Coronavirus pantry-loading created Goldfish shortage, says Campbell Soup

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The “Snack That Smiles Back” doesn’t seem to be doing much smiling during the coronavirus, according to preliminary figures noted in a Campbell Soup Company  SEC Filing.

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
CPB	THE CAMPBELL'S CO.	46.23	+0.03	+0.06%

FACING DEMAND AMID CORONAVIRUS, CAMPBELL SOUP SPEEDS UP ORDERS

Pepperidge Farm Goldfish crackers experienced a 6.1 percent drop in demand, according to IRI Pantry Audit data that monitored U.S. dollar consumption trends in the last four weeks (ending on April 19). The slight dip was due to “short-term supply challenges,” which ultimately resulted from higher than normal demand, the report states.

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
CPB	THE CAMPBELL'S CO.	46.23	+0.03	+0.06%

However, Campbell's noted that there has been "continued strong demand in unmeasured channels." Those could potentially be non-IRI monitored channels such as warehouse retailers including BJ's and Costco, for example.

Earlier this month, market data from Nielsen revealed the salty snack category was up by 20.4 percent in sales for the month of March. The sharp increase in pantry-loading across the U.S. and the rest of the world has contributed to sales growth for several brands amid shelter-in-place mandates.

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Conversely, Campbell’s other snack segments performed well without supply chain issues, IRI's Pantry Audit also noted.

In the salty snack category, Kettle Brand chips received a sales increase of 44.5 percent while Cape Cod chips received a sales increase of 39.5 percent and Snyder’s of Hanover pretzels received a sales increase of 19.1 percent.

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The Pepperidge Farm categories that performed well in the month of April were its cookies and fresh bread, which received a sales growth increase of 27.8 percent and 23.6 percent, respectively.

Campbell’s soup and pasta sauce categories also grew exponentially with Campbell’s and Pacific Foods soup having increased by 41.7 percent and Prego pasta sauce having increased by 49.2 percent.

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Overall, Campbell’s snack segment grew by 16.1 percent while its meal and beverage segment grew by 34.4 percent.

This article has been updated to clarify that growth figures are based on IRI U.S. dollar consumption data.