UK shoppers spread the love as sales of flavoured butter take off
Butter is no longer just salted or unsalted: British shoppers are increasingly buying flavours such as chocolate and truffle, driven by social media trends and a growing appetite for convenience in home cooking.
Figures from Worldpanel, an analyst that tracks supermarket sales, show spending on flavoured butters across Britain rose by 24% in the 52 weeks to 7 September 2025, compared with the previous year.
Ocado, the UK’s largest online-only supermarket, reported searches for flavoured butter had risen 184% in the past year. Monthly sales of M&S’s spicy flavour butter infused with oils, a favourite for dressing pasta, have increased by 136% via Ocado this year.
Experts put the recent rise down to younger shoppers wanting to experiment and add flavour to their meals. TikTok videos have encouraged experimentation and creative recipes.
Alice Pilkington, a food and drink analyst at research firm Mintel, said: “Younger consumers are often discovering new flavours and food trends through online platforms like TikTok and Instagram. This has led to a growing appetite for convenient, flavourful products to elevate home-cooked meals.”
Butter maker Lurpak has explored flavoured butters for years. However, since Covid-19, when more people were cooking at home, sales of its garlic butter — often used to top steak, fish or pasta — have surged. This positions butter as a “convenient, accessible source of flavour”.
Lurpak’s garlic butter, produced by Arla Foods, remains the market leader with sales worth £65.1m. It continues to expand, with value sales up 18.5% and volumes up 12.2% in the past year. While Christmas has traditionally been the peak season, it has also recorded spikes around Easter and at the start of the summer barbecue season.
All Things Butter is on track to triple its £1.5m turnover from last year, having launched a series of new products. Its cinnamon bun butter, introduced in May 2024, has been a bestseller, with more flavoured varieties launching in January 2025.
Despite economic challenges, consumers remain ready to treat themselves, with butter seen as an “affordable luxuries, said Pilkington.