Quick Take — The retailer’s brand reaches 50% in the main European markets, setting a new record. In Italy, however, it remains at 36%

According to Circana, growth is set to accelerate in 2026: inflation and Ai-driven shopping will favour the cheapest products for the same benefits …

circana’s analysis finds that retailers have managed to keep prices low and quality high. MDDs are intercepting health and lifestyle trends, offering premium offerings and innovative product launches with more dynamism than national brands. Retailers’ strategy of targeting social media content at younger shoppers who are less loyal to traditional brands is also playing a key role in sustaining demand…

Below: Esselunga, under my leadership, was already at around 35% private label in 2003 (thanks to the Esselunga, Naturama, Esselunga Bio and Fidel brands, the first price created to combat discount stores).

Quick Take — Mastrolia on the short-sightedness of leading brands is absolutely right

The aim is to reach 50 per cent Mdd products, while NewPrinces’ products will occupy 20 per cent.

Only 30% of the shelf space will be dedicated to industrial brands. ” Big brands tend to maximise profits by exploiting the recognisability of their products and customer loyalty in order to raise the price to the maximum,” Mastrolia argues.

I believe this is not only unethical but also a wrong strategy because, beyond a certain price limit, you lose even the most loyal consumer otherwise, how else would you explain the constant decline in market share of multinationals and big brands to the advantage of private labels and discounters?”

The big brands have raised prices disproportionately during Covid, creating inflation and disaffection: an autogoal, as can be seen from the evolution below.

Quick Take — Cibo e vino: come si stanno modificando i menu e le abitudini alimentari negli Stati Uniti

Cibo: un terzo degli acquirenti mangia di più a casa, compra più prodotti a marchio del supermercato e fa acquisti all’ingrosso Progressive Grocer.

Vino: i rivenditori o grossisti di vini e liquori statunitensi stanno riscrivendo i menu o rifornendo gli scaffali dei negozi con opzioni più economiche a causa dei dazi imposti sulle importazioni provenienti da regioni produttrici di alcolici come l’Europa a partire dallo scorso anno Reuters.

Sotto due prodotti della “private selection”, gamma premium di Kroger, quarto distributore degli USA.

In estrema sintesi è un brutto momento per le marche leader e per i grandi vini che rischiano di essere spodestati da prodotti che costano di meno dei loro. Ciò spiega, almeno in parte, alcune cessioni, avvenute ultimamente in casa Nestlè e Unilever.

Quick Take — Discount: worldwide growth exceeds the grocery market

According to IGD’s most recent analysis, the discount channel is confirmed as the physical food retail segment with the strongest growth globally by 2030, reinforcing a positioning that in recent years has progressively evolved from a simple price lever to a highly competitive and innovative retail model. In fact, the “Global discount trends 2026” report shows that discounters will register a compound annual growth rate of 4.8%, almost one percentage point higher than the 4.0% expected for the overall grocery market, a sign of a structural dynamic that continues to reward efficient formats, streamlined assortments and a strong value orientation.

Underlying this expansion are several converging factors, including persistent consumer demand for convenience, expanding sales networks, and a growing capacity for innovation in both product and operating models. As Dan Butler, insight partner at IGD, points out, discounters are no longer perceived as…

In this scenario, operators such as Aldi and Lidl will continue to play a dominant role, with combined sales estimated at $334 billion by the end of the decade, supported by private label investments, international expansion and advanced pricing and loyalty models. In parallel, the report points to even faster growth for so-called variety discounters, such as Action and Dollar Tree, which could reach a CAGR of 6.3% due to strong demand for low-priced non-food products and increased impulse buying…

Source

Quick Take — Banana cultivation: a pesticide paradise

Banana plantations stretch across Ecuador, Costa Rica, Peru, the Philippines and Colombia: territories where the climate is perfect for growing the fruit… and pests. To protect the crops, pesticides and herbicides are used in quantities that a European farmer would not see in an entire career.

All companies claim to follow ‘sustainability’ programmes, but the truth is that a banana at 1.49 €/kg cannot guarantee fair wages, cover ocean transports and ensure clean agriculture. Someone along the supply chain always pays the price: often the health of those who work… and those who consume

Below:

1 some of the pesticides mentioned by ‘Guess who’s coming to dinner’ (Rai3) were also found in organic bananas and are banned in the EU but enter it because there are no reciprocity clauses between South America and Europe.

This problem could be changed by a proper implementation of the Mercosur treaty .

2 the label of the Esselunga Bio Ctm Altromercatobananas.

Read also this article on Esselunga private label bananas and in the GD, in general. On pesticides you can read here.

Compiled 10 December 2025, updated 19 March 2026