Food Ingredients
Small Changes: Thoughts on Wellness 09 Conference
Eat more soup. Have some almonds. My two biggest personal take-aways from a few days at IFT’s Wellness 09 conference.
Beginning with the Center for Disease Control’s overview of America’s dietary habits (with a state-by-state map demonstrating the uptick in obesity rates from the 1980s’, replete with some of the most unattractive food photography I’ve ever seen) to the sad knowledge, courtesy of NPD Market Research, that America still feeds itself the same five basic meals for dinner in 2008 as we did twenty years ago.
Whenever I attend a show like this—a great peek into the minds of nutritionists and food scientists—I come away with the resolution that today’s the day I start my macrobiotic diet. But then, I’m prone to making sweeping, large-scale changes. Or at least prone to thinking that I will.
Which brings me to the mantra expressed over and over again at the conference: “Small Changes.” The powers that be in the food nutrition world have pretty much given up on (for good reason) the concept that the American consumer will ever kick our terrible eating habits, even with the strongest of intentions. But it took a “Joint Task Force of the American Society for Nutrition, Institute of Food Technologists and International Food Information Council” to draw this conclusion?
So, what ARE we eating, anyway? Transparency. It isn’t just about finance.
So Tuesday morning the Chicago Tribune had an article on mercury in high fructose corn syrup. Jeremy Piven grounded for over-abundant consumption of sushi, I get (sort of). But candy and soda with traces of toxic mercury? That’s just plain wrong.
I had the pleasure of speaking last week at the Focus on the Future conference – a gathering of food manufacturing and ingredient professionals. The people that really are in the driver’s seat of what we’re ingesting. Most of the intelligence presented focused on industry trends in supplements and functional foods. But a couple of speakers really made an impact on me…
From the Front Lines of Focus On The Future 2009
In a welcome break from our brutal Chicago winter, I’m now in Scottsdale, getting ready to speak Thursday at the Focus On The Future Conference. It’s a group of nutraceutical/functional food folks … companies that develop ingredients, manufacture food and supplements as well as a few retailers and consulting firms. Given the economic uncertainties facing all industries, quite a chunk of the discussion is on whether there’s opportunity for growth in 09 or whether the industry will see contraction.
Positive signs are ingredients that have recently cleared the FDA, opening doors for new product development. According to Sloan Research the areas of opportunity are for products that:
- fight body fat (no one actually diets anymore, finally!) and keep us feeling full
- help women in their prime (i.e., post-menopausal, now 44% of our female population) keep a healthy heart and fend off signs of aging
- help aging boomers keep their eyesight keen and their arteries clean
- and that may mitigate the incredibly unfortunate (but market opportunistic) condition of today’s children in the US—high risk for diabetes and other long-term chronic ailments due to the foods/drinks they are consuming as infants.
I was happy that speakers from both NMI and Sloan talked about the emerging sensibilities of Gen Y in food selection … and that they’re truly engaged in where the ingredients in their food actually come from, which is a key component of my talk on Thursday.
CBD Releases Results of Proprietary Food Survey
We’re happy to release the latest version of our ongoing survey regarding choice. That is, how young consumers go about selecting the foods that they purchase.
Last summer, more noise started being made about ingredients—what they really are, where they are sourced, and how food manufacturers incorporate them into their products. In preparing for a speech on “Marketing to the YouTube Generation”, I began to wonder if this generation of highly connected shoppers is aware of what’s in their food, and further, whether they really care.
We compiled a panel comprised 100 young women ages 20 – 30 to rank a list of ten criteria they consider when making a food purchase.
Taste and price are at the top of the list. However, six months ago, price was about in the middle. A result of economic uncertainty, no doubt. The middle rankings are related to nutrition—ingredient information, fat content, easy to read labeling, shelf life and organic.
The real shocker? Brand name and packaging ranked #8 and #9. A corporate record for sustainability was #10. However when we broke out the data to look at the youngest of the group (those age 20 – 21) brand name ranked last.
Consumers are finally paying attention and are committed to healthy eating.This means food manufacturers must pay heed and to be much more forthcoming about what’s in their products. Consumers will always be entertained by advertising and probably swayed by promotions. But the real market share, I believe, will go to those who offer substance over image.
Research shows labels count—as much as price
Lori Colman, Co-CEO and “foodie” wants to know: Are you scared or prepared?
It really is a whole new world out there for companies anywhere along the “food chain” … from the grower all the way to the consumer. As sector expert Chris Chleboun mentioned, consumers are demanding much more accountability from the companies they buy from, and nothing hits closer to home than food.
Trendy Terminology or Unwavering Behavior
Welcome to the first installment of CBD’s blog on Food/Ingredients by Chris Chleboun. As CBD’s resident specialist in all things Food Ingredients, Agriculture and Manufacturing (with years of experience working with top global marketers and manufacturers in the Food/Ingredients space) I have a lot to say. Starting with this:
Are we seeing an increase in “trendy terminology”, and “nutritional nomenclature”…or are we witnessing genuine, unwavering behavior that’s here to stay?
