Grocery sales hit £19.6billion over the four weeks to December 27 – up 2.5% compared to the previous year – but sales on a volume basis fell 0.2%
UK shoppers bought less food and alcohol this Christmas with retail experts blaming weight loss jabs.
Grocery sales hit £19.6billion over the four weeks to December 27 – up 2.5% compared to the previous year, according to market researcher NielsenIQ. However, it said sales on a volume basis fell 0.2%.
Retail analysts believe the link is down to the rise in people taking GLP-1 injections, which mimic a key hormone to make the body feel full sooner.
The NHS prescribes the GLP-1 injections Mounjaro and Wegovy for weight loss but Ozempic only for diabetes. The most up to date research from University College London estimates around 1.6 million UK adults have used these injections in the past year.
Jonathan De Mello, retail analyst at JDM Retail, said: “The Ozempic effect is now a very real trend in grocery, with GLP-1 usage rising rapidly, and concurrent year-on-year grocery volume decline among users as a result.
“High-calorie categories like snacks and alcohol have been particularly impacted. As this trend gains momentum, more grocers will need to adapt product lines to this ‘less but better’ consumption shift.”
Consumer analyst Clive Black, from Shore Capital, said the dip in volume of groceries sold over Christmas was “perhaps the clearest indication of the impact of glucagon-peptide (GLP) drugs upon the nation’s eating habits?”
Major retailers have also started the New Year by launching smaller meals. Co-op has launched four new ‘”mini meals” which the supermarket says is designed for people with smaller appetites.
Marks & Spencer has introduced a new “nutrient dense” range, and Iceland has expanded its frozen ready meal offer with 38 new lines.
It comes after the boss of Greggs said there is “no doubt” weight loss jabs are impacting its business, after its total sales jumped by 7.4% but like-for-like sales increased by 2.4%, less than half the growth for 2024.
Chief executive Roisin Currie said: “What we’ve been seeing is people are looking for smaller portions, people are looking for information on areas such as protein and fibre, and therefore we’re making sure that in the breadth of our range we can offer those choices to customers.”
Tesco chief executive Ken Murphy said the supermarket was watching consumer trends “very closely” considering the rise in weight loss medication, while Sainsbury’s CEO Simon Roberts said the grocer is “observing closely” shopper habits.
