Hive to Honey

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 [...]

Today’s children are a generation of snackers – and they’re not eating nuts and berries. U.S. children consume more than 27 percent of their daily calories from snacks, most of it sugary, salty, high-fat junk, according to a new study in the journal Health Affairs. That equates to nearly three snacks a day, an increase [...]

Striking a balance
Patterson said there is “definitely a mood for both kids and parents to eat better” and parents are reading labels more.
“If you were moving into the US market and looking at kids’ foods what I’d be looking at is better-for-you foods, but there’s a fine balance to be struck,” he said.
Foods should appeal [...]

Historically, supper is the meal that leads the restaurant industry out of recessions, but that won’t be the case this time, according to a new study by The NPD Group, a leading market research company. Supper is the restaurant industry’s largest sales generator but has been the weakest performing meal period for the past decade, [...]

Alerted by Facebook, Twitter and plain old word of salivating mouth, foodies by the thousands descended Saturday on downtown Los Angeles for the “first annual” LA Street Food Fest.
By midday, the line of eager epicures extended for blocks along South Beaudry Avenue, outside the grounds of Los Angeles Center Studios, and the wait to buy [...]

According to the Nielsen Healthy Eating Index, the U.S. is making progress on the healthy eating front, scoring 402 in 2009 vs. 389 in 2008. The chart below shows the seasonal nature of healthy eating habits across the U.S. You’ll notice that every year, consumers make unhealthy food choices over the holidays. Then in January, [...]

As restaurants go, so go the supermarkets. We’ve known for a long time that trends first appearing in restaurants end up on the supermarket shelves or in fast-food outlets a little further down the timeline.
This week in Facts, Figures and the Future, Phil Lempert wrote a piece about the appeal of the supermarket pizza found [...]

Nestle is linking family dinnertime with healthy relationships in a new TV and Web push for its Stouffer’s brand.
Called the Stouffer’s “Let’s Fix Dinner” challenge, the effort—now in its second year—encourages parents to eat more Stouffer’s meals with their children. The move comes as consumers spend more time at home, and turn to frozen and [...]

Sales of Greek-style yogurts have been picking up lately, according to two retailers that SN spoke with recently.
“Greek style and probiotics are the big things now. We sell a lot of Greek-style yogurt, both full fat and light,” said Bryan Jackson, dairy manager at Ralph’s Thriftway, Olympia, Wash. Jackson said that total yogurt sales have [...]

According to data from two consumer research firms, BrandIndex and Ace Metrix, Taco Bell and Subway, as well as other restaurant brands like KFC and Applebee’s, which are also pitching healthfulness, have garnered the attention of new demographic groups and elicited favorable perceptions with their new ads.
“Overall, people are improving their opinions of quick service [...]