Magazine: Durum products are the engine of sales

Not only ingredient prices have increased in the pasta market recently, but also packaging, energy and workforce costs – these trends entailed an increase in product prices.

Norbert Káhn
sales director
Gyermelyi

Norbert Káhn, sales director of Gyermelyi Zrt. told our magazine that in spite of this fact demand didn’t drop for pasta products.

Krisztina Kovácsné Nagy
advertising and marketing manager
Famíliatészta

Krisztina Kovácsné Nagy, advertising and marketing manager of Famíliatészta Kft. informed that thanks to their pricing strategy, they managed to react swiftly to the changes in egg prices and other production-related costs.

Ágnes Cseszkó
area manager
Barilla

Ágnes Cseszkó, area manager of the Barilla Group is of the opinion that affordably priced premium brands are strengthening their positions in the market. 

Róbert Rácz
sales and marketing director
Izsáki Házitészta

Róbert Rácz, sales and marketing director of Izsáki Házitészta Kft. told us that the changes affected all market players but the good news is that consumers do want their pasta.

Sales of pastas made without eggs grew above the market average, in part because durum products are successful in communicating their fitting into a healthy diet. From Gyermelyi Zrt.’s pastas it is still those made with fresh eggs that sell in the biggest quantity, but Mr Káhn told: their Vita Pasta durum pastas have made progress in terms of both penetration and dynamics. Ms Cseszkó explained that Barilla’s price doesn’t depend on egg prices as only special varieties such as Tagliatelle have eggs in them.

Zoltán Hegedűs
sales manager
Virgintrade / Kalocsai Fűszerpaprika

Nowadays not only gluten-sensitive consumers eat gluten-free pasta, but also health-conscious people – revealed Zoltán Hegedűs, sales manager of Virgintrade Kft. and sales director of Kalocsai Fűszerpaprika Zrt. He added that sales of gluten-free pastas had been growing for 3-4 years.

Last year was as investment milestone for Gyemelyi Zrt.: they started building a new pasta factory at the beginning of 2017 which will soon be ready. This step will double the company’s production capacity. A new automatic warehouse and a modern animal feed factory to raise the level of egg production are also part of the HUF 10-billion investment project. As the company is selling more and more products in foreign markets, they have to realise product and packaging innovation projects as well, in order to remain competitive on the international stage. Gyermelyi is now an umbrella brand: flour and egg are marketed under this brand name, too.

Ms Cseszkó reckons that few innovations stand the test of time in the pasta category. This is the reason why Barilla invests a lot of money in researching and developing innovative products, in line with consumer expectations and the latest trends. For instance Barilla Gluten Free pasta is made from a recipe that preserves the authentic taste and al dente texture of Italian pasta, while Barilla 5 Cereals pasta offers functional advantages. At the moment Barilla is working on introducing the organic BIO pasta category to the Hungarian market.

Famíliatészta Kft. has developed a durum wholemeal pasta range. What is more, the company will soon come out with more new products. Shaping the company’s marketing policy requires lots of creativity and dynamism because their product selection is so big. Since they have created several new product categories (durum wholemeal pastas, sports pasta, etc.), they are going down roads where they get reliable information directly. Famíliatészta employs a great variety of marketing tools, the efficiency of which is measured and the results are used in further planning, with the satisfaction of partners and consumers in mind. They use promotions that help retailers, displays, secondary placement, product sample distribution, special offers…

Izsáki Házitészta Kft. underwent structural changes in the last few years. Thanks to the new sales strategy they can make their products available in new areas – informed Róbert Rácz. Following a nearly 1,000-person survey they decided to update some of their products, and there will be new product sizes and new innovations will be launched in the second half of the year. The company gives priority to products with high egg content. Izsáki Házitészta Kft. now markets products under a single brand name.

VIRGINTRADE Kft. is the importer and distributor and Kalocsai Fűszerpaprika Zrt. is the distributor of the gluten-free PASTA D’ORO corn pastas made by Romanian company SAM MILLS. All products are gluten- and egg-free; at the moment 6 pastas and 2 soup pastas are marketed in Hungary. These products are among the cheapest in the gluten-free segment in Hungary. The Romanian company makes 13 different pasta variants, plus they also manufacture products with added QUINOA and RICE. SAM MILLS have already started marketing ORGANIC products in foreign markets. These have further health advantages but cost more too. //