Missing more than two months for Christmas, market shelves already offer Panettone

Barely started October and several stores already exhibit typical Christmas product. Three months from the Christmas party, the panettone can be found on the shelves. And to attract consumers, the main manufacturers bet on news. For this year, the expectation of the Brazilian Association of Industries of biscuits, pasta and breads and industrialized cakes (ABIMAPI) is that the sales of Panettone grow 5% in comparison with last Christmas. The estimate is that the turnover reaches R $735 million. The manufacture of the panettone starts in July, when the products are made for export, which go to more than 50 countries. In August, the national production begins. The last batch leaves in the first fortnight of December. Taking the product to the supermarket gondolas three months before Christmas is strategic, with the goal of leveraging sales. Bauducco's main bet for this year is the Chocottone Maxi Caramelo – pasta with chocolate drops instead of candied fruits, stuffed with caramel, covered with milk chocolate and decorated with white chocolate. According to Bauducco, the Chocottone, created by her for 40 years, "is responsible for the rejuvenation of the category and for leading growth in the segment". Therefore, the brand always bets on increasing the delicacy to conquer more customers. Arcor, another major manufacturer of Panetones, brings to the market this year the Alfajor version, with chocolate dough and fermentation 100% natural. In addition to the launch, Arcor maintains the production of other flavors, launched in past Christmas: Petit Gateau, Paçoca Amor, Chocolate, Trufado, Brigadeiro Gourmet, Dream and sweet dream of milk. According to Abimapi, despite the wide variety of refilled, the traditional panettone with candied fruits and the with chocolate drops in the dough account for about 80% of the sales of the product. According to the executive president of the entity, Cláudio Zanão, the product innovation, whether in stuffing or in custom packaging, adds value to the Christmas item and helps to expand its reach among Brazilians. Panetone as Gift A survey conducted by Abimapi showed that 20% of Brazilian households were presented with Panettone at Christmas 2018. The entity points out that Brazilians have an affective relationship with the delicacy and, therefore, it fosters a "market of nostalgia" abroad. The survey of the entity showed that the United States is the main destination of the exports of panettone due to the number of Brazilian immigrants who live there, precisely because of the added affective value to the product. Still according to the survey, in the last Christmas were sold 39000 tons of panetone, 2.5% more than in 2017, which generated revenues of about R $700 million. In the United States, about 3000 units were sold, with revenues estimated at US $8 million.