Make fresh easier: key to success, says expert
Americans for the past 25 years, told FoodNavigator-USA.com where
the nation's consumers are heading, and what food manufacturers
need to focus on in order to come out on top of a competitive
market.
"What strikes me most in all my years of studying the nation's eating habits is how much we talk about how things have changed, yet how little things really have changed," he said.
According to Balzer, vice president of the NPD group, which tracks consumer eating habits, people are still eating the same basic things today as they were ten years ago, with the main change he identified being the way food is prepared rather than the food itself.
And it seems the least preparation necessary, the better.
"It's all about how to make it easier, faster and more convenient for consumers to prepare the foods they like."
Most specifically, Balzer identifies how consumers are moving away from using fresh goods in their meals because of the inconvenience involved, a suggestion supported by a study by AC Nielsen last year, which revealed that consumer trips to grocery stores fell by around 6 percent between 2002 and 2004.
"Fresh is an important part of the American diet, but it keeps declining. In 1985, 55 percent of meals prepared in the home contained at least one fresh item. Now that figure has fallen to 46 percent," he said.
"Consumers are under 'fresh stress'- they want to eat fresh but don't want the hassle of having fresh products around the house."
A key to success for food manufacturers would be to find innovative ways to "make fresh easier" for consumers, said Balzer.
"I don't know how this can be done, if I did I wouldn't be talking to you today. But the people who are able to look at the market and think about it in a way that hasn't been thought about before will be the winners," he said.
"Except for bagged salads, which became popular in the mid to late 1990s, we haven't seen much innovation in making fresh easier. The salads were one answer. Now another needs to be found."
According to Balzer, one way in which Americans have dealt with the difficulties of meal preparations has been to "let restaurants deal with it."
Yet restricted budgets and a liking for staying at home still mean that 77 percent of meals are prepared and consumed inside the home, compared to 79 percent in 1985.
"But it is no surprise that the most important growth in the restaurant industry has been in fast food. It is the easiest, quickest and least expensive solution that consumers go for."
"The restaurant industry gives us the picture of the way things will go. Food manufacturers should look at restaurants as a good way to see the future of food consumption and food preparation."
And if consumers are not able to easily prepare their food, they will cut down on the number of dishes they actually prepare, he explained.
"If you're not thinking about how you're going to make consumers' lives easier, they will. The worst thing you can say to yourself is 'it's already easy.'"
