mushrooms

Mushrooms are growing ahead of total vegetables

The onset of the government’s new National Living Wage in April and the implications that will have on the industry is the chief concern for those involved in UK mushroom supply, which one insider claims has “never been more difficult”.

Fears over the effects of the living wage come on top of continued downward pressure emanating from the low prices supermarkets across the board have been selling fresh produce items such as mushrooms at.

Nevertheless, the category’s value and volume figures make for more promising reading in the grand scheme of the entire fresh produce industry, and a very familiar face has come on board to help give mushrooms a greater consumer-facing push.

Paul Parmenter, senior commercial manager at Walsh Mushrooms, tells FPJ: “The new living wage will add to the price pressure, which is already seeing a switch from British to imports, and the push for low prices will always have an effect on a low-margin product.

“Low margins do not allow for major investment in R&D or for future planning of investment in expansion with the length of payback time required.”

Despite this, Parmenter very proudly notes: “On the positive side, the category is seeing growth ahead of the whole vegetable category. The category is growing at 3.1 per cent in value, whereas veg is growing at 1.9 per cent; and the category has nearly reached £400 million in value. Volume has also increased by 2.5 per cent, according to Kantar Worldpanel figures.”

Stephen Allen, head of marketing at mushroom giant Monaghan Mushrooms, echoes these thoughts. He says: “One of the big talking points is how mushrooms are outperforming the total veg market.While many categories in veg are in decline, thankfully the mushroom category is bucking that trend and is growing.

“We’re seeing greater growth in premium mushrooms such as chestnuts and flat, and declines in cheaper entry-level mushrooms, which are some of the main talking points.”

He adds: “Working in the mushroom industry has probably never been more difficult, but at least the category is growing and when you’re operating in a growing category there’s always opportunities to improve sales and develop.”

Supply and demand has been consistent, according to Allen, which is “usual with the control in end-to-end supply chain”. The $64,000 question, therefore, is how to boost mushroom consumption even more than its current levels.

For Parmenter, the answer is simple: “We need to continue to tell consumers of the benefits of mushrooms. This is both the health and the simplicity of usage. This is being done through the Just Add Mushrooms campaign, which is funded by the industry and the EU, and this is to increase not only consumption of existing users but also penetration. The latest celebrity burst has just launched using Fern Britton.”

Allen adds: “We need to keep on producing mushrooms to a very high quality, to make sure that we continue to meet shoppers’ needs, and if we do that, I’m confident that the market will continue to grow.

“As evening meals in the UK are becoming less reliant on potato-based meals, that opens up opportunities for consumption of mushrooms, as it’s easier to include mushrooms in the food types that are growing, such as rice-based and spaghetti-based dishes.

While the biggest challenge, according to Parmenter, is recovering the additional cost put on by the living wage, and “having a level playing field in terms of cost base with imports, as UK producers need a long-term commitment to have the confidence to invest in the future”, innovations such as recylable and longer shelf-life-aiding packaging are helping safeguard the category’s future.

Allen believes innovation on mushrooms will be centred around two areas – health and flavour. He says: “Consumers are looking for foods that are good for you, and also for food that tastes great.Mushrooms can tick both boxes very well.” Linking up to this view, Monaghan Mushrooms has recently launched mushrooms with added
vitamin D.

With Brits working hard to get the requisite amount of vitamin D at this time of year, the retail-launched product from the Irish-headquartered businesses provides 100 per cent of your vitamin D in just three mushrooms: “We have seen this product take off in the market and add incremental volume to the category,” Allen says.

Looking even further ahead, Parmenter says: “Growers will hone their techniques to maximise yield potential in order to achieve a sustainable return. The health benefits of mushrooms will certainly become more of a focus as the agenda on a healthier way of living is pushed, depending on how the government decides on tackling the obesity crisis.”