Food Processing - Food Handling

The market for canned fruit and vegetables in the U.S. exhibits signs of slow decline. Sales of canned fruit and vegetables decreased 5% in current dollars from 2000 to 2005, from $3.8 billion to $3.6 billion. Still, canned fruit and vegetables are present in three-quarters of all U.S. households. Declining sales are related to competition from other markets and the popularity of private labels within the canned fruit market--both driving the price point downward.

Also affecting the market is the long-term trend of consumers moving away from cooking meals at home. The availability of other convenient produce options, such as pre-cut fruit and vegetables and bagged salads, also negatively impact the market. Agricultural advances have also made many forms of produce that were previously seasonal available year-round, creating less demand for canned versions.

Since the majority of canned fruit and vegetable offerings have not changed in terms of packaging formats, innovative products tend to be growth drivers for the category. Product lines that experienced growth include those packaged in glass bottles rather than cans, ethnic and regional items, and those with inventive flavors. Also showing growth are single serving containers, which appeal to consumers as average household size decreases.

Without a significant change in the perception of canned fruit and vegetables, the category will continue to approach the level of differentiation and positioning of commodity products. Increased uptake of private labels, which currently account for more sales than the top two brands combined, will certainly continue to erode the positioning of branded products in this sector.

For the purposes of this report, the following definitions have been used:
"Canned vegetables" includes all tinned vegetables, but sometimes in bottles or jars, except tomatoes and baked beans.
"Canned fruit" includes all tinned fruit, but sometimes also in bottles, jars, or plastic. Products may be canned in water, juice, or syrup.

This report excludes:
canned tomatoes, tomato sauce or paste
baked beans
canned fruit pie filling
juice of any kind
fresh, frozen, dried, or glazed fruit or vegetables
refrigerated or marinated fruit or vegetables
fruit butter
fruit-flavored syrup
pickles, relish, olives
This report contains US IRI InfoScan data.

For more information visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/c26548

Laura Wood
Senior Manager
Research and Markets
e-mail protected from spam bots
Fax: +353 1 4100 980