The exhibition and meeting spaces around food innovation are key for the industry and give us the opportunity to take the pulse of the sector on an international level.
Food 4 Future, the annual meeting that takes place in Bilbao, is a benchmark, but not the only one at European level.
SIAL Paris is one of the largest food innovation exhibitions and seeks to serve as a space for the encounters and debates that shape and inspire the food ecosystem around the major transformations that are taking place in the agrifood industry.
SIAL Insights
Compiled in cooperation with SIAL’s expert partners – Kantar, ProtéinesXTC and NPD – SIAL Insights presents the underlying factors that are (re)shaping the agrifood and restaurant industries. The aim of this report is to contribute to the discussion around the need for profound, fundamental change in the food industry, moving towards quality food that is openly accessible to all… serving a consumer who is also in the grip of change, and who expects the sector to drive and support a transition that works for all.
The most insightful part of the report, In Focus, covers three areas: Consumer Expectations (by Kantar), Agrifood Innovation (by ProteinesXTC) and Out-of-Home Catering (by NPD Group).
Knowing what the consumer wants and what is willing (to pay for) is key. Among the insights revealed it is remarkable that change is still happening. 7 out of 10 consumers have changed their consumer habits since 2020 and around 60% of the people that were questioned, believe that choosing the right food is a commitment to society. Also, health is another important driver when it comes to food choices. However, many contradictions also appear. Just an example: even though more than 6 out of 10 consumers are prepared to pay more to eat better (healthier, safer, more sustainably), a growing number of people are not prepared to part with their hard-earned cash (+2 points).
As for Agrifood Innovation, the results are taken from the Baromètre Mondial de l’innovation (global innovation barometer) conducted each year by ProteinesXTC. The 2022 edition lists and analyses all the innovations in mass market food consumption that were launched around the world from January 2021 to December 2021 and recorded in the Inspire database which lists and analyses all worldwide food innovations. These innovative products, which are designed by manufacturers and distributors around the world, respond to identifiable and documented issues. ProteinesXTC segments them using its Arbre des tendances (or trend tree, a matrix segmentation developed by ProteinesXTC to connect innovative responses by manufacturers to consumers’ fundamental expectations).
Representing consumers’ general expectations, they underline five main trends influencing food innovation on the industrial side: enjoyment, health, convenience, fitness, ethics.
Finally, a study on out-of-home catering, exposes the many clouds on the horizon for the sector. In late 2021, the out-of-home catering market was still trying to manage the effects of the pandemic (stuttering recovery, labor shortages, supply issues). The slow recovery of personal and business travel and the cancellation of many public events only serve to darken the picture. And the impact of the conflict in Ukraine does not paint an encouraging outlook.
Out-of-home catering finds itself stuck between unprecedented price increases and a moribund potential for recovery: a trend of consumers making do without going out to eat since the pandemic, entrenched by low public mood and reduced household spending power.
The full report is available here.