Health and weight management are on the minds and plates of consumers nationwide, with 43% of surveyed consumers paying more attention to calorie counts than they were two years ago.  In the new Shopping for Health survey conducted by Harris Interactive on behalf of the Food Marketing Institute and Prevention, more than 1,423 adult shoppers polled said sodium levels are the new top nutrition label concern (66%), tied with fat (66%) and followed closely by sugar/artificial sweeteners (65%) and calories (60%).  Compared with 2009, more than one-third of shoppers say they’re buying products with more grains (whole grain, 49%; multigrain, 40%), fiber (39%), low-fat (37%) and low-sodium (34%).

“This research is extremely valuable as supermarkets promote the health and wellness of their customers as a central part of their mission. Most important, it tells us what consumers need to learn about eating healthy foods and how we can best help them as company dietitians teach customers how to improve their diets through store tours, cooking classes and other educational programs,” said Leslie Sarasin, FMI president and CEO.

But while 25% of shoppers said it’s acceptable for the taxation of unhealthy foods, one-third of shoppers are attracted to utilizing grocery list apps and 24% are spending more time in the grocery store than before the economic crash, precision is not necessarily on the minds of consumers, the survey noted:

• 9% actively count how many calories they consume
• 50% say they just watch their calories
• 41% don’t watch at all

“America’s calorie conundrum: more attention does not mean more precision,” said Cary Silvers, Prevention’s director of consumer insights. “While many American’s are paying more attention to calories, they have a long way to go towards knowing how many they consume in an average day. This is the next line of opportunity in calorie management.”

[Source:  Shopping for Health survey.  Harris Interactive for Food Marketing Institute and Rodale/Prevention Magazine. 15 Jun. 2010.  Web. 18 Jun. 2010. ]

U.S. consumers have been making big changes when selecting their beverage of choice. Over the past decade, more consumers have shifted their purchases away from carbonated soft drinks (CSD), which once commanded 85% of the non-alcoholic RTD beverage market, to options such as ready-to-drink (RTD) teas and energy drinks. In addition, beverage manufacturers have experienced profit pressures because of the recession. These market forces have resulted in what Rabobank analysts call convergence.

To stay competitive, more beverage companies are seeking to merge with or acquire other companies.  In the CSD sector, Coca-Cola and Pepsi now control nearly 2/3’s of the non-alcoholic beverage market. (Note that this does not include dairy, coffee and tea categories.) A similar trend is occurring in the alcoholic beverage industry. Rabobank analysts point out that 80% of the whiskey market is controlled by 3 suppliers.

The rapid consolidation means that the large marketers may no longer have good options left when it comes to purchasing the competition. Additional mergers could lead to cannibalization or anti-trust problems. As a result, the big operators in this sector will begin establishing joint agreements with or purchasing companies with alternate product lines.

“A full range of products gives a beverage company a key advantage over competitors that can only supply a limited range of products,” says Steven Rannekleiv, Executive Director of Rabobank’s Food & Agribusiness Research and Advisory (FAR). As these mergers continue, marketing campaigns will likely be in the hands of fewer people.
[Source: Convergence trend likely to intensify in beverage industry. Rabobank Group. 1 Jun. 2010. Web. 15 Jun. 2010]

Ad-ology Research recently updated their Industry Marketing Insights report for Sugar Processing Companies. The following are the predicted Top 3 Opportunities/Challenges from the report for this industry for the upcoming 12 months:

• The current Farm Bill allows for price supports for U.S. produced sugar through 2011 and is promoted by the National Farmer’s Union which claims that 146,000 jobs are linked to the sugar industry.
• Up to 95% of sugar beets planted in the country are now “Roundup Ready” meaning that genetic engineering allows them to withstand the active ingredient in the Roundup herbicide. The variety of beet is extremely popular with farmers but environmentally concerned groups have been seeking to prevent the planting of this type of beet.
• Highly processed sugar products such as high-fructose corn syrup are being blamed by consumers for everything from obesity to diabetes. As a result, large food processing firms such as Coca-Cola and Pepsi have introduced summertime-only products that contain cane sugar which is not as highly processed.

The Industry Marketing Insights report for Sugar Processing Companies is available on Ad-ology.com (Research Store) for $195 USD with local market data for any U.S. market.

[Source: Ad-ology Research. June 11, 2010]

Ad-ology Research recently updated their Industry Marketing Insights report for Beverage Manufacturers. The following are the predicted Top 3 Opportunities/Challenges from the report for this industry for the upcoming 12 months:

• In 2010, leading manufacturers have begun promoting lower calorie, more nutritious soft drinks to the school-aged market.  The change marks the industry’s adherence to the Alliance School Beverage Guidelines. Over 100 new product launches were reported in 2009.
• Manufacturers are concerned that state and local authorities may begin to tax sugar sweetened soft drinks and use the revenues to pay for health care costs.
• Analysts expect more mergers or joint partnerships in the industry because of continued profit pressures and drop in demand. To drive growth, operators are looking for ways to expand into related businesses or new product lines at the lowest possible cost.

The Industry Marketing Insights report for Beverage Manufacturers is available on Ad-ology.com (Research Store) for $195 USD with local market data for any U.S. market.

[Source: Ad-ology Research. June 4, 2010]