MORE than one billion sandwiches are eaten each year from 1.3bn lunchboxes, according to figures from Kantar Worldpanel.
Unilever’s Partners for Growth team reckons this presents opportunities for category growth, as 44% of spreads and 35% of butter usage is in sandwiches.
The programme’s merchandising and creative controller, Nick Widdowson, said: “Butters and spreads are a kitchen essential, with a high proportion of ‘need it now’ purchases where consumers have run out and need to stock up quickly.”
Widdowson said that the butters and spreads market is worth £140m in c-stores and, while the market value is in slight decline, butter and cholesterol-lowering spreads are in growth with older consumers buying in the category three times as much as shoppers in younger age groups.
