Summary

from 2020 onwards, the global infant nutrition market, which includes infant milk and dietary diversification products, continues to experience significant trends and developments. While the French market remains a major player, particularly in infant milk, global growth is driven by strong demand from China, where parents place great trust in foreign brands, particularly after the 2008 milk scandal. The market is highly concentrated, dominated by giants such as Danone and Nestlé, which together account for 80% of the global market. There has been a noticeable shift towards organic products, with increased consumer demand leading to 30% growth in this segment. Despite the good overall performance of key brands, demographic changes such as falling birth rates are affecting market dynamics, with France witnessing a gradual decline in births. According to Euromonitor, the French market, although still a major consumer of infant formula, is expected to experience an average annual decline of 0.9% by 2024.

Confidence in brands remains a key factor in consumer choice, particularly after incidents such as the salmonella scandal at Lactalis. Distribution is mainly via supermarkets and hypermarkets, with internet sales increasing but remaining marginal. Prices are rising, with Nestlé Nutrition reporting a gross margin of 19.1%, reflecting the oligopolistic nature of the market. French infant nutrition exports grew considerably, mainly to countries such as Algeria and China. With ongoing changes in consumer preferences and demographic challenges, the infant nutrition market remains dynamic, with a nuanced balance between established brands and new market entrants responding to evolving demand

Trends and dynamics in the French baby food market

The French baby food market, valued at around 1.2 billion euros, is an evolving landscape profoundly influenced by demographic changes, cultural practices and consumer preferences. This market is mainly divided into two segments: infant milks, which capture over half the market at around 63%, and diversification foods such as compotes, purées and yogurts, which account for around 37%. One notable trend in the French market is the growing popularity of organic baby foods. With a growth rate of 30% observed over a few months in 2017, the organic segment now represents over 15% of the market. This surge is reflected in the product offering of both established giants such as Danone and Nestlé, and organic specialists such as HiPP and Vitagermine. Demand for products with the "made in France" label also supports this trend, with companies like Blédina aiming to source a significant proportion of their ingredients locally.

Despite this positive dynamic, the market faces demographic challenges. There has been a gradual decline in the number of births, with a notable drop to around 730,242. This, combined with a downward trend in the frequency of infant food consumption, indicates that the consumer base is shrinking. Another major problem facing the market is that of trust. following scandals such as the widespread contamination in China in 2008 and the more recent Lacatalis scandal in France, consumer confidence has become paramount. The reliability of brands like Blédina and Nestlé is crucial to maintaining their combined 80% market share. The market also relies heavily on the convenience offered by its products, as the rise in the average age of parents and the employment rate of women mean that time-saving and ease of use are becoming important purchasing criteria.

The distribution channels for baby food are mainly supermarkets and hypermarkets, which account for 90% of infant milk sales. Pharmacies account for a smaller but significant share, due to the positive health perception associated with their products. Online sales, though still marginal, show robust growth year on year. The strict regulations governing the French market guarantee compliance with the highest safety standards. Preservatives, colorants, artificial hormones, sweeteners and certain pesticides are strictly regulated or banned outright, and any health claims must be backed up by solid research and approved by the European authorities.

In terms of corporate involvement in the market, general multinationals are the most active in infant nutrition The infant nutrition market is a territory occupied by a wide range of companies, each putting forward distinct approaches to meeting the needs of young children and their parents. While some companies have consolidated their status as generalist multinationals in the agri-food sector, others have carved out niches as organic specialists or focus primarily on infant nutrition and health. In addition, dairy cooperatives and food distributors play a key role in shaping the baby food industry's offering.

Dominant generalist multinationals

Among the titans of the global baby food sphere, Danone and Nestlé stand out as behemoths. These two companies have established themselves not only as market leaders in France, but also on the international stage. Their extensive product portfolios, constant innovation and considerable market share make them influential trendsetters in the industry.

