Slovakia
has one of the lowest birth rates in the world but the market for baby food has
not only been affected by birth rates but also by economic conditions in the
country. Slovakia is the second poorest country in the European region after
Estonia however, the economy has been picking up since 2014. Consequently the
market for baby food has expanded due to price increases and demand for more
sophisticated products as indicated by the study, ‘The
Baby Food Sector in Slovakia, 2018’.
Recent
trends have revealed that per capita consumption of baby food in 2017 stood at
a relatively low level to Europe’s general trend. All sectors of baby food in
the country have seen value growth since 2011 but only milks and wet meals have
experienced volume growth. The majority of milks sold in Slovakia are in powder
form but now organic, fortified and natural baby food products are gaining
traction. This comes as a result of growing concern among parents about the
health and wellness of children especially after studies and researches that
confirmed the suspicion that Eastern European nations were being supplied with
inferior quality food compared to their western counterparts.
The
Slovakian baby food and pediatric nutrition industry is led by Nutricia which
is part of the Spanish company DANONE. Its products range from milk formula to
nutrition for babies with special needs and breastfeeding mothers. Nutricia
captures more than one-third of the market. Its unique methods of not only
exploring the fields of baby food but also testing and incorporating medical
science gives it an edge over others. Even in 2018 it continues its legacy of
research and still has many ongoing studies relating to fermentation of milk,
human milk studies and breastfeeding just to name a few.
Nestlé
Slovensko s.r.o. follows as the next big player with nearly one-fifth market
share. The company distributes nutrition, health and wellness packaged products
and offers baby foods under the Cerelac, Gerber, Gerber Graduates, NaturNes,
and Nestum brands. HiPP Slovakia and Hero Group are also significant players
that individually constitute around one-tenth of the market. HiPP is renowned
for its legacy of organic products ranging for baby drinks to wet meals for
babies even providing options for flavors. On the other hand Hero Group is
inspired by homemade food and aims for the healthiest output by using gentle
production methods and avoiding artificial preservatives. It even has
subsidiaries which are reputed in various countries for example; Sunar is an
infant milk brand famous among Slovakian babies.
Slovakia
is expected to be one of the many regions where better food standards will
prevail. Baby food in the country is already undergoing a radical
transformation with many market leaders moving towards transparent and organic
options. The Slovakian baby food sector appears to be dominated by foreign
giants that are reputed across Europe. While locally manufactured products
account for a very small proportion of total consumption, multinational imports
dominate the market evident by the fact that in 2017, DANONE, Nestle, HiPP and
Hero jointly accounted for around nine-tenth of overall value sales.
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Ken
Research
Ankur
Gupta, Head Marketing & Communications
0124-4230204