The cookie market - France (2024)

1.2 A renewing global market

In ****, the global cookie market was estimated at ***.* billion US dollars. It is expected to grow at a CAGR of *% to reach $***.* billion in ****.

Global cookie market size World, ****-****, in billions of US dollars Source: ****

The cookie segments of the world's largest companies have been affected, not least because of the burgeoning debates about the health harms of sugar, with the rise of "sugar bashing which continues to affect the market. Indeed, over-consumption of sugar is seen as largely responsible for metabolic diseases such as obesity, and as a result, consumer distrust of sweet products is growing.

Nevertheless, in terms of sales, the big historical players, such as the American Mondelez (***) or Ferrero, remain in the lead and continue to share most of the market share.

What's more, the market can count on high-potential growth drivers, notably the development of healthier, environmentally-friendly and innovative products. The main challenge is to combine pleasure and nutritional value.

In terms of value, the European market is dominated by Italy, followed by Germany and France. In terms of volume, France is last in the top *, which shows just how much French inflation helps this sector.

Share of European production of the * largest European producers Europe, ...

1.3 The French market: fragile growth

The French sweet cookies market was estimated at *.* billion euros in P* ****, and comprises several segments: chocolate and fruit cookies, snacks, pastry cookies, dry cookies, cookies and breakfast cookies.

While market sales are up, at +**.*% on ****, the volume of cookies sold is estimated to be down (***).

French cookie market size France, ****-****, in billions of euros Source: ****

growing rejection of very sweet

products

In fact, the significant gap between market volume and value reflects the sector's strong premiumization, with consumers buying fewer cookies but at a higher price. What's more, the proportion of sales accounted for by special offers is falling, with organic, dietetic and innovative products in particular enjoying growing success[***].

1.4 International trade

Sweet cookies are registered under the following UN comtrade codes:

******: Sweet cookies; waffles and wafers. ******: Sweet cookies; whether or not containing cocoa.

Imports

In ****, France imported *.** billion euros worth of sweet cookies, a rising trend in recent years, up **.*% on ****. Cookie imports France, ****-****, in millions of euros Source: Eurostat France's cookie imports come mainly from Europe, with the top * suppliers - Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain - accounting for **% of imports.

Origins of French cookie imports France, ****, in Source: ****

Exports

In ****, France exported *.*** billion euros worth of cookies, up *.*% on ****. Cookie exports France, ****-****, in millions of euros Source: French Customs France's cookie exports are less concentrated than its imports, with the top * suppliers receiving around **% of exports. Like imports, exports are mainly destined for European countries: the top * destinations being Belgium, Germany, the UK, Spain and Italy.

Destinations of French cookie exports France, ****, in Source: ****

1.5 Covid's impact on the market

The arrival of Covid-** in the daily lives of the French has also had an impact on the way they consume. In the cookie market, consumers expect products to be more ethical, organic and cleanly produced, without sacrificing taste.

For this reason, market players (***) have had to adapt to changes in demand.

From an economic point of view, the biggest shock faced by companies was the closure of borders: in fact, this caused exports of the entire agri-food segment to fall by -*%. [***]

What's more, during the first containment period (***), French people who stayed at home to eat did not necessarily choose cookies. Indeed, this food category saw a -**.*% slowdown in sales in the first half of the year, before rebounding thereafter. The launch of new products helped to boost sales, resulting in almost the same level of sales as in ****:

Trésor Break from Kellogg's Nestlé Organic Cheerios Kinder CereAlé from Ferrero Kinder Cards by Ferrero

Source: ****

2.1 Consumer profile and habits

Cookies are consumed by most French people, with a penetration rate of **% in ****[***]. In France, nearly *kg of sweet cookies are consumed per person per year.

French people eat cookies mainly as snacks and for breakfast. Children's consumption differs from that of adults, however, since the former consume more at snack time, while the latter prefer to eat cookies at breakfast. At lunch and dinner, children consume less than adults, which may be explained by the fact that children's consumption is controlled by their parents.

Cookie consumption by age group France, ****, in Source: ****

2.2 Demand trends

In the face of "sugar bashing", the main growth driver for the cookie market is to focus on healthy products that are better for your health and the environment, such as organic, gluten-free, vegan or locally produced products.

In ****, sales of organic cookies rose by **%[***].

By ****, **% of French people will be eating organic cookies. Among regular organic consumers (***), **% will eat organic cookies, compared with **% in ****. This drop is explained in particular by a "return to normal" after the pandemic episode. During the pandemic, French eating habits were turned upside down, to the detriment of sweet and unhealthy products. Indeed, the French tended to prefer healthy, rich foods to protect themselves against viruses and disease[***].

There is no typical profile of organic cookie consumers. However, it would appear that women are more likely than men to consume them (***); and that younger people are also more likely to consume them: **% of **-** year-olds versus **% of **-** year-olds. In addition, people on special diets are also more likely to consume organic products; an interesting trend, since special diets seem to be gaining in popularity.

Share of organic cookie consumers by diet France, ****, in Source: ****

Cookie bestsellers on Amazon provide a snapshot of successful organic ...

