The common thread of a now permanent crisis guides the consumption choices of Italians also for this year, as reported by the Coop Report 2025. 'Concern' is the first term indicated by Italians to express their feelings in a context that, after the last crisis driven by the Covid-19 pandemic, is burdened by fears for the geopolitical scenario, climate change, economic resilience and the widespread sense of instability. The result is an increasingly cautious and rational approach to consumption andthe search for a balance between quality and convenience.
Consumption that struggles to restart
According to opinion leaders, regarding consumption it is plausible to expect a growth, but just hinted (+0.3%), while the latest Istat forecast is more optimistic, though still contained (+0.9%).
Italians know they have to spend more, but declare they will do so almost exclusively for essential goods. Bills and utilities top concerns, followed by healthcare and domestic food expenditure. Thus, a prudent consumption model emerges, where renunciation is not so much ideological as forced.
The central role of the domestic dimension
The home remains the center of daily life and food becomes its central element. Home cooking stabilizes at high levels and, surprisingly, delivery also grows again, but precisely as an extension of staying at home.
The aspiration for 2026 is marked by three keywords: simplicity, health, authenticity. Indeed, attention grows towards preservative-free foods, to reduced sugar and fat content, while fruit, vegetables and fish gain space in the cart.
In sharp contrast, purchase intentions decline for milk and dairy (-5%), red meats (-21%) and cold cuts (-28%).
A consolidated behavior emerges: eating better is perceived as a form of personal protection and prevention in an increasingly uncertain outside world.
Quality or convenience in the cart?
The Coop Report 2025 highlights how the search for quality has weight in choices, although in constant relation with convenience.
In this search for the ‘quality/convenience’ combination the private label products continue to strengthen, precisely because they manage to satisfy this balance, offering products perceived as reliable, controlled and, at the same time, accessible. Not surprisingly, the vast majority of food & beverage managers foresee a further increase in spending allocated to these.
At the same time, the slowdown in the growth of discount stores highlights a consumer less attracted exclusively by price and more attentive to the overall relationship between value, service, and trust.
Retail trade
For 2026, the climate in mass consumption appears cautious: only 12% of food & beverage managers foresee improvement, 66% expect stability, and 22% fear deterioration.
Food purchase intentions show limited growth (+0.9% in value compared to 2025), offset by price increases, leading to a slight reduction in volume (-0.4%).
Most respondents attribute the possibility of generating concrete improvement to two fundamental factors: technological innovation and human capital, indicated as priorities by 57% and 47% of managers respectively.
The environmental sustainability remains an achievable goal (+18 percentage points), while the main critical issues are considered: labor costs, raw materials, and margins.
Surveys underlying the Coop Report 2025
The 2026 forecasts reported in the Coop Report 2025 derive from two online surveys (Cawi methodology) conducted in December 2025 by the Coop Study Office and its partners.
The first, ‘Wish List 2026’, was conducted in collaboration with Nomisma on a sample of 1,000 individuals representative of the Italian population aged 18-65 and involved collaboration with A21 Consulting by Mirko Veratti.
The second, ‘Unwrapping 2026’, addressed to the Coop Report community, saw the participation of 714 Italian opinion leaders (owners and managers of companies, representatives of public institutions, analysts from leading consulting firms).
The full document will be available for consultation at the end of January 2026 at this link.
GIFT Editorial
