Frozen food market growing in Poland

2010-08-21

The Polish market of frozen food is gradually growing. From June 2009 to June 2010, the value of spending for frozen foodstuffs based on vegetables and fruits grew by 11%, while by volume it increased by 5%, according to Nielsen data.
As the demand for frozen food is growing, the consolidation of the market is speeding up. In 2010, Iglokrak, the producer and distributor of frozen food, has been acquired by Penta Invtestments, the owner of Zabka convenience store chain. Iglokrak also reported that it has commenced negotiations on a merger with Iglotex, which is a leader in the segment of frozen meals based on flour and potatoes.
Also Pamapol, the producer of ready-made meals and frozen food, has been expanding its segment of frozen goods, which accounted for 20% of the company’s sales revenues in Q1 2010. By the way of comparison, the segment of ready-made meals generated 15% of the producer’s sales revenues in the first three months of 2010.
Another player on the market is Eskimos, which has debuted on the NewConnect alternative stock market, reporting that it plans to acquire one of its rival firms.
Also large retail chains have been expanding in the segment, offering private label frozen foodstuffs, which share grew from 22% in 2008 to 30% currently.
At present, Hortex is a leader in the frozen food segment in terms of value, with a 43% share, followed by Hortino (8.2% share) and Nordis, which controls 4.8% of the market.