MSL's 2018 Food Trends Presentation

2018
Food Trends
Forecast
JANUARY 2018

MSL: A Food, Beverage & Agriculture
Communications Leader
• Representing leaders in branded and commodity foods
• More than 100 specialists in North America
• Global reach with regional sector leads
• Culinary Content Studio at the center
• Attend more than a dozen major food conferences annually
• Networked with wide ranging food influencers
2018 FOOD TRENDS FORECAST JANUARY 2018

About Our Forecast
• Shared annually since 2012
• Subjective by nature but founded on our
extensive exposure to industry data and
countless conversations with industry figures
• Focused on major, economically relevant food
and beverage movements
• Not fads or early-stage movements, despite
their potential to break out
• Focused on North America, but potentially
relevant in global markets
• Intended not as prescription but to spark
insights with potential marketplace impact

Other Noteworthy Thought Leadership
FUTURE OF FOOD COMMUNICATIONS FOOD SHOPPING IN AMERICA COPING WITH THE AMAZON FACTOR

01
PAGE 6
Clean Packaging
With consumers chasing “clean label”
foods, look for packaging to get a lot
cleaner, too. White and transparent
packages will declare: “I have nothing to
hide.” Simple and sincere is the new,
pricey premium. Meanwhile, clever
easy-open and single-serve packages
will further raise the bar on easy eating.

Key Drivers
• Decline of consumer trust in food
companies
• Consumer skepticism over claims and their
focus on ingredients
• Widely varied consumer interests
• In-store consumer access to reviews and
information
• Guidance from health and social influencers
• Chance to stand out amidst retail clutter
• Impact of graphics in e-commerce and on
small screens
PAGE 6

MARKETPLACE
EXAMPLE

Opportunities
for Marketers
• Decluttering for shelf appeal and brand
recognition/recollection
• Visual storytelling, not just product depiction
• Established icons for easy reading
• Just-the-facts callouts that matter to consumers
 Sourcing (e.g., organic)
 Selected nutrition facts

02
PAGE 12
Plant Milks & Butchery
With animal and plant proteins now
on nearly equal footing, funny things
happen. “Butchers” carve up winter
squash with the finesse once
reserved for lamb chops. Seeds and
nuts of all kinds are “milked” for
non-dairy beverages. And whole
plants are juiced so no nutrition is
left behind. How about a vegan
“chophouse” for dinner?

FOOD TRENDS FORECAST JANUARY 2018
Key Drivers
• Rising interest in plant-based diets
• Ready-to-cook convenience
• Instagramability and hunger for variety and
novelty
• Center-of-plate appeal
• Easy substitution for animal proteins and
glutinous grains in recipes and applications
• Added-value improves retail margins and
movement of produce
• Application in global cuisines

Opportunities
for Marketers
• CPG brands: Craft and picture recipes using with
popular veggie “cuts”
• Retailers: Add convenience with eye-catching,
easy prepped fruit and veggies slices, both grab-and-go
and custom butchered
• Foodservice: Move veggie “steaks” to center of plate;
add flair to sides
• Commodities: Get creative with preparation tips and tools;
coach retailers on merchandising opportunities
• Promotion: Tool giveaways with purchase, and as contest prizes
• Social Media: Teach and inspire with new techniques

03
PAGE 17
Instant Gratification
Convenience will reach new heights
as delivery puts any kind of food
experience within easy grasp. Even
“fast food” will feel laborious with
ready-to-eat-now foods on offer at
retailers of all kinds. Even cooking
from scratch is now a paint-by-color
experience. Food and beverage
products and delivery concepts will
sprint to keep up.

Key Drivers
• Screen time leaving us time starved, dependent on
easy, one-handed meals
• Delivery gold rush keeps raising the bar on
convenience
• Entrepreneurs peppering consumers with offers;
consumers glad to try for free or discounts
• Grocery perimeters swelling with ready-to-eat foods
• Highly mobile Millennials want food and drink
options whenever, wherever
• Hunger for variety and experience far outpacing
cooking skills
• Shrinking apartments and kitchens leave many
consumers with limited pantry space

MARKETPLACE
EXAMPLE

Opportunities
for Marketers
• Promote “speed to mouth” benefits where
operations allow
• Experiment with multiple delivery and meal services
– not all will survive and some will better match your
consumer’s preferences
• Work with retailers to move to the perimeter and into
“fresh” cases
• Share pairing ideas with prepared and delivered meals

04
PAGE 23
Regional Artisan Dairy
Dairy products, like wines, have a
terroir. Local grass and local cultures
will make us newly fascinated with
this ancient food. Usually in full-fat
versions that feel revelatory after
decades of fat deprivation.