2.3 Children, the heart of the cookie market

Frequency of sweet snack consumption by age France, ****, in Source: ****

The graph above shows that the frequency of consumption of sweet snacks varies according to age. Around half of **-** year-olds eat a snack * to * times a week, and none skip this meal. As age increases, this meal becomes less frequent: around a quarter of retired people don't have a snack, compared with a global average of **%.

Breakdown of cookie consumption by occasion France, ****, in Source: ****

Meanwhile, children's favorite products are dry cookies (***).

Breakdown of children's and teenagers' cookie consumption by category France, ****, in Source: ****

However, parents largely influence children's snacks, and more and more parents are favoring healthier products for their children.

2.4 France's favourite cookie brands

The graph below shows the favorite cookie brands of the French. The percentages represent the positive responses to the question "Do you like this brand?" for each cookie brand.

The LU brand is the most popular with the French in February ****, with just under **% saying they like it.

Michel & Augustin is the cookie brand least appreciated by the French, with **% of respondents saying they like it. This can be partly explained by the relatively low brand awareness. In fact, awareness of Michel & Augustin is around **%, while it is over **% for all the other cookie brands mentioned here.

French people's favorite cookie brands France, March ****, in Source: ****

However, the level of appreciation of different cookie brands varies according to age. The graph below shows the three brands for which the gap in appreciation levels between the youngest (***) age groups is widest. Prince, Milka and Granola appeal relatively little to older respondents: Granola is appreciated by only **.*% of respondents over **, whereas this level rises to **.*% for younger respondents. Cookie brands aimed at young customers France, March ****, in Source: Opinionway survey "Marque préférée des Français In contrast to the three brands mentioned above, the three brands in the graph below ...

3.1 Biscuit production

In ****, France had *** cookie and cake factories, and cookie and cake production accounted for **,*** direct jobs[***].

Sweet cookies are made from a dough that is prepared by kneading the raw materials for * to ** minutes, depending on the type of kneading used. The dough is then transferred to a vat to rest. The dough is then shaped and divided into individual portions. After filling, the cookies are baked and packaged in batches[***].

Furthermore, over half (***) of cookie and cake producers are small and medium-sized businesses, and **% are very small businesses. Only **% are medium-sized companies, and *% are large. The majority of companies are therefore relatively small.

Breakdown of cookie and cake manufacturers by size France, ****, in Source: ****

Of the *** establishments registered under NAF code **.**Z: Manufacture of cookies, rusks and preserved pastries; *** are located in Brittany, i.e. almost **% of them. Cookie production is not homogeneous across France. After Brittany, it's the south of France that concentrates the most establishments.

The cookie market is largely dominated by the Mondelez group, which has a **.*% market share and includes brands such as Lu, Oreo, Granola, Mikado, Prince and Pépito. The two players with the largest market shares after Mondelez are St Michel Biscuits (***), which ...

3.2 Cookie distribution

The majority of biscuits are sold in supermarkets and hypermarkets, which account for almost three-quarters of cookie and cake sales (***)

EDMPs account for **.*% of sales, while convenience stores account for *.*%. E-commerce closes the gap with *.*% of sales. However, it is e-commerce that has the highest growth rate in value and volume (***).

Distribution channels for cookies and cakes France, ****, in Source: ****

Growth rate of distribution channels France, P* ****, in LSA-conso

4.1 Product typology

The chart below highlights the different product types, their share of sales and their evolution.

Chocolate and fruit cookies are the most popular, accounting for **.*% of sales in P* ****. Snack, pastry and dry cookies are also popular, accounting for **.*%, **.*% and **.*% of sales respectively.

Cookie sales by category France, ****, in millions of euros Source: ****

From a dynamic point of view, chocolate and fruit cookies, and my pastry cookies are experiencing the strongest growth in volume (***). Breakfast cookies, on the other hand, saw a significant drop in sales volume: -*.*%. Cookie sales by category France, ****-****, in Source: ****

4.2 Prices

Cookie prices are relatively dependent on wheat and cereal prices. After a fall in prices between **** and ****, prices rose, with a *.*% increase in prices between **** and ****, before falling again over the period **** - ****. in ****, prices rose sharply as a result of inflation caused by the energy crisis, and in ****, prices rose again to ***.**, up **.*% on ****.

Consumer price index for cookies and cakes (***) France, ****-****, base *** in **** Source: ****

This rise in prices is all the more marked given the downward trend in raw material prices, particularly for sugar and cereals. However, these products are characterized by a certain volatility, notably due to the cliamtic hazards that affect harvests.

There is a very wide variety of cookies in France, some examples of which are given below:

Pastry cookies Dry cookies Chocolate and fruit cookies Filled cookies Breakfast cookies Cookies Galettes and palets breton

When sold, cookie prices depend on the brand, product type and distribution channel. We can give the following indicative values for purchases made in supermarkets, which represent the market's most significant outlet:

Chocolate cookies: *.** euros per kilo. Orange sponge cakes: *.** euros per kilo. Chocolate or vanilla cookies: between *.** and *.** euros per kilo. Brand-name cookies: *.** euros per kilo. Organic butter cookies: ...

