Welsh lamb proved winner for Christmas dinner as turkey sales slumped

New figures on food sales over the festive period suggest that shoppers switched away from turkey during Christmas 2022 towards other meats such as lamb.

The figures from retail data specialists Kantar show that consumers across the UK spent £2.7m less on turkey crowns and joints compared with the previous Christmas period.

Chicken also saw an increase in sales but £1.2m more was spent on lamb in December 2022 compared with last year.

Welsh promotional body Hybu Cig Cymru – Meat Promotion Wales hailed the positive figures for lamb as the retail environment across the country buckled under the pressure of the cost of living crisis.

HCC Head of Strategic Marketing, Laura Pickup. “Our research showed that consumers were potentially switching away from turkey in 2022, so the focus of our marketing campaigns for PGI Welsh Lamb was to encourage people to try a ‘New Christmas Tradition’, with strong promotions for festive recipes with lamb across a range of media.

Imports

“It’s pleasing to see that this, alongside promotions by retailers, has had an impact in what is a difficult retail environment for premium proteins where shoppers are feeling the squeeze on living standards.

Laura added: “It’s likely that 2023 will continue to see tough times in both the retail and foodservice sectors and it’s significant that another sector of growth over Christmas was in frozen foods.

“HCC will be planning campaigns to keep top-quality fresh Welsh Lamb in people’s shopping baskets instead of frozen imports.”

The dip in turkey sales over the Christmas period could have been due to concerns regarding avian flu which saw 600,000 birds killed as a result.