Historical trends notice: This article was published in 2020 and summarises consumer and food-industry trends reported during the Covid-19 period. Any environmental statements relate to the external sources cited at the time and should not be interpreted as current claims about Ingredient Solutions or its products.
A downturn in demand was the second most pressing concern of respondents to our recent online poll which asked food business to select which was most important to their company at this time. The Covid-19 pandemic has caused a huge shift in the market and analysts are still crunching the data to predict future trends. These are some of the recent analyses.
The Future of Cheese Report 2020 – Speciality Food Magazine
Speciality Food’s latest report examines how the events of 2020 have impacted the UK cheese industry, calling on leading names and brands for insights and predictions for this valuable but vulnerable sector. The report looks at the implications of Brexit for UK dairies reliant on overseas workers. It celebrates the adaptability and resilience of artisan cheesemakers who have developed deeper interconnectivity through this period. The report looks at trends for the smaller cheesemongers for whom retail was transformed and in some cases forced to close its doors and the trends for wholesalers many of whom are reliant on foodservice customers. Finally it looks at the wider international market.
How COVID-19 is shaking up consumer trends: Mintel
The market insight firm says the coronavirus pandemic has made vegan, ‘healing’, and shelf-stable foods more appealing to consumers.
Chilled trends: Frozen foods surge during COVID-19, suppliers highlight opportunities in “segment of the future”
Frozen food sales have surged amid the COVID-19 lockdown period as consumers frequently turn to the freezer for a variety of meal occasions. Players in the space are tapping into new opportunities in functional ingredients, ready meal solutions and color-preserving clean label agents. The report also highlighted increased industry interest in packaging changes and environmental considerations within frozen foods. Any environmental benefit associated with packaging should be supported by evidence relating to the specific material, format and supply chain involved.
