FMCG market in Germany - statistics & facts
FMCG (fast-moving consumer goods) covers just about everything consumers use in their daily lives. It is a market of high demand. As of 2023, German consumers living in private households spent the most money on housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuel. While this has been the case for a long time, it is also significant amid higher energy costs and rising cost of living in general in Germany. Other leading expenditure categories included transport, food, beverages and tobacco, as well as leisure. Within private consumer spending, retail expenditure made up around 31 percent as of 2023.
Whether online or offline, the German FMCG market will continue to be shaped by consumer demand, as well as the crossroads of sustainable manufacturing, transport and digitalization.
Sustainability and fair trade
The FMCG market, like many others, may be facing a transformation in the coming years due to several key trends. One of these is the growing desire for sustainable consumption. Consumers want to know how their chosen goods are produced and what kind of impact this has on the environment, meaning are purchases contributing to positive or negative developments in the long run. In fact, as of 2023, among sustainable consumer goods, fair trade product sales, generated a revenue of around 2.34 billion euros. When looking at fair trade products in more detail, sales figures show annual growth in the last decade. Consumers looked for some products more than others, with the undisputed leader being coffee. Other categories in high demand included fruit and textiles.FMCG online
Not a trend anymore, but by now an established part of the FMCG experience for businesses and consumers alike, is e-commerce. Online shopping has expanded to cover most likely every FMCG product currently available. The share of FMCG revenue in total German online trade has only grown in recent years, amounting to around 13 percent in 2023. This may not seem a high figure on its own, but compared to a one percent revenue share ten years ago, the increase is very significant. Various FMCG categories were bought online. While food, delicacies and wine were further down the list, online grocery shopping is by no means new on the German FMCG market.Whether online or offline, the German FMCG market will continue to be shaped by consumer demand, as well as the crossroads of sustainable manufacturing, transport and digitalization.
