Lighter butter creams on bread

While margarine continues to remain a basic product, consumers are becoming familiar with its alternatives. Creams which can be spread on bread not only compete with each other but with margarine as well. A confusingly large number of product categories which can be spread on bread are available. According to Éva Bardi, brand manager of Unilever Magyarország, consumers of margarine are 92 per cent identical to consumers of butter/cheese/sandwich creams. – Butter, sandwich and milk creams are sufficiently similar to be regarded as substitutes which means that consumer decisions are often based on the value of packaging/price ratio. Cheese creams belong to a completely different segment, as these are positioned higher – says the marketing and export director of SOLE-MIZO Zrt. – It is our objective to offer a wide assortment of healthy, basic dairy products of guaranteed quality for everyday consumption by every health-conscious Hungarian family – adds Éva Major Varga. The 35 per cent expansion achieved by private labels is the most important trend in the market of such products. As a result of increased health-consciousness and awareness of the risks of margarine consumption, butter and butter creams have increased their market share at the expense of sandwich creams. Margarine is also undergoing changes, as manufacturers try to replace the hydrogenated ingredients with healthier ones. – The most popular segments are those with a lower fat content, primarily because they are cheaper, but high quality products are also in demand – says Kinga Rátz, Junior Brand Manager from Royal Brinkers Hungary Kft. Their new product: Holland Prémium also belongs to this segment. The Rama, Delma and Flora brands of the market leader in margarine Unilever, allow penetration of all segments, while Rama Creme Bonjour products are strong competitors in the butter/sandwich/milk creams category. – Consumers appreciate brands which are regarded as representing quality and are willing to pay a higher price for these – points out Éva Bardi. The market share of private label margarine shows stagnation and is expected to drop as a result of future price rises. Numerous BTL tools are used to promote the above categories, as these are generally not large enough to make media campaigns cost effective. BTL tools are however, quite inventive and effective, especially when combined with price promotions.