4.3 Supply trends: innovation, health and the environment

Packaging is a major selling point in this sector, since it represents the brand's image and must meet consumer requirements, particularly in terms of convenience and product preservation. As a result, manufacturers are playing with format variations, and are increasingly offering individual packaging, in response to the boom in on-the-go consumption. Indeed, according to areport on eating habits in ****, the rise of individualism has had an impact on consumer behavior, particularly with food individualization (***).

In addition, we are currently witnessing a general move upmarket in products, as well as a shift by consumers towards higher value-added products, such as organic cookies, low-fat cookies, artisan-made cookies, gluten-free cookies, vegan cookies, and so on.

Many players are playing the organic and gluten-free, like Lu. For its part, Biscuit International acquired Northumbrian Fine Foods (***), the UK's leading manufacturer of gluten-free and lactose-free cookies, in May ****. "NFF has launched over *** lactose-free and gluten-free products in just one year. A know-how that we will use to develop products for our distributors", warnedGiampaolo SchiratticEO of Biscuit International.

Extending the range of products on offer, with the constant launch of new products, as well as efforts to innovate, are constant driving forces in the French cookie industry. This ...

4.4 The importance of "healthy eating

More and more consumers are interested in the composition of the products they buy. This growing interest in natural, healthy products is reflected in the purchase of organic products. More and more organic products are being sold in France, particularly in the "Epicerie" category, which includes cookies.

Organic food sales by product family France, **** - ****, in millions of euros Source: ****

So there's a demand for healthier, consumer-friendly products that the major groups have some catching up to do. Indeed, the following graph shows that the major groups had very low market shares in **** when it came to organic food, where they had just *.*% of the offer, compared with **% for conventional food.

Supply share of different company types France, ****, percentage Source: ****

We note the following initiatives by major food players:

Kellogg's launched its "parent-approved" recipes, including a Coco Pops recipe with **% less sugar and **% less salt... Danone used its Alpro brand to market non-genetically modified plant-based products, such as soy, vanilla and chocolate-based foods and drinks. Nestlé France, through its Le Bon Paris brand, began marketing cooked ham without nitrite (***). Fleury Michon has pledged to reduce the salt content of its products to **% below market averages, having been the first to offer ...

4.5 Le Tour de France des cookies

5.1 The truth about the label

The cookie market in France is subject to regulatory requirements that can constitute significant barriers to entry. Certain strict rules concerninglabeling and allergens must be respected. In fact, according to the Charte Professionnelle des Fabricants de Biscuits et Gâteaux de Francemandatory information must be clear on the packaging , enabling the customer to compare the product with another based on the ingredients it contains, or the quantities of ingredients as a percentage. For example, a cookie containing fruit should be labelled with a phrase such as "*% concentrated raspberry purée". When it comes to labelling, the list of ingredients and calculations is also essential. The names of the cereals must be mentioned, as well as the percentages of the different forms of wholegrain cereals.

These regulations encourage the right choices in terms of eating habits and behavior, as they constitute nutritional information. The key success factors for cookies lie in the food quality of the product, and this cannot be good if the regulations are not respected.

5.2 The Egalim Law

In order to achieve a more balanced relationship between producers and suppliers, thefood law" passed in October **** aims to influence industry practices. The aim is to reverse the construction of prices, which will be based first and foremost on production costs, but also to balance the balance of power between producer and distributor in food matters. In particular, the law provides for

A cap of **% in value and **% in volume on promotions; A **% increase in the loss leader threshold (***), meaning that products sold by stores will have to be at least **% higher than their purchase price.

6.1 Segmentation

• Ferrero
• Biscuits Poult (Biscuit International Groupe)
• Galapagos Gourmet
• Biscuits Bouvard Groupe
• La Trinitaine
• Roullier Groupe
• Fossier Biscuits
• Intersnack (Knabber Geback Group)
• Filet Bleu
• United Biscuits
• Saint Michel Biscuits
• Lotus Bakeries
• Kambly
• Michel et Augustin
• La biscuiterie fine de France
• Biscuit International
• Ekibio (Groupe Lea Biodiversité)
• Loc Maria Biscuits Les Gavottes
• Oréo (Mondelez)
• Maison Taillefer
• Maison du biscuit
• Maison Colibri (Groupe Roullier)
• LU Biscuit (Mondelez)
• Le Ster le Patissier
• La Sablésienne
• La mère Poulard
• Bretzels Moricettes Mfp Poulaillon
• Ker Cadélac
• Gerblé
• Delacre (Ferrero Groupe)
• BN Biscuiterie Nantaise
• Biscuiterie Jeannette
• Biscuiterie Mistral (Dijon Céréales Coopérative)
• Biscuiterie de Montmartre
• Biscuiterie de la Pointe du Raz
• Biscuiterie de Provence
• Armor Délice
• Biscuiterie de Kerlann
• La Fabrique Cookies
• Traditional World Food Epidis
• Buton Groupe- Saveurs et délices