Key Drivers
• Consumers returning to long-feared fat, and
many will favor the flavor
• Reevaluation of saturated fats, while still
controversial, is waiving a green flag
• New awareness of the microbiome reinforces
the appeal of cultured dairy
• Our flaming love affair with Greek yogurt set off
a search for the next big thing
• Artisan cheeses present endless opportunities
for discovery, sharing, and entertaining
conversation – much like wine
• Consumers and chefs seeking authenticity in
global dishes

Opportunities
for Marketers
• Use storytelling to emphasize regional origins and
terroir of dairy products
• Highlight artisanal and regional dairy in recipes,
menus and serving suggestions
• Find a place for your products on cheese platters – an
easy way to promote sampling
• Restaurants can demonstrate their authenticity by
using characteristic cheeses in global cuisines
• Draw in consumers who experience or fear lactose-
intolerance with cheeses naturally low in lactose
• Help match consumers with yogurts offering the
qualities they favor

05
PAGE 29
Retail Experimentation
Panicked food marketers will react to
Amazon’s expansionism by getting really
creative. Expect them to try anything
and everything to defend their turf:
Amazing deals, dazzling in-store
experiences, a variety of meal kits, and
more premium private label products.
Consumers will have the upper hand in
this buyer’s market.

Key Drivers
• Amazon’s acquisition of Whole Foods has
implications for a wide swath of the food
industry: retail, delivery, foodservice, meal
kits, etc.
• Meal kit makers now number in the dozens,
and retailers have moved to match their offers
• 3X growth in the premium products sections
has the sector innovating to compete
aggressively for premium buyers
• Smaller and esoteric brands are finding favor
for their novelty and exclusivity
• Mobility challenges in urban areas and the
anticipation of autonomous vehicles has the
sector positioning for future relevance

FOOD TRENDS FORECAST DECEMBER 2017
MARKETPLACE
EXAMPLE

Opportunities
for Marketers
• Benefit from e-tailing’s ability to deliver timely
understanding and access to your consumers as well
as rapid testing of innovations
• Work with retailers to elevate both their in-store and
e-commerce experiences
• Keep innovating and brand building to stay ahead of
private label
• Better link social media and sales-driving promotion
• Speed product innovation or risk obsolescence

06
PAGE 35
Ultra-personalization
Consumers believe their nutrition needs are
unique, and food makers are keen to meet
them, no matter how esoteric. Picture
dinner parties with each guest served their
custom dish, and products built to order for
your genetics, allergies, food philosophies.
Data management and artificial intelligence
make it a piece of cake.

Key Drivers
• Advice from social influencers and the
rising availability of personal health metrics
• Technology making it possible for
consumers to express, and industry to
anticipate, individual needs
• In a globally connected world, personal
needs and preferences are a sign of an
individual’s distinction and “specialness”
• The rise in solo dining and snacking are
making the “common table” an increasingly
rare occasion
• Interconnectivity giving rise to special-
needs communities

Opportunities
for Marketers
• Treat every consumer’s needs as unique and offer a
partnership as they decide now best to meet their needs
• Share recipes, menu items and good ideas that are highly
customizable
• Provide a high level of transparency on ingredients and
sourcing to avoid unnecessary consumer rejection
• Compose and promote products for their ability to reach
large groups of micro-constituencies
• Anticipate the impact of DNA test-driven nutrition
recommendations

Discussion
CLEAN PACKAGING PLANT MILKS & BUTCHERY INSTANT GRATIFICATION
ULTRA-PERSONALIZATIONRETAIL EXPERIMENTATIONREGIONAL ARTISAN DAIRY

Copyright ©2018 MSL Group. All rights reserved. All information
contained herein is confidential and proprietary to MSL Group.
Thank you.
For more information:
Steve Bryant
Food, Beverage & Agriculture Sector Lead,
North America
206.270.4664
Steve.Bryant@mslgroup.com

MSL's 2018 Food Trends Presentation

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