Food retail in Germany - statistics & facts
Food retail makes up an enormous part of the food trade industry, with types of business including discounters, traditional food retail, hypermarkets, drugstores, department and general stores. A grocery store is an example of a traditional food retail establishment, while hypermarkets occupy much more space than supermarkets and offer other products besides food items. In the last decade, the number of food retail stores in Germany has been dropping year after year. One of the reasons for this is the expansion of online grocery shopping.
Some of the best-known brands in German food retail are Aldi and Lidl among discounters, then Edeka and Rewe among supermarkets. In private households, consumer spending on food grew steadily in the last decade, amounting to around 2023.2 billion euros in 2023, based on preliminary figures. As far as alcoholic beverages were concerned, spending fluctuated somewhat in recent years, but began to increase again after 2014. When breaking down revenue among food retailers by type of business, supermarkets recorded the highest figures. However, discounters saw increasing revenue, which is to be expected amidst Germany's inflation levels. In the last three years, some food product groups were consistent bestsellers. These included pasta, organic fruit and vegetables, and salty snacks.
The German food retail industry also includes the organic segment, with consumers showing increasing interest in sustainable consumption and food safety in general. The majority of revenue from organic food product sales was generated through food retailers (also including drugstores), followed by health food stores. Providing variety and tracking consumer behavior are the keys to German food retail success.
Some of the best-known brands in German food retail are Aldi and Lidl among discounters, then Edeka and Rewe among supermarkets. In private households, consumer spending on food grew steadily in the last decade, amounting to around 2023.2 billion euros in 2023, based on preliminary figures. As far as alcoholic beverages were concerned, spending fluctuated somewhat in recent years, but began to increase again after 2014. When breaking down revenue among food retailers by type of business, supermarkets recorded the highest figures. However, discounters saw increasing revenue, which is to be expected amidst Germany's inflation levels. In the last three years, some food product groups were consistent bestsellers. These included pasta, organic fruit and vegetables, and salty snacks.
The German food retail industry also includes the organic segment, with consumers showing increasing interest in sustainable consumption and food safety in general. The majority of revenue from organic food product sales was generated through food retailers (also including drugstores), followed by health food stores. Providing variety and tracking consumer behavior are the keys to German food retail success.
