FoodNavigator-USA Podcast

In recent years, the healthy eating trend had expanded dramatically beyond a fad for the few to gain a stronghold with mainstream shoppers, but produce is still at a significant disadvantage when it comes to capturing the attention of children and teenagers -- especially when it is pitted against the star-studded campaigns used to market sugar sweetened beverages, confections and salty snacks.

With annual retail sales of cold brew coffee estimated at more than $29 million in 2017 and predicted to grow to $170 million by the end of 2025, it is easy to see why at Natural Products Expo West in Anaheim earlier this month so many new players were entering the market with RTD options or leveraging the smooth, chocolaty flavor profile in products across categories.

CBD far and away stole the show as the hot new ingredient at Natural Products Expo West in Anaheim last week, but it wasn’t the only notable trend with promising market potential or significant recent development.

With newcomers launching practically every day in the food and beverage industry, the pressure is on for legacy brands to up their innovation game – and according to industry giant Unilever the best way to do this is to start with modern consumers’ core values and address their top concerns.

Whether through multi-million dollar investments in startups or high dollar mergers and acquisitions of larger, established companies, the food and beverage industry currently is being flooded with funding, and with it many opportunities as well as challenges.

For many food and beverage brands, their product packaging is their first – if not only – touchpoint with consumers, and yet all too often companies treat it as an afterthought or as little more than a protective exterior for what is inside.

Shoppers increasingly are making purchasing decisions based on how sustainable they perceive a product, brand or manufacturer to be, but as recently published research from Nielsen notes the consumers’ definition of sustainability is amorphous – making it difficult for brands to meet their demands, unless they proactively take control of the conversation.

In the last month, the food and beverage industry rallied around the hundreds of thousands of people whose paychecks were unexpectedly stopped during the partial government shutdown, but even though government is back up and running, for now, more than half of Americans still struggle to eat well and live a satisfying life on their current income.

After taking a slight hit in 2017 compared to 2016, consumer satisfaction with the food and beverage industry rebounded in 2018 as companies delivered innovative products that both surprised and delighted consumers and met their demands for healthy options.

The idea that a plant-based diet could improve the health of people and the planet was once niche, but is rapidly gaining mainstream momentum with two pivotal developments this week, including an endorsement by the high profile EAT-Lancet Commission and the launch of the first-ever plant-based lifestyle program to help patients manage chronic disease.

While there will always be a place in consumers’ hearts – and cups – for freshly brewed classic teas such as English breakfast and tisans like chamomile, shoppers increasingly are looking for premium, innovative options and formats that allow them to enjoy the beverage more often and more easily, according to category players.

The food and beverage industries are undergoing a massive renaissance with fresh ideas continuously entering the market, but with a dismal failure rate for new CPGs of upwards of 85% in the first two years, it can be difficult to identify from the outset if an idea is truly disruptive versus a flash in the pan.

When meal kits first launched in the US, Americans were fast to embrace the idea of pre-planned, pre-portioned, ready-to-prepare dinners delivered to their doors, but according to new research from Packaged Facts that love quickly faded for many who became disenchanted with meal kits’ high prices, extensive packaging and inflexible subscription models.

For years, Millennials have held the spotlight as the main focus for product development and marketing efforts, but members of Gen Z are now ready in the wings and manufacturers are starting to shift some attention to them before they come into their full buying power and take center stage.

It has been ten years since the last recession first shook Americans’ confidence and caused them to pull their purse strings tighter, but according to industry insiders, consumers finally are feeling more comfortable spending again – which is good news for retailers and manufacturers in the food and beverage space.

The beverage industry is booming with Grand View Research predicting that sales will grow at a 5.8% compound annual rate from $967.3 billion in 2016 through 2025 thanks to rising disposable incomes, a growing population and changing lifestyles centered around health and wellness.

When Amazon first acquired Whole Foods Market it sent a tremor of fear throughout the industry that brick and mortar soon would be dead, and triggered a flurry of investment in online shopping technology – but a year and a half and millions of dollars later, research from Walker Sands Communications shows the vast majority of consumers still prefer to buy food in physical stores.

As US consumers continue to explore global flavors and become more familiar with international cuisine, a few regional favorites are rising to the top – including many from Africa.

Earlier this week the top scientific body studying climate change issued a dire warning that “rapid, far-reaching and unprecedented changes in all aspects of society,” must occur to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius and ensure a “more sustainable and equitably society.”

Transparency into how products are made, what is in them and how they impact society is no longer simply ‘nice to have’ – rather a new report from the Food Marketing Institute made possible with help from Label Insight shows that it is a ‘must-have’ for consumers, many of whom say they will walk away from a brand that doesn’t share sufficient information.

Breastfeeding is one of the most natural and instinctual experiences shared by a baby and mother, but that doesn’t mean it is easy – and many women could use help not just from healthcare professionals and family, but also from the food and beverage industry to ensure both their own and their children’s nutritional needs are met.

Ready or not: It is pumpkin spice season, and according to data from Nielsen which show sales of pumpkin flavored products in the last week of August were up 10% from the prior year – this could be a blockbuster season for the trend

At the start of the year, industry experts predicted 2018 would be the year of the plant-based diet, and as we enter the fourth quarter sales and growth data suggest that the prediction is coming to fruition – but does it also mean that the end of animal agriculture could be on horizon?

For generations Americans have raised glasses of wine, pints of beer or flutes of champagne to toast to their health and that of their loved ones – only to wake up the next morning to find themselves, and their wallets, in completely the opposite state.

Food is undeniably a central force of life, giving us the fuel we need to go about our days, but unfortunately, food also is the number one cause of poor health in America and a leading driver of death and disability.