The ambient Oriental food category is primarily comprised of Chinese and Thai cuisine products, while Japanese cuisine is increasing in popularity with the UK consumer (18% value growth vs. a year ago). Overall the ambient Oriental food category is currently worth an impressive £192m (Sauce 94m, Noodles 25m) and is growing at a rate of 7.2% year-on-year.
This healthy category growth is driven by two key factors; firstly, as consumers enjoy eating out in Oriental restaurants and travelling the world more widely, they are increasingly being exposed to new cuisines and flavours that they then seek to re-create in their own homes. Secondly, consumers’ desire for healthy, convenient meal options is on the increase. Consumers are looking for new, interesting flavours and textures, which allow them to have greater control over what they eat, whilst still offering a quick and easy option, which Oriental cuisine, in particular stir fry cooking methods, provides.
Blue Dragon in the Marketplace
Within the ambient Oriental Category, Blue Dragon is worth £34m growing at 15% year-on-year. Blue Dragon has 19% share of the ambient Oriental food market and currently sells more units of sauces and noodles each year than any of its competitors.
• 31 million Blue Dragon sauces or noodle SKU’s are sold each year
• One in three ambient Oriental sauce products sold in the UK is a Blue Dragon product
One of the reasons for Blue Dragon’s growth across the ambient Oriental food category is the brand’s commitment to producing authentic, quality and great tasting Oriental products. For example, Blue Dragon Sweet Chilli Dipping Sauce is sourced in Thailand and Blue Dragon ingredients are sourced from various countries in the Far East.
Blue Dragon Oriental Sauces
Blue Dragon is going from strength to strength within the ambient Oriental sauce market. The brand is currently worth £19m, is growing at a rate of 9% year-on-year and holds a 20% share of the Oriental Sauce market.
Blue Dragon has invested significantly in developing and launching into the Japanese market, tapping into the emerging consumer trend for Japanese cuisine. The new Blue Dragon Japanese range consists of three yaki sauce variants; Chilli Sesame, Sweet Plum and Ginger and Sesame, Soy & Spring Onion and also a Katsu Curry Meal Kit and cooking sauce.
In the ambient Oriental stir-fry sauce segment, Blue Dragon is the market leader. Blue Dragon Stir-fry Sauces are currently worth £13m and are growing at a rate of 6% year-on-year, leading to a 44% market share. The recent growth can be attributed to Blue Dragon ensuring its products meet consumer demands, offering a quick and easy, flavoursome and healthy range.
Blue Dragon has grown its presence in the stir-fry category through a successful relaunch with updated packaging design and recipes in line with FDA’s salt guidelines for 2010 & 2012, and all products are also free from preservatives and additives. Recent promotional activity on the well-established 120g sachets has attracted new buyers with innovative new ranges in the form of premium sachets and premium jar stir-fry ranges.
Blue Dragon currently owns a 64% share of the Oriental Dipping Sauce market. Blue Dragon Sweet Chilli Dipping Sauce is the number one Oriental dipping sauce in the market thus is a must stock item for any retailer. It’s a great convenience product and is versatile with both Oriental and Western dishes.
Furthermore, a recent independent consumer survey has shown conclusively that Blue Dragon Sweet Chilli Dipping Sauce Original is ‘Britain’s Best Tasting’ dipping sauce in the market, showing why consumers love Blue Dragon Sweet Chilli.
The top meal occasion for Blue Dragon Sweet Chilli Dipping Sauce is BBQ with 62% of consumers using the squeezy variant of Sweet Chilli Dipping Sauce during their summertime dining. As a result, retailers are now able to stock dipping sauces with mainstream table sauces as well as on the Oriental fixture – increasing frequency of purchase, extending the consumption occasion and driving market growth.
Blue Dragon
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