Supermarket Perimeter - September 2022 - 18

PLANT-BASED
POSSIBILITIES
Report looks at industry's challenges, opportunities
BY ANDY NELSON
T
he plant-based food industry has
exploded in the past decade, but COVID
caused or, at the least, revealed some
challenges to the category's future growth.
To help shed some light on where it's
headed, Arlington, Va.-based FMI - The Food
Industry Association has extended its highly
successful " Power of " series of studies to
include plant-based.
The first-ever Power of Plant-based Foods
and Beverages report is the first comprehensive
review of the plant-based topic, addressing
naturally plant-based foods such as fruits,
vegetables, beans and whole grains and
alternatives to traditional animal-derived items.
One of FMI's top findings: 42% of shoppers
put either a lot or some effort into selecting
plant-based foods or beverages.
" More than 40% of shoppers at least
occasionally eat a meat, dairy or seafood
alternative, but dairy alternative sales are more
than twice those of meat alternatives, " said Steve
Markenson, director of research and insights
for FMI. " The plant-based foods most likely
to be regularly consumed by shoppers are
naturally plant-based - fruits and vegetables
(75%) and beans, nuts, or grains (47%). "
The majority of shoppers surveyed
responded that the word " healthy " came to
mind when thinking of plant-based foods
18 - SEPTEMBER 2022
and beverages. Others associated plantbased
foods with words such as " vegan, "
" vegetarian, " " organic " or " natural. "
" Our ethnographic research suggests
consumers are seeking out plant-based
foods and beverages primarily for both taste
and nutrition, " said Krystal Register, FMI's
senior director for health and well-being.
" The food industry has an opportunity to
provide guidance and educate consumers
on overall healthy eating approaches that
include plant-based options in alignment
with the Dietary Guidelines. "
Grocery retailer call to action
One way retailers can help their customers
navigate their plant-based options is by
making it crystal clear where they can find
them in the store, said Rick Stein, FMI's vice
president, fresh.
" There's no consensus among shoppers
about where to find plant-based alternatives,
which demonstrates the opportunity for both
cross-merchandising in addition to creative
in-store messaging, " Stein said.
" For example, for meat alternatives, the
top choice is not the meat department - it's
a designated plant-based foods section and
the frozen foods section, followed by the
meat department. " The research found that
supermarketperimeter.com
curiosity is a major characteristic for shopper
experimentation.
Millennials are more likely than Gen X and
Boomers to put effort into selecting plantbased
foods, and nearly half of shoppers
buying plant-based foods and beverages
live in households making over $100,000
and have children, making this a crucial
demographic for marketers.
Shoppers interested in these foods and
beverages tend to have bigger basket sizes,
but they also shop online.
NielsenIQ, a sponsor of the report,
provided valuable sales data and analysis for
it, according to FMI.
A comprehensive methodology was
undertaken for the report, including
a consumer survey, digital consumer
ethnography, consumer interviews, retail and
manufacturer interviews and sales-data review.
" As the lens of plant-based expands
beyond meat and dairy alternatives and we
see 'plant-based' marketing claims on food
and beverage products, the segment is now
worth nearly $10 billion, " said Sherry Frey,
vice president, total wellness, NielsenIQ.
" This research comes at a critical inflection
point that will help the industry understand
consumers and their drivers around plantbased
decisions. "
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http://www.supermarketperimeter.com
Supermarket Perimeter - September 2022

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