I have noticed that shares in food manufacturers are somehow not in demand at all at the moment. Why is that? Consumer staples and food should actually offer a certain degree of resilience in turbulent times, as people always eat regardless of economic growth and the economy. So why is this sector just bobbing around like this?

Here are a few examples:

$ULVR (-0.93%) Unilever, YTD = -9.1% , P/E=18.3, Divi = 4%

$NESN (+1.1%) Nestle, YTD = + 2.4%, P/E=22.4, Divi = 4%

$HRL (-1.34%) Hormel Foods, YTD = -11% , P/E=23.3 , Divi = 5.7%

$GIS (-3.22%) General Mills, YTD = -21.8%, P/E=8.6 , Divi = 6.8%

$KHC (+0.9%) Kraft Heinz, YTD = -3.1% , P/E=negative , Divi = 6.8%

$FLO (+0%) Flowers Foods, YTD = -20% , P/E=21.81 , Divi = 11.5%

$NOMD (-6.69%) Normad Foods, YTD = -17.2% , P/E=9.8 , Divi = 6.8%

$TBS (-1.96%) Tiger Brands, YTD = -20% , P/E=12 , Divi = 11.4%

I understand that many branded companies are coming under increasing pressure from the discounters' own brands when the economy is bad, but is that really the whole truth?

(Illustration generated with lovart.ai, modified in Photoshop)