The National Consumer Agency today published the results of recent research into the grocery shopping behaviour of Irish consumers. The research, conducted by Behaviour and Attitudes, looked at who is responsible for the food and grocery shopping in Irish households and how their shopping habits have changed.

Fergal O’Leary, Director of Research and Policy at the National Consumer Agency, said: "Our research reveals that women continue to be mainly responsible when it comes to shopping for food and groceries and while shoppers remain focused on price and are definitely thriftier, they are not prepared to compromise on quality.

"Consumers are now spreading their shopping across a number of stores and this is particularly evident amongst the younger demographic. There have been further significant shifts towards supermarket own-brand labels as consumers believe that the quality of own-brand products has improved, and that much of the competition that occurs in the grocery market is now in the own-brand segment. It appears that consumers are increasingly aware of the options and the potential for savings which own-brand products present.”

The research shows that almost three quarters of women surveyed, 72%, are mainly responsible for food and grocery shopping, with a further 13% stating they were jointly responsible. More than half the men surveyed, 57%, said they had no responsibility for grocery shopping, whilst 23% stated that they share this responsibility in the household.

Not surprisingly, price positioning is of vital importance with two thirds of shoppers indicating that they have visited a particular shop due to the prices or offers available there. People between the ages of 35 and 49, possibly those with young families, are most likely to do this, with people over 65 least likely to have chosen a specific grocery store because of prices or special offers.

Almost 9 in 10 shoppers believe they are shopping more wisely and 67% have started to shop in less expensive stores. There is also a move towards home cooking, with 73% of respondents saying they are cooking more from scratch and 54% using less processed and ready to eat products. This is particularly evident amongst younger age groups, with 82% of under 35s saying they are cooking more from scratch.

Whilst shoppers are making their grocery budget go further, they are not prepared to compromise on quality, with more than 80% stating they are not buying products of lower quality. There is a growing perception that the quality of supermarket own-brand products is improving, with 71% of respondents stating quality has improved in recent years. More than half of those surveyed are more inclined to purchase own brand products now compared to a year ago.

There have been significant shifts from branded to own-brand products in the past 18 months, with a 22% shift in favour of own-brand soft drinks, a 19% shift in favour of own-brand juice drinks, 18% shift in favour of own-brand biscuits and a 15 % shift in favour of own-brand baby products. Notably, there is no category where there has been a shift towards buying more branded goods.