Hive to Honey

three in four people think the economy has prompted the average consumer to eat out less often. Yet despite declining visits to restaurants, consumers indicate they are just as loyal (68%), or even more loyal (15%) to the restaurants they frequent.
“In hard times, many consumers crave familiarity and reliability. When choosing to dine out, it’s [...]

“Despite the industry’s self-regulatory system, the vast majority of food and entertainment companies have no protections in place for children,” said CSPI nutrition policy director Margo G. Wootan. “If companies were marketing bananas and broccoli, we wouldn’t be concerned. But instead, most of the marketing is for sugary cereals, fast food, snack foods, and candy. [...]

After years of lackluster sales, potato chip sales jumped 22 percent and tortilla chips 18 percent since 2007, according to the market research firm Mintel International, which said the salty noshes defied the economic downturn.
“People bought more chips during the recession because they’re a good value,” Mintel analyst Chris Haack said in a study of [...]

“Buying your groceries online? What is this, 1996?” That’s what someone said to me recently when they found out I do the majority of my grocery shopping through the Internet—yes, produce and all. Sure, online grocery shopping was one of those things that people envisioned to be common in “The Future™” but many of the [...]

Remember when “health” and “diet” were considered dirty words in restaurants? When good-for-you foods were a few items hidden on a remote corner of the menu that consumers rarely ordered? Those days, it seems, are over.
Today, health, or at least the current definition of it, is all the rage. According to new data from [...]

U.S. demand for food and beverage additives is forecast to expand 3.5% annually to $8.5 billion in 2014. Advances will be driven by increasing consumer interest in nutritionally enriched products and all-natural foods, which promotes demand for high-value premium and natural additives. As consumers are wary of foods with artificial-sounding ingredients, processors seeking [...]

“There are four reasons why I believe the industry has a strong upside,” said William Johnson, chairman, president and CEO of Heinz Co. “First, the growth potential of emerging markets, where the ranks of new middle-class, brand-conscious consumers are increasing at a rapid rate. Second, the industry’s renewed focus on innovation and marketing in response [...]

Amid signs of thawing consumer spending, US restaurants are starting to walk a fine line between turning diners on with new lower-calorie dishes and tapas-style small plates and turning them off with creeping price increases.
The course change comes as cost-cutting opportunities dwindle and restaurants try to wean still-skittish diners off discounts and special offers.
“2009 was [...]

Boomers have lost the most in terms of retirement and savings, and they have very different spending parameters today,” Lisa Feigen Dugal, PricewaterhouseCoopers U.S. retail and consumer practice leader, tells Marketing Daily. “Gen Y, and to a degree, Gen X, have disposable income in a way Boomers don’t. And they spend very differently. They are [...]

“The big, well-positioned players like Darden that are very disciplined in their growth are going to find a lot of opportunities at the expense of people who don’t have the same financial strength,” said Rick Van Warner, a former company spokesman who now is president of a consulting firm.
Darden has been growing its restaurants at [...]