About a fifth of Norwegian everyday goods were own brands (EMV) in 2022 measured in the number of goods. By other definitions, the EMV part was higher. First Price and other EMVs are products that are owned by a trader and are mainly sold by the trader himself. The opposite, for example Gilde, is an LMV (suppliers’ brands). The government has settled on a definition that says it is an independent product of which no actor owns more than 20 percent. When you buy an EMV product such as Eldorado, First Price or Jacobs, you get a product you want. Or anything you need. Or both. But other things can also happen with the consumer goods market. Food can become more expensive “without you noticing” In Norway, the grocery stores are mainly owned by three chains: NorgesGruppen, Coop and Rema 1000. EMVs are made on behalf of one of the three. An ox must be fed and live its life with a farmer. Then the bull will go from animal to food at a slaughterhouse, which may send the meat on to become minced meat. Then the minced meat ends up in the shop. Between each place, the bull, the meat or minced meat must be transported. The more parts of this chain the seller owns, the more power the seller has. The more vertical integration there is. At Kiwi in Stavanger in December you could get three types of fresh minced meat. Folkets, a Unil brand. Unil is NorgesGruppen’s brand house. People’s minced meat was one of the two cheapest at Kiwi that day. In a report Samfunnsökonomiks analise AS has produced for the Ministry of Trade and Fisheries, no systematic mapping of price developments has been carried out. Nevertheless, the analysis company states “a higher price increase” for fresh meat, where the EMV part is high. The daily grocery industry in Norway 44 percent of the market: NorgesGruppen ASA (Kiwi, Meny, Spar/Eurospar, Jacobs, Joker, Nærbutikken and others) 30 percent of the market: Coop Norge AS (Coop Mega, Obs!, Coop Prix, Coop Marked, Extra, Matkroken and Coop other groceries) 23 percent of the market: Rema 1000 Norge AS (Rema 1000) 3 percent of the market: IK Lykke (Bunnpris, Bunnpris & Gourmet) Source: Nasjonal Digital Læringsarena (NDLA) On meat products where there is not a high EMV- part, for example sausages and cured meats, the price increase is lower. In a master’s thesis from NHH, it is established that the grocery chains can increase the prices of the goods. Anders Nordstad is no supporter of EMV. He has been general secretary of the Norwegian Farmers’ and Small Farmers’ Association. Now he is best known as an opinion speaker in various forums. – The chains use EMV to pressure suppliers. There will be less competition and greater opportunity for the chains to set higher prices, he says. The government can make changes A year ago, the Ministry of Trade and Fisheries announced a task to map own brands (EMV) and so-called “vertical integration”. The assignment went to Samfunnskonkonik Analyze AS, and this autumn they delivered the report. – The fact that a few players sit on several sides of the table at the same time, for example by the fact that they both own and operate several parts of the value chain, can have consequences for the competitive situation, Vestre said after the regulation was sent for consultation. Photo: Heiko Junge / NTB The government is in the process of what the minister himself calls “a comprehensive survey of scope and actions”, and there may be changes after the consultation deadline is over. The second minced meat that was the cheapest at Kiwi when news checked in December was Gilde. It cost the same as Folket’s: NOK 64.60 for a pack. The most expensive minced meat at Kiwi in December was this. First Price is an EMV. Like Folkets, First Price is a brand from Unil, NorgesGruppen’s brand house. First Price minced meat cost NOK 67.90, NOK 3 and 30 øre more for a package than the others. More – or less – can be defined as EMV Meat dough is a product many people use often. For example, the EMV market share within minced meat is more than 60 per cent. Dairy products, on the other hand, are rarely EMV. It is Samfunnsökonomiks Analyze AS that has chosen the definition of what an EMV is. And several people think the EMV definition should be different. Gilde meatballs, an LVM, cost 118.63 per kilo at Rema 1000 in December. Meatballs from Nordfjord, where the Rema chief sits on the board, cost NOK 114.36 per kilo. Photo: Ole Andreas Bø / news Alexander Schjøll is head of research for Sustainable textile and food consumption at Oslo Met. If he is allowed to define, much more than 20 percent of Norwegian everyday goods are EMV. – Nordfjord at Rema 1000 is an example of that. Rema 1000 does not need ownership in Nordfjord, because the Rema boss sits on the Nordfjord board, he says. Rema 1000 tells news that they stand behind the definition from Samfunnsökonomiks Analyze AS, and they believe their report “contributes to an enlightened debate”. It pays to look carefully at the price tag when something is on sale. And especially carefully at the price per kilo. The chicken fillet from Ytterøy (LMV) costs NOK 142 per kilo – on offer. The price per kilo shows the price regardless of the size of the package. The slightly smaller package of chicken fillet from Coop (EMV) costs NOK 171 per kilo in this case. a supplier (LMV) be more reasonable than the store’s own brand (EMV). Within deep-frozen vegetables and potatoes, the EMV share is also over 60 per cent. Of the tissue paper, almost half of the brands are own brands. Within baby products, it is more than 50 per cent. If the definition is changed, there could therefore be more than a fifth of the goods that the shops have full control over. It may be more difficult for you to compare prices. Meat dough is minced meat. Or is it? How much water and salt is in the meat? How much fat? Where does the meat come from? An EMV at NorgesGruppen, which is only available in NorgesGruppen’s stores, is not so easy to compare with another EMV at Coop. – Consumers are interested in comparing prices, says Alexander Schjøll at Oslo Met. In some cases, the store offers several versions of own brands. The goods are available in different price ranges and qualities. Own brands (EMV) thus get more space on the shelves. Then it can be more difficult to get an eye on the goods for the suppliers (LMV). Anders Nordstad has been secretary general of the Norwegian Farmers’ and Small Farmers’ Association. Among other things, he is afraid that EMV will make the selection in the shops worse. Photo: Robert Rønning / news Anders Nordstad believes that many EMVs have left consumers in the dark. – For example, VG’s food exchange mostly compares brands found in all stores. But when NorgesGruppen, Rema and Coop each have their own brand in addition, the consumer cannot compare, he says. The selection in the store may get worse Several studies indicate that if there is a lot of EMV, there will be fewer new LMV in the market. According to Schjøll at Oslo Met, EMV means that the selection in Norway increases overall. In each store, the selection still decreases. The most important thing for consumers is how close the store is, not what spaghetti is on the shelf, according to him. Quality and luxury goods can also be own brands (EMV). They are often in a higher price range than the suppliers’ goods (LMV). In some product groups there may therefore be a large proportion of own brands (EMV) in the store. Both affordable and more expensive. But many of us are also concerned with diversity in the store. Therefore, we should know more about what the development with more and more EMVs has to say for the selection, he believes. – There is reason to believe that an EMV will displace another product that is not selling so well. It would have been fun to compare it with how the selection was, for example, in 2000, but only the chains themselves have spoken about that, he says. Which package of taco seasoning do you like? What costs 2.90, 7.90 or 11.90? Photo: Ole Andreas Bø / news Nordstad also claims that there is not much development behind an EMV. The chains have seen which product people buy the most, and then they make their editions of it. According to him, no new product is created that way. In the end, we will be left with a poorer selection in the shops. – In the taco shelf, for example, three out of four options are EMV. A kind of competition, a kind of diversity, he says. Hello! Welcome to dialogue at news. Since you are logged in to other news services, you do not have to log in again here, but we need your consent to our terms of use for online dialogue
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Meiner First Price, Prima and Xtra take away your power – five things to know about own brands (EMV) – Rogaland
