Global Food Trends
Everything starts with the customer. We pride ourselves in knowing what's going on in the minds of our consumers.
We spend vast amounts of time each year researching the markets where we operate and consumers' changing tastes and lifestyle habits. We know what consumers want now and 20 years from now.
Health and Wellness
A key trend is the global move back to health and wellness.
- Consumers are looking for foods to counter poor health caused by busy lifestyles, insufficient exercise and fast food. As a consequence, people all over the world are recognising that diet is important to their health. According to a Euromonitor 2005 report (The World Market for Health and Wellness Products), global sales for food and drink in the “naturally healthy” category reached US$103 billion in 2004.
- In wealthy and developed countries, functional foods are meeting specific health needs such as bone health, low GI and organic. More and more people are choosing food that reflects their environmental stance. There has also been an increase in environmental activism and awareness. Some advocates for organics in the United Kingdom believe that eating organic food is the only way to guarantee you are not consuming genetically modified product.
- In developing countries there is a need for low cost access to healthy and nutritious food. Countries such as China are only just discovering the nutritional benefits of dairy. Both the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) and Euromonitor expect dairy consumer growth to be in the order of 50 per cent over the next seven years.
- Fonterra is well placed to respond to these trends. Milk is a powerhouse of nutrients, vitamins and protein. We are proud that what we make and sell are healthy and wholesome products.
Other Global Trends
Overall demand for dairy is rising by around two per cent each year throughout the world. This is driven by population growth but also by growing consumption per capita globally and in regions such as Asia.
Some of the key consumer trends are:
- Indulgence
There has been a move in developed countries for consumers to indulge themselves with luxury products. These products are not necessarily high in calories, but are exciting and experiential. For many this is a treat or reward for sticking to a healthier lifestyle. For example, as a reward for being healthy all week, people choose to treat themselves with more decadent food such as icecream or frozen yoghurt over the weekend.
- Healthier Snacking
There has been a move toward healthier snacks in between meals. Afternoon tea is no longer the preserve of unhealthy cakes and biscuits. Healthier snacks are in vending machines. In New Zealand, the government has announced it wants soft drinks out of schools by 2009 and in the US, the beverage industry has agreed to remove all non-diet sort drinks from schools over the next two years. Single serve snacks, nutrition bars, protein bars and mineral waters are increasingly popular.
- Food on the go
Busy lifestyles, increasing single person households and apartment living mean people want food on the go, they want it instantly, pre packaged and convenient. The supermarket these days is increasingly used like a pantry or fridge with people making up their minds on the way home from work what they want for dinner. In developed countries nearly 50 per cent of adults shop everyday or several times a week, up from around 30 per cent in 1997 (The World Market for Health and Wellness Products, Euromonitor Report, November 2005).
- Dining out
People are eating out more – foodservice is a very important and growing market. For example, some commentaries state that some Americans spend nearly half their food budget in restaurants.
