Magazine: Trendy liver patés

With its annual volume sales around 9,600 tons, the liver paté category is a medium-sized one among meat products. According to Zoltán Szántó, senior product manager of Pick Szeged Zrt., a comprehensive survey conducted by the company has shown that consumers like to choose from a wide range of goods, regularly switching between them, when it comes to buying meat products. Households purchase liver paté every second week on average.

Gyulai Liver Paté was the first spreadable liver paté (in the early 1980s) in the Hungarian market. Éva Tamáskovitsné Gila, marketing manager of Gyulahús Kft. told our magazine that sales develop a bit better in the autumn and winter period. She added that Hungarian liver patés have a special flavour, which is often too salty and characteristic for consumers in certain foreign markets – or on the contrary, they aren’t spicy enough in others. Comparing sales data from the first halves of 2015 and 2016, we can see that sales were stagnating in terms of both value and volume. The 100-249g category developed the best, while sales seem to have decreased in most of the other categories.

Pre-packed liver patés realise about 80 percent of category sales. Mr Szántó told that private label products remain important in the category: in June 2016 their share was 32 percent in value and 49.7 percent in volume – according to data collected by Pick Szeged. It is noteworthy, though, that in volume a 4.2 percentage point decrease was measured and value-wise there was a 2.5 percentage point reduction. In addition to plain liver paté, the most popular product version is the onion-flavoured one. This is the reason why PICK Fried Onion liver paté was introduced last year: this product is characterised by a 25-percent live content. PICK products’ new look is communicated with an integrated campaign in the last quarter of the year. The new product packaging contains product advantages and allergen information too.

Gyulai Májas liver paté is available in pre-packed (110-250g) and deli counter (700g) versions. The classic version is the best-seller but the Marjoram version is very popular too. The new liver paté product with Sausage Spicing isn’t available in every part of the country yet and consumer opinion is divided on it. It is just being tested how consumers receive the 500g Gyulai Májas liver paté. Gyulai Májas liver paté products contain no gluten or lactose and their liver content had been increased to 25 percent already before the new regulation entered into force.

Nádudvari Élelmiszer Kft. sells both pre-packed and deli counter liver patés. Demand is the greatest for their 110g pre-packed products. Managing director János Volosinovszki told Trade magazin that consumers like the plain version the most, but the company’s marjoram and chives liver patés are also popular. Their experience is that sales performance doesn’t really change in various seasons. Sales of Nádudvari liver patés keep increasing, especially in supermarkets and discount stores. All of their products are lactose- and gluten-free, and their liver content had already been 25 percent before the new rules came out.

This autumn Kaiser Food came out with Kaiser liver paté’s latest version: Kaiser Marjoram liver paté in 120g and 300g size – we were told by Péter Fábián, brand manager of Kaiser Food Kft. Based on consumer feedback, they also put a new, 300g version of Kaiser Duck liver paté on the market. Another new product from the company this autumn is Kaiser Premium pork paté with bacon coating, in both pre-packed and deli counter versions. This product is characterised by exceptionally high, 48-percent pork and 40-percent pig liver content.