Marmalade falls from flavour
For many, from Paddington Bear to Winston Churchill, marmalade is the only way to start the day. But it would appear that the traditional British preserve is being challenged by the American upstarts of peanut butter and chocolate spread.
Sales figures suggest that marmalade is fast falling from favour, along with the other breakfast staple: honey. While jam, still the top most popular spread, has remained steady, two relative newcomers to the breakfast table have increased sales substantially over recent months. Calorific and salty peanut butter and sweet chocolate spread are winning over younger consumers, the statistics indicate.
A substantial 800,000 fewer litres of marmalade – or about 2.5 million fewer standard sized jars – were eaten during the 12 months to October 2010, compared with same period the year before, according to Kantar World Panel, the leading grocery research firm.
In total 29.6 million litres of marmalade was eaten, a fall of 2.8 per cent. Sales of honey also fell by 1.9 per cent, with 17.2 million litres consumed. Meanwhile 22.2 million litres of chocolate spread and peanut butter were consumed, with sales of these increasing by 8 per cent and 7.5 per cent respectively.
Traditional cooks were left weeping into their thick-cut Oxford marmalade. Xanthe Clay, The Daily Telegraph's food columnist, said: "Oh these statistics are just tragic.
"Marmalade is one of the great British foods and it is, when made properly, quite a sophisticated taste, packed with thick bitter Seville oranges. Peanut butter is just a salty hit – you don't get anything more than that.
