Three products in high demand as shoppers shun ultra-processed foods

Waitrose says sales of jacket potatoes, butter and full-fat products have increased this year as consumers move away from ultra-processed foods.

The luxury supermarket said it had seen a “fundamental change” in the way customers were shopping, heavily influenced by concerns over UPFs and the rise in weight-loss jabs.

Sales have surged in what the supermarket describes as the “wonderful comeback of carbs” as everything from beans to bread grows as an “obsession” with gut health and plant-based diets push consumers back to the importance of fibre.

This time last year sales of large potatoes were up by a third at Waitrose, while searches for “jacket potatoes” on Waitrose.com were up 178 per cent.

Shoppers have also shown renewed interest in pork (a fillet costs around £20 a kilo, while sirloin is now over £80) and some lesser-known types of fish, such as stingray fins, whose sales are up 21 per cent on last year, as they look for healthier forms of protein.

Customers are also increasingly turning to snacks. Waitrose said this was likely due to decreased appetite due to the use of weight loss pills. A survey of nearly 4,400 shoppers suggested 57 percent sometimes replaced meals with “snack foods.”

But on top of that, sales of whole milk, flavored butter (actual blocks rather than easy-to-spread alternatives) and premium olive oil have also increased as customers focus on taste and texture in cooking.

Waitrose said sales of its No.1 Organic Ayrshire Non-Homogenised Whole Milk were up 56 per cent and sales of its Duchy Organic British Free Range Non-Homogenised Whole Milk were up 25 per cent on this time last year.

Premium salted butter “has never been more popular,” he said, and sales of No. 1 French Salted Butter are up 13 percent from a year ago.

Going trends include “fake meat,” which favors high-quality cuts; Sales of other products, such as Dubai chocolate and sliced ​​bread, are falling.

Waitrose’s head of health and nutrition, Dr. Joanne Lunn said: “Increasing awareness of ultra-processed foods means customers are moving back to more natural, full-fat foods.

“Beyond maximizing taste and texture, these full-fat foods naturally avoid the excess sugars, stabilizers, and additives commonly used to replace fat in ‘diet’ or ‘0 percent’ alternatives.”