In the last couple of years, soaring inflation and avian flu have hit turkey demand, but Kerry Maxwell, communications manager at The British Poultry Council, was happy to report a return to some sort of normality.
"It has been a relatively good season, with avian flu causing very little disruption to supplies, which will be welcomed by shoppers as well as producers who rear around eight million turkeys a year in the UK," she said.
"It looks like bigger gatherings are back around the table, with slightly more people opting for a whole turkey over a crown. Demand for smaller cuts such as breast joints is still small but consistent."
Christmas turkey
She said that keeping avian flu under control had taken vigilance and robust biosecurity measures, but it would take further investment and collaboration from the Government and the Animal and Plant Health Agency to safeguard future turkey and other poultry supplies.
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The weather was kinder to vegetable growers this year than last and there should be enough supply of seasonal favourites, according to Jack Ward, the outgoing chief executive of sector association British Growers.
He said: "It has been a much better growing season, although there were lots of fears of a repeat of last year following a wet spring. Sprouts did suffer from heavy rain in July and may be smaller than normal, but there will be enough of them. Carrots and parsnips have had a good year, with a reasonable one for peas."
Aldi was the first supermarket to launch the now traditional packs of discounted Christmas veg, with carrots selling for only 15p/kg. Mr Ward contrasted this with non-promoted carrots that were selling in Aldi in France for €1.98/kg (£1.64/kg).
"The problems we have seen for fresh produce growers in Spain and elsewhere highlights the importance of British-grown fruit and vegetables," said Mr Ward.
Like all other employers, vegetable growers are facing higher employment costs. Mr Ward estimated that the increase in National Insurance would add 10% to employment costs, with the 6% increase in national living wage also having an impact.
He said: "On a positive note, the seasonal labour scheme does seem to have worked well, but growers now have to pay the travel and visa costs of overseas labour, which is adding at least £1,000 to employing each worker, and in some cases much more."
Christmas trees
Despite continued pressure on consumer spending, Christmas tree sales have been relatively strong, according to Oliver Combe, of York Christmas Trees, who is a British Christmas Tree Grower Association committee member.
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"Customers are still very keen on having a locally grown tree, but we are finding they are prepared to buy a tree and perhaps a wreath but buying fewer decorations. There has been a modest price rise this year, with lower value trees increasing the most to cover the cost of production, which has risen by up to 25% in the last three years," he said.
Mr Combe sells a third of his trees from the farm and the rest wholesale. He has seen a longer selling period this year, which has put some pressure on supplies.
Christmas tree facts
- About five million real Christmas trees were sold in 2023
- Of those with a real Christmas tree, most had a cut tree (73%), while 25% had a pot-grown tree, 2% rented a pot-grown tree, and 2% had a mini/tabletop tree
- Early December is the most common time for people to obtain their real cut-tree (28%) or real pot-grown tree (26%)
- Three in ten (31%) of those with a real Christmas tree said they disposed, or planned to dispose, of their tree via a council collection and recycle scheme. Another 18% planned to replant it, with a similar proportion planning to compost. A further 15% said they would use a charity collection and recycle scheme
Falling cost of Christmas dinner
The cost of a Christmas dinner will fall by 1.6% to £31.66 this year, according to market researchers Associa in a survey for the BBC. Frozen turkey prices were down 5.9% to £19.08 for a 4.55kg bird. Brussels sprouts, gravy, pigs-in-blankets and stuffing retail prices were also down, but potato prices were up 26.2%, with carrots up 13.4%. Mince pie prices were also up. The survey was based on pre-promotion prices in Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda, Morrisons, Aldi and Lidl. Average prices ranged from £24.30 for the dinner in Aldi to £36.51 in Tesco.
Shopping habits
Farm shops are hoping for better sales this Christmas after the easing of the cost of living crisis.
Emma Mosey of Minskip Farm Shop in Yorkshire, who is also chair of the Farm Retail Association, said: "We are hopeful that shoppers will push the boat out a little more as they celebrate and look to buy delicious local produce.
"Food retail sales have been more positive this year, but Christmas is a key time for us with double our normal monthly sales in December and most of that coming in the week before the big day."
However, not everything is rosy in the farm shop. The increase in employer National Insurance and the abandoning of the 30% business rate relief in the recent Budget will hit margins and recruitment plans. Farm shops will also be affected by the changes to Agricultural Property Relief and Business Property Relief.
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Ms Mosey said: "Along with others, as an association we continue to voice our concerns about the changes in the Budget and hope there will be more consultation before final changes are made. They have certainly meant that we have had to change our business plans. But we have learnt over the years that you always have to be innovative if you are to build more sales and there does seem to be more awareness among the public about the importance of supporting farmers, their shops and markets."
For shoppers visiting the supermarket for their festive goodies, more are likely to buy from discounters this year, while Asda continues to struggle to win its share of the nation's shopping basket.
Tesco accounted for 28.1% of grocery sales in the 12 weeks to December 3, up from 27.4% in 2023, according to calculations from researchers Kantar. Sainsbury's gained a 0.3% market share to 15.9%, with Asda dropping to a 12.3% market share. Aldi's retained 10.3% of the market, but there was a 0.3% increase in Lidl's share, taking the combined discounters' share to 18%. The Co-op has lost out over the last year, but Waitrose maintained its position.