Organic food pioneers: With the rise of organic baby food, companies like HiPP and Vitagermine have experienced dynamic growth. These companies have responded to consumer demand for clean, sustainable and reliable nutritional options for infants, capitalizing on the growing market segment that prioritizes organic ingredients and environmentally-friendly production processes.
Pediatric nutrition specialists: A subset of the market is occupied by companies whose primary mission is children's health and nutrition. Nutriset, Gilbert Laboratories and Nutriben*, to name but a few, bring specialist knowledge of child health to the table. Their focus on the science of nutrition enables them to offer products that meet the specific dietary needs of infants and young children.
Dairy cooperatives and local plants: Organizations like Sodiaal emphasize their cooperative model and their commitment to quality from their community of dairy farmers. Their market position is significant, reflecting the importance of local production and the projection of a healthy, trust-inspiring image that resonates with health-conscious parents.
Influential food retailers: Finally, entities such as Bio c'Bon, Carrefour and Leclerc represent the retail side of the market. They not only provide distribution channels for various infant nutrition brands, but often develop their own brands as well, diversifying the options available to consumers and stimulating competition within the sector.

Each of these companies, through their capacity and strategic positioning in the market, contributes to making the infant nutrition market competitive and innovative. Whether they lead a broad product assortment, specialize in organic products, focus on specific health solutionswhether they lead a broad product range, specialize in organic products, focus on specific health solutions, rely on cooperation agreements or engage in research and development activities, they all contribute to the market's competitiveness.

The Infant Food Market - France

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Number of pages : 30 pages
Format : Digital and PDF versions
Last update : 11/07/2022

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Summary and extracts

1 Market overview

1.1 Presentation and definition of the baby food market

The infant nutrition market covers all food products for infants and children. This market is divided into 2 main segments:

Infant milk;
Dietary diversification foods, generally introduced after an infant's 6th month.

The health and nutritional challenges associated with infant nutrition are essential components of the market, both in terms of marketing and the regulations governing the activity.

The global baby food market is largely dominated by the US and China (a particularly promising market). France ranked seventh in terms of revenues generated in 2018.

The French infant nutrition market is dominated by two giants with around 80% of the global market share: Danone and Nestlé. The infant milk segment accounts for over half of the market. Alongside these two major players, more local companies are trying to survive, despite the market concentration of recent years. Private labels, which have to contend with the weakness of their own brands, which are less reassuring to parents, play a moderate role.

The market is largely linked to the country's demographic and cultural situation, such as birth rates, breast-feeding practices and new consumer habits. For example, the high level of trust placed in major brands, or the boom in the"organic" segment.

2 Demand analysis

3 Market structure

4 Offer analysis

5 Regulations

6 Positioning the players

6.1 Segmentation

Nespresso (Nestlé)
HiPP
Vitagermine
Nutriset
Laboratoires Gilbert (GILBERT Groupe)
Nutriben (Alter Pharmacia)
Sodilac (Groupe Savencia)
Even Groupe
Sodiaal Groupe (Coopérative)
General Mills
Babybio Vitagermine
Abbott Groupe
Good Goût (H&M group)
Blédina (Danone)
Gerber (Neslé groupe)
Gallia Laboratoire Bledina
Guigoz (Nestlé)
Lemiel (Lactalis Nutrition)
Materna (Lact'Union)
Milupa
Nestlé Nidal
Picot (Lactalis)
Potpotam
Youji
Nümi

List of charts

Baby food sales trend
Birth trends
Frequency of infant food consumption
Criteria for parents' infant food purchases
Evolution of the organic share of the baby food market
Market share of the sector's biggest players in the organic segment
Baby food consumption by brand
Preferred brands in the children's food sector
Share of consumers declaring confidence to be paramount when purchasing, by sector
Baby food sales trend
Export destination by country
Origin of imports by country
Trade balance
Breakdown of infant milk sales by distribution channel

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Latest news

A2S and Sovéfrais merge to form So Breizh | A2S and Sovéfrais merge to form So Breizh - 01/03/2024 Even Distribution merges two companies, SovéFrais and A2S, to create So Breizh. So Breizh is based in two locations: Ploudaniel (Finistère) and Kervignac (Morbihan). The company specializes in the distribution of fresh and frozen produce. The Even Distribution cooperative relies on Krill, a network of 8 SME suppliers, including Gastronomie Service, Gel 43, Prenot Guinard and So Breizh. So Breizh has two order preparation warehouses, 7 delivery outlets and a fresh meat cutting plant. The company serves 5,000 catering and convenience store customers. So Breizh has sales of 97 million euros.

