You might be starting from scratch in a kitchen, or perhaps you already have a recipe you like. Either way, now is the time to think forward. You’re going to be choosing the ingredients and packaging you need to meet consumer expectations, support the statements and claims you want to make, and match way you expect to manufacture it.
According to Innova’s 2022 Flavor Survey, 39% of Americans said they are most likely to experiment with flavors through sauces, seasonings, and toppings. These categories rank ahead of others such as bakery, soup, desserts and ice cream, cheese, savory snacks, and more.
Last year saw The NPD Group, Chicago, share two consumer insight studies with implications for prepared meals and entrees. In its June “Future of Dinner” report, NPD said at-home dinner consumption still remains higher than pre-pandemic levels.
IRI, 210 Analytics and Marriner Marketing joined forces to study meat department sales and trends. In an end-of-year review, 210 Analytics President Anne-Marie Roerink noted that department sales have increased more than $9 billion between 2018 and 2022. Moreover, sales reached a record high of $87.1 billion, up 5.8% from 2021 levels.
The NPD Group suggests reports that consumers still eat most meals at home. Meanwhile, they’re continuing to try plant-based or vegetable-forward options for reasons of health or interest in sustainability. Others follow specialty diets and welcome quick, easy options. Everyday eaters also crave more international tastes.
The food system evolution will require a shift to working alongside nature, and must leverage the power of science, technology and entrepreneurship to move forward
March 29, 2023
Due to continuous volatile shifts in externalities including the pandemic, war in Ukraine and increase in climate-related events, the risks inherent in our food system are increasing and getting more entangled. If left unchecked, these risks will intensify due to the alarming impact on our most important resources.
Per the Innova Database of new products, snack bar new product introductions (cereal and energy bars) grew more than 6% while cold cereal launches expanded by more than 2% during the first 11 months of 2022 versus the same period in 2021. Hot cereal launches declined by around 10% during the same period.
Continued growth for "pickup" and largest ever repeat intent gap between "grocery" and "mass"
March 24, 2023
The drop in total online grocery sales was entirely driven by Ship-to-Home sales, which declined 15% to $1.3 billion. Pickup posted the strongest gains, increasing almost 3% on a year-over-year basis to 4.1 billion, while Delivery grew less than 1%, holding steady around $3.0 billion. Collectively, the three segments captured just over 12% of total grocery spending in the month, slightly higher than a year ago and likely buoyed by strong overall grocery spending by US households. Excluding Ship-to-Home, the share of spending attributed to Pickup and Delivery was more than 10%.
JPG Resources identified 731 booths (23%) as having “vegan” food, and 401 booths (13%) that described their offerings as functional. Meanwhile, references to “regenerative agriculture” and “fermentation” mentions made up approximately 1% each out of 3,178 total exhibitors.
New IRI report reveals food and beverage dollar sales will moderate in 2023, but will remain higher than the historical baseline, even as volume sales decline
March 22, 2023
This new report leverages IRI’s -- now Circana -- latest point-of-sale data, which reveals that at-home food and beverage inflation was up 13.2% in Q4 2022 versus Q4 2021. While consumption levels are continuing to soften, at-home food spend remains strong, with center store sales up 11.1% and perimeter sales up 6.3% in Q4 2022.