Trade: Reveal Marketing Research : No meal without bread: Romanians are still big consumers of bakery products

• More than half of Romanians that live in rural areas consume bread daily compared to only a quarter of those in urban areas;

• Around the Easter holidays, half of the Romanians declare that they will prepare the cozonac – a traditional romanian holiday desert – at home, and half will buy it;

• In the post-pandemic period, Romanians prepare to a lesser extent bakery products at home (43% this year compared to 52% last year).

According to the latest Reveal Marketing Research study, bread remains the most consumed bakery product among Romanians.

Loafs (42%), along with sliced / packaged bread (41%) and white bread (39%) are the most popular bakery products included in the daily diet of Romanians. These are also the products for which 84% of Romanians felt the highest increase in prices, compared to the previous year.

It is well known that Romanians in urban areas are increasingly concerned about having a healthy lifestyle and thus, more inclined to look for healthier food alternatives, with higher nutritional value to be introduced in the daily diet.

In this context, black / wholemeal / seeded bread is consumed daily by 17% of respondents and to a greater extent by people in urban areas (19%) compared to people in rural areas (14%).

Bread is more often present on the tables of Romanians in rural areas

It can also be seen that people in rural areas consume more bread daily than people in urban areas, significant differences can be observed both in the case of loafs (urban: 35%, rural: 51%) and in the case of white bread ( urban: 32%, rural: 49%).

Regarding the least popular bakery products among Romanians, the highest scores are recorded by ciabatta and foccacia, which are never consumed by 40% of Romanians.

The Cozonac – indispensable on Romanian tables not only on holidays.

Cozonac is the bakery product consumed by most Romanians. 95% of Romanians consume cozonac at least once a year, making this product one of the most beloved bakery products on Romanian tables.

Easter holidays and cozonac consumption

Like last year, half of Romanians say they will prepare Easter cake at home, to a higher extent those in rural areas (56%).

Compared to last year, the proportion of those who say they will buy cozonac from a store has increased by 5 percent to 42%. Of them, most say they will buy cakes from the supermarket / hypermarket (44%). Compared to 2021, the percentage of people who prefer to buy cozonac from the bakery has increased by 4 percent, from 33% to 37%.

80% of Romanians prefer local recipes and brands of cozonac

Romanians still prefer traditional cozonac recipes, 8 out of 10 Romanians opting for Romanian brands and recipes, mostly people over 55 (90%), but also those from rural areas (84%).

The percentage of people who prefer recipes or international brands has decreased compared to the previous year, from 28% to 21%.

The preparation of home bakery products is lower compared to last year, an evolution that can be explained by the relaxation of restrictions and the decrease of the “home cooking” trend brought by the pandemic.

Compared to the Reveal Marketing Research study conducted last year, Romanians prefer to prepare bakery products at home to a significantly lower degree, the percentage of those who say they prefer to buy them increasing by 9 percent, from 48% (2021) to 57% (2022).

People in rural areas – who generally have lower incomes and / or are more traditionally oriented – bake more products (38%) compared to people in urban areas (23%).

Cozonac (39%), followed by bread (16%) are among the top preferences for home-made bakery products.

The main reasons why Romanians do not prepare bakery products at home are the fact that the recipes take too long (57%) or are too complicated (34%). In 2021, the main barrier was the fact that commercial products were considered better (49%). Thus, efficiency and comfort are among the top needs of Romanians this year.

***

About Reveal Marketing Research

Reveal Marketing Research is a full-service market research company, specialized in market research, sociological studies, customer insight, business strategy, market development. With expertise in over 20 industries, Reveal Marketing Research believes that market research is the basis for the right decisions and brand positioning. Qualitative and quantitative solutions have been helping companies in Romania and Europe for 13 years.

Methodology: The Reveal Marketing Research study was conducted online between 04-07.04.2022, on a representative sample for the universe of people aged 18+, from urban and rural areas. The sample size was 1008 respondents, and the maximum sampling error is +/- 3.1% at a 95% confidence level.

Developed by Codecraftsman