
Here we list the trends that we see affecting the market for organic food and drink.
Climate awareness
Increased climate awareness is affecting consumers' food consumption and, in particular, young people's dietary choices. For young people aged 16-25, the climate issue is the most important societal issue and every fifth young woman is a vegetarian for climate reasons. Every second Swede suffers from climate anxiety and over 70 percent want to become better at shopping climate-smart. At the same time, 42 percent state that it is difficult to reduce their negative climate impact. We can thus state that there is great concern about climate change and a strong will to consume more sustainable food. But in today's media landscape, consumers are confronted with conflicting messages regarding the environmental and climate sustainability of both conventional and organic food. It is therefore becoming increasingly difficult for the consumer to decide what is a sustainable choice in the store.
Herbal
In 2018, plant-based food went from being a trend to becoming mainstream. 85 percent of the players in the food industry believe that there is a protein shift. 44 percent of consumers eat vegetarian at least once a week and for young people, a vegetarian diet is not just a diet choice but symbolizes health awareness, sustainability thinking and animal ethics. And the vegetarian and vegan products are today more clearly exposed in stores with messages such as "choose vego" or "vary with vego".
From Sweden
In the wake of last summer's drought, a craze for Swedish-produced food and Swedish agriculture has grown stronger. Based on this discourse, consumers are encouraged to choose Swedish-produced raw materials to support Swedish farmers. Together with the From Sweden label, LRF has campaigned for food from Sweden. A survey by Novus shows that two out of three are willing to pay up to 25 percent more for Swedish dairy products, fruit and vegetables and Swedish meat.
Convenience products
One of the major trends that has long affected food consumption is convenience. Food that is accessible, simple and quick to prepare suits consumers' time-constrained lives. In addition, more and more consumers want the convenience products to be healthy, nutritious and free from additives. A clear sign of this development is that several of the major players in the grocery trade launched most vegetarian ready meals last year.
Restaurant consumption
Consumption in hotels, cafés and restaurants has increased by 35 percent since 2007. In the last ten years, we have seen a clear increase in restaurant visits. The average Swede visits restaurants and pubs in the evening at least once a month. How our consumption in grocery stores will change when an increasing share of our total food consumption takes place in restaurants is an issue that is relevant for both small and large food producers as well as the grocery trade.
digitization
The trade in food online accounts for 2,4 per cent of the total food trade and 4,4 per cent of all organic food in Sweden is sold online. Sales of organic foods are often up to twice as high online compared to in physical stores. The organic products have completely different exposure options online. One of the major digital players Mathem.se reports that they have an echo share of 25 percent. Digitization creates opportunities for companies with organic products to explore new sales channels. Those who manage to get a good exposure in some of the larger digital marketplaces have a good chance of finding new conscious consumers who are actively looking for healthy and sustainable food.
Summary
In order to respond to the trends that affect consumers' choices on the store shelf, companies need to clarify the added value of organic products. One way forward can be to link the taste and quality of the products to a how - that the organic alternatives are produced with care for our health, the animals and the planet. In addition, the packaging needs to clarify these added values in a way that inspires and shows that the consumer by moving the trade on the shelf can make a difference.
Sources:
- New Sifo survey - Climate Barometer 2017, WWF Sweden (2017)
- Seven out of ten want to buy more climate-smart food, ICA Group (2018)
- Svensk Dagligvaruhandels Quarterly Report Q3 2017, Svensk Dagligvaruhandel (2017)
- Insights # 8 Protein shift, Maclean (2017)
- The food report 2017, Food & Friends (2017)
- Youth Barometer 2017, The Youth Barometer (2017)
- Choose Swedish food - for the climate, jobs and the environment, LRF (2018)
- Now Swedish ingredients must conquer the restaurants, ATL - The Agricultural Business Magazine (2018)
- Consumption report 2018, Center for Consumer Science (2018)
- Organic food market, EcoWeb (2018)