of the country, with a medium-to-high income, educated, with a focus on organic products and label information and, last but not least, who visited Italy in the last 12 months. The tourism-knowledge-consumption link of Italian-made products that emerged from the survey becomes even more interesting when read through the tourist flow data recorded in Italy in 2017. In fact, Poland is in the top 10 countries of tourists coming to Italy (about 2% of the total number of foreign arrivals). Moreover, in the last 5 years, if the arrival of tourists in Italy from foreign countries has increased by 24%, those from Poland have almost doubled (+47%).
MORTADELLA BOLOGNA PGI: THE TOP TRENDS
After the encouraging signals recorded last year, starting with the double-digit growth of the pre-sliced cured meat with 64 million trays sold, Mortadella Bologna PGI continues to be successful both in Italy and abroad. This is due to the versatility of the product and of a new gourmet image. Meanwhile, companies innovate by focusing on convenience and Italian raw materials, but above all, on low calorie values and animal welfare, often reducing packaging sizes. In 2017, sales of Mortadella Bologna PGI abroad accounted for 15% of the total sales amounting to 5 thousand tonnes. “In international markets,” explains Corradino Marconi, President of the Consortium Mortadella Bologna, “it is essential to strengthen the knowledge of the high quality of Mortadella Bologna PGI among consumers and the strong link between this excellence and its place of production”.
Discover here some leading Italian cured meats products