Nespresso wants to make its coffee pods greener - 05/01/2024

Thirty-seven years ago, Nestlé launched the Nespresso concept.
The Swiss giant dominates the world of small coffee pods.
Last year, the market approached the 4 billion euro mark in France, up 10% year-on-year and even 17% by 2021.
New competitors, such as Switzerland's Migros with its Café royal brand, and the rise of bean-to-cup machines,
Nespresso has invested in a pilot line of compostable paper capsules. In Switzerland, the rate of recycled capsules is already approaching 70%.
For the moment, these compostables are only available in France and Switzerland

Nespresso steps up its support for Café Joyeux - 30/11/2023

Café Joyeux has managed to grow at an unhoped-for rate since its launch 6 years ago, while its team members with mental and cognitive disabilities, in particular Down's syndrome or autism spectrum, will number nearly 170 by the end of the year
Nespresso' s support acts as a gas pedal for this not-for-profit company
Café Joyeux employs 300 people, not counting volunteers.
It is present in 17 locations, including three outside France, in Belgium and Portugal.
The next openings are scheduled for Saint-Philippe-du-Roule in Paris in January, followed by Marseille, Strasbourg and Angers. s the fight against food insecurity
Café Joueux has installed its own-brand coffee references at Carrefour, on the shelves of some 800 convenience stores and 36 hypermarkets.

Faced with global crises, Nutriset's Normandy plant is running at full capacity - 25/11/2023

nutriset, specialist in therapeutic foods for malnourished populations
Nutriset's customers are mainly the World Food Program, UNICEF and NGOs such as Médecins sans Frontières and Action contre la Faim
Sales of 160,372,000 euros in 2022
Production of 48,000 tonnes in 2021 and 87,000 tonnes in 2023.
Hiring of 140 new employees, in addition to the existing 250
Nutriset has a network of independent franchised producers in Africa, India, Haiti and the United States.

s.

Nūmi, the biotech company that invents a cellular substitute for infant milk - 09/11/2023

Nūmi is a start-up offering an innovative alternative solution: milk produced by cell culture.
Nūmi's technology involves taking cells from mammary glands, placing them in a culture medium to proliferate, and then recovering the milk produced.
Nūmi is the result of a meeting between Eden Banon-Lagrange, formerly of Entrepreneur First, and Eugénie Pezé-Heidsieck, a specialist in cell biology.
The market for milk produced by cell culture is in its embryonic stage, with Danone as one of the main interested parties.
Nūmi was founded in 2023 and is currently in the R&D phase.
The start-up has raised three million euros in pre-seed funding from Investors Heartcore Capital, HCVC and Financière Saint-James.
Nūmi plans to increase staff to six
The start-up plans to develop a first product for infants aged 0-6 months and sell it to dairy and pharmaceutical manufacturers.
Nūmi plans to move quickly towards industrialization and is considering raising further funds.
The start-up is primarily targeting the American market, due to shorter maternity leave than in Europe and authorities more open to cell biology.

Sodiaal launches a campaign to support its Candia, Yoplait and Entremont brands - 09/09/2023

Coopérative Sodiaal brings together three major brands: Candia, Yoplait and Entremont. The cooperative brings together 16,000 farmers in 72 départements. The three brands are present in 9 out of 10 households.

Companies quoted in this study

This study contains a complete overview of the companies in the market, with the latest figures and news for each company. :

Nespresso (Nestlé)

HiPP

Vitagermine

Nutriset

Laboratoires Gilbert (GILBERT Groupe)

Nutriben (Alter Pharmacia)

Sodilac (Groupe Savencia)

Even Groupe

Sodiaal Groupe (Coopérative)

General Mills

Babybio Vitagermine

Abbott Groupe

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