Since January 2020 we have been tracking consumer behaviour through our Future Food Trend Tracker on a monthly basis so we can share actionable trends and insights with you. April saw the re-opening of outdoor dining for hospitality and consumers continued to be excited to socialise and support local businesses.
Detailed below are the 6 key insights from the April 2021 report:
- A flexitarian diet continues to grow in popularity, especially when eating out/ordering from a restaurant delivery service. This may be linked to a wider understanding about the environmental impact of eating a meat rich diet.
- Locally sourced produce continues to dominate as an important factor when eating out/ordering from a food delivery service. Most likely connected to the broad theme of 'local place, local people' with the desire to support local businesses and also related to COVID concerns.
- Healthy soil, bio-digest/composting, purpose driven consumption and regenerative agriculture continue to grow in popularity, which is most likely linked to recent media coverage on food sustainability and our planet.
- Consumers are looking for a wider range of products from restaurant food delivery services including desserts, alcohol, allergy specific dishes and sides/condiments.
- Now that hospitality has re-opened its doors to outside dining the initial excitement among consumers has retracted slightly and they are now more likely to bear on the side of caution stating they will visit venues to the same frequency as before the pandemic. This mirrors the behaviour we monitored when we exited #Lockdown1.
- Consumer eagerness to socialise with family & friends and support local businesses is prominent, but some may wait until they are fully vaccinated. Good COVID safety measures are likely to influence their behaviour, along with menu availability, booking ability and pricing.
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