Lamb sales fell sharply over Easter, according to a new report released today (Tuesday, May 5) which highlights fresh concerns among consumers as grocery inflation now stands at 6.7%.

The current conflict in the Middle East has "sparked a sense of caution among shoppers", according to the latest Irish grocery market report from Worldpanel by Numerator today.

The report shows that grocery sales in Ireland grew by 4.4% over the four weeks to April 19, with shoppers making more trips to stores while grocery prices continued to rise.

According to Worldpanel by Numerator, while Easter eggs flew off the shelves at a faster rate than last year, there was not the same appetite for lamb at the Easter dinner table in 2026.

Sales of lamb were down 31% year-on-year - although the report highlights that 20% of Irish households did purchase lamb over the Easter month.  

Consumers

Emer Healy, business development director at Worldpanel by Numerator said today that the latest report also shows that consumers are "demonstrating signs of making more considered purchasing decisions as discretionary spend is squeezed by rising fuel prices at the pumps”. 

Looking back on spending over the Easter period, Healy said: "What’s particularly interesting is how deliberate shoppers are being in balancing value with indulgence.

Worldpanel by Numerator found that loyalty cards are one of the main ways shoppers "are attempting to manage spend" - with 73% claiming to use such schemes, while 67% of shoppers claim to be buying on promotion more often.

Separately the latest report on the Irish grocery sector shows that over the latest 12 weeks, Dunnes holds 24.1% market share, with sales growth of 4.8% year on year.

Tesco now holds 24% of the market, with year-on-year value growth of 7.4% while SuperValu holds 19.4% of the market with growth of 0.3%.

Meanwhile Lidl holds 14.4% market share and Aldi holds 10.9% market share.