Big name nappy brands have had a stinker of a year as parents cut back on their household spending.
Trade magazine Grocer said the bottom had fallen out of the £473.8 million nappy market, with sales slumping by 3 per cent – despite a rise in the number of babies born.
The greatest impact has been felt by the big brands which have seen hefty reductions in sales as families switch to cheaper own-label nappies from discount store chains and supermarkets.
Grocer said: "What baby boom? We may have seen a 23 per cent hike in births over the past decade and the national birthrate may be at its highest point since 1971, but that has not stopped the nappy market from having a stinker."
The report says that Pampers, the UK's biggest nappy brand, has continued to lose value and volume sales despite its biggest rival, Huggies, making a shock exit from the UK market in October 2012.
Pampers has sold a staggering 76.3 million (4.1 per cent) fewer nappies year on year.
A spokesman for brand owner Procter & Gamble told the magazine: "As we said this time last year, we knew own-label would present strong competition and this has been the case."
But popular discount store chains have cashed in on the demand for cheaper products and the report shows that own-label figures are up an impressive 37.3 per cent on volumes up 44.5 per cent.
Aldi said newborn nappy sales had risen 190 per cent in the past year helped by on-pack promotions, discount coupons and low prices.