A new report from ADM identifies 8 key emerging global consumer trends that impact purchase behavior to inform your new product launches in 2023.
This past year has sparked many cultural shifts in the world around us, driving consumers to reevaluate what truly matters to them regarding the way they live and the products they buy. These forces provide a sturdy framework for developing foods and beverages that should achieve desirable market penetration.
According to ADM’s 3rd Annual Proprietary Global Consumer Trends Report, there are four evergreen macro drivers that are directing consumers’ priorities and considerations for how they choose to live their best lives.
- Shifting lifestyles: how consumers work today shape the structure of their daily routines including how (and when) they shop, prep (cook) and eat.
- Technological acceleration: Information access and social connectivity are opening new experiences in food culture, and advancements in the supply and production sector are generating more innovations delivered quickly to market.
- Demographic changes: Migration and urbanization are increasing exposure to multi-cultural customs and cuisines, and the emergence of distinct generational characteristics will create new opportunities for differentiated products.
- Economic & political climate: As 2023 dawns, political and consumer activism will continue to drive conscientious consumption. This will impact products they choose as they signal support through their purchasing as they nourish themselves and their families.
These macro currents along with enduring consumer tendencies (health/well-being, sustainability and food security) have coalesced to yield eight significant and distinct consumer trends.
A few of the trends found in the report include: Expanded Protein Choices, Balanced Wellness, Proactive Personalization, Experiential Eating, and Social Impact.
Expanded Protein Choices
Protein has become a popular macronutrient for people following a healthy diet. Whether it’s animal-based or plant-based, consumers are seeking a variety of high quality, sustainable and affordable protein options. And while more are turning to plant-based proteins, those who are using animal-based proteins are beginning to explore non-animal-based options.
More than half (52%) of global consumers now consider themselves flexitarians, incorporating both animal-based and plant-based or other alternative proteins into their diet.1
Newly emerging consumer interest in proteins includes those that are fermented. Advancements in food science and technology are broadening the landscape for consumers to fulfill their unique protein consumption needs with a variety of flavors and formats.
In the future, scrutiny of formulations and sustainable production processes will rise. Technology and innovation will be paramount to improving access (in both cost to consumers and scale of product availability) to alternative and more sustainably produced proteins.
Balanced Wellness
The concept of balance is widely understood, and balanced wellness has become a pursuit for millions of individuals across the globe. This trend bodes well for product developers that can target synergies of eating well, body and mind performance, bountiful energy, and deep sleep.
Moving forward, consumers are expected to pay particular attention to resilience in immune/physical health as well as emotional well-being. ADM data show 48 percent of global consumers plan to support their mental well-being over the next year.2 They will seek premium yet affordable functional products that are also pleasurable to consume.
Proactive Personalization
Consumers are distinctly moving away from a one-size-fits-all approach to wellness and eating, toward one that caters to their individual differences – from unique social and environmental contexts to personalities and preferences. For example, consumer awareness of the microbiome’s connection to aspects of well-being has grown, leading to a stronger demand for “better-for-me” solutions.
ADM data show that 63 percent of global consumers are interested in food and drink products that are customized to meet their individual nutritional needs.3
This interest in nurturing oneself has been partly fueled by new technologies and the growth of approaches that involve listening to one’s body. Personalization also considers individual motivations and needs that reflect taste, culture, discovery and eating approaches that align with one’s lifestyle.
In the future, as technologies continue to become more intuitive and accurate, consumers will expect increasingly customized options that align with their own individualized wellness goals, personal taste preferences, and specific needs, such as those based on their genetic profile.
Experiential Eating
The internet and social media have introduced far corners of the world to us where we live, sparking interest in native cuisines. Consumers are seeking -- and finding -- adventure through food. This includes discovering new flavors, textures and colors via unique spices and botanicals, nuanced culinary preparation methods, and global/regional recipes with more complex, authentic flavor profiles. ADM data show that globally, 74 percent of consumers enjoy trying new flavors from across the globe. In the kitchen, 63 percent like to experiment with global spices, produce and flavors.4
Consumers also find comfort and pleasure through fun and playful brands, or nostalgic and indulgent foods and flavors that have been upgraded to align with modern values around health, functionality, sustainability, and social issues.
Consumer participation with brands through co-creation and virtual experiences or products that enable deeper engagement and enjoyment has broadened their understanding of what counts as both entertainment and community.
Social Impact
Using their voices and their purchasing power, consumers are demanding that companies practice fair and humane treatment of the people and animals involved in every aspect of production. Almost 30% of global consumers have actively boycotted a product or brand because of its ethical credentials, and 40% seek out brands that guarantee farmers have been treated in an ethical manner.5
Ensuring workers’ and farmers’ livelihoods, employing inclusivity and diversity methods throughout the organization, and keeping products affordable and accessible to the end user are all important considerations to modern consumers when making purchasing decisions.
Partner with ADM
ADM has a rich history of innovating to create products that meet consumers' shifting considerations and evolving needs. ADM’s experts can leverage these emerging marketplace trends to lead you through the conception and development phases for future-forward innovation.
To learn more about these and the remaining three trends, visit www.adm.com/trends.
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1 ADM Outside Voice℠
2 FMCG Gurus, Prebiotics Report, 2022
3 FMCG Gurus, Personalized Nutrition Report, 2021
4 FMCG Gurus, Flavors, Colors & Textures Report, 2021
5 FMCG Gurus, Route to Sustainability Report, 2022
