More Irish consumers are worried about the cost of food prices than their global counterparts.
The PwC 2025 Irish and Global Voice of the Consumer study found that 71% of Irish consumers said that they are either ‘extremely’ or ‘very’ concerned about the cost of their food, compared to 60% of respondents in 28 other countries.
The survey looks at challenges facing Irish consumers trying to balance health, convenience and sustainability in food choices with affordability.
Six out of ten of Irish respondents consider ‘better value for money’ as the top reason for switching food brands.
Nearly two thirds are looking to stretch their budgets, while 41% said they buy budget or value brands.
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Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland Director in PwC’s Ireland Retail & Consumer Practice Owen McFeely highlighted a number of factors affecting why the cost of food is a greater concern among Irish respondents.
“Over the last number of years a number of geopolitical issues have affected our supply chains,” said Mr McFeely.
“When the Ukraine war started, grain increased and the cost of energy has increased considerably over the last number of years as well, and that’s had a major impact in terms of the cost of food production.”
According to the research a fresh wave of priorities is reshaping the trajectory of the Irish food industry.
It found consumers want to purchase food that aligns with their attitudes towards health, convenience and sustainability.
Over half of Irish people surveyed are worried about the risks of ultra processed foods.
However, escalating food prices and cost-of-living challenges are constraining their ability to fulfil these aspirations.
“Consumers have told us in the Irish report that health is really important for them, but sometimes when it gets to the actual cost, the affordability can actually be a challenge for them.
“We’re also seeing them use technology much more and over 60% are using apps to actually support themselves to track and to change their health benefits.
“The consumer really wants everything now, but the challenge, as I said, sometimes can be price.”
The survey produced mixed views on weight loss prescription drugs with two thirds of Irish respondents saying they are open to using a weight-loss prescription drug in the future.
“If we look towards the US, we have 10% to 12% of US adults currently taking GLP-1 drugs, and 40% of those are taking them for weight loss reasons as opposed to diabetes,” said Mr McFeely.
“So I think we have the assumption that here in Ireland and Europe we’re certainly going to see an uptick in those GLP-1 drugs usage.
PwC’s research, gathered insights from 1,000 Irish and over 21,000 consumers who were at least 18 years old, across 28 countries and territories.
