US consumption of French fries is tipped to fall by almost 1% in the fiscal year ending 30 June; bucking a long running trend and leaving manufacturers facing a glut of the all-American snack food.
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During the 1990s, US consumers ate so many French fries that many manufacturers found themselves building a new plant almost every year to feed the demand.
Every year consumers still much their way through, on average, 28 pounds of French fries , but USDA figures now say this growth is slipping with the slowing expansion of the fastfood industry, which sells about 90% of the fries consumed in the US, and the fact that Subway Restaurants sandwich chain has pipped burger behemoth McDonald’s to the post in terms of the number of US outlets.
Charles Plummer, the USDA’s potato specialist told the Wall Street Journal: “[Consumption’s] grown so much for so long it’s getting to the point where [one has to ask] how much more can each person eat?”
French fry firms are still fighting the downturn; McCain is selling “X-Treme” flavoured fries and HJ Heinz unit Ore-Ida has launched a range that includes blue and chocolate French fries. The consequences of a market glut will prove severe however.
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By GlobalDataTo read about Heinz’ new fries, click here, and to comment on them in relation to this week’s editorial, click here.
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