Food purchases over the internet are still on the rise. Through this medium about 122 million Euros were spent by Germans last year on beverages and foodstuffs which is a plus of 11% as compared to the year 2005, as was reported by the Federal Association of Information Management, Telecommunications and New Media (BITKOM). Of these 122 million Euros in 2006 about 75% were spent on foods and the remaining 25% on beverages.
Turnover keeps growing constantly: whereas sales amounted to just 103 million Euros in 2004, they already reached 110 million in 2005. »So far online trade in foods has met with little attention even though turnover in this segment is as high as for instance in the computer download business. For comparison: in 2006 music, audiobooks, videos, games and software worth about 120 million Euros were downloaded in Germany», said BITKOM vice president Jörg Menno Harms.
Online food ordering is provided by traditional supermarkets, but also by specialised web shops. Online ordering systems quite often offer delicacies which can hardly be obtained in conventional supermarkets. Frozen food and wines are very much sought after over the internet too. However, the delivery of fresh products such as vegetables or eggs is possible in conurbations only.
The findings on online trade in foodstuffs are based on the GfK-WebScope-Panel by the GfK market research institute. 