Every single company, be it in the food sector or not, would love to have a crystal ball to foresee consumers’ tendencies. Unfortunately, those devices are not available. Therefore, one has to resort to the good old method of market analysis. Today, the added difficulty

resides in the multiplicity of tendencies: ethic consuming, convenience, health concerns, environmental preoccupations, regional cooking, fair trade, product innovations, and food safety – you name it, you get it. At an event for the beef production chain in Brazil, Dr Márcia Dutra de Barcelos from PUC-RS (Pontifical Catholic University at Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil) dissected some of these tendencies.

 

Dr Barcelos’ approach to such complex issues focused on four broad consumer tendencies. The concept of “Belonging” is the first. “This concept refers to the need, feel or desire to be part of a group, to belong to some entity beyond the individual level,” she said. This is what marketers play on in ethnic marketing.

 

 

“The second tendency I see is towards identity and self-expression. In other words, people want to have their own distinctiveness, and they also value their roots and origins, as well as their local identity,” Dr Barcelos explained. As an example, she pointed out that with decreasing gender differences, women are having larger shares in former male-only realms, such as buying the meat for barbecues. On another line, two factors are mutually contributing for an interest in local, typical, regional and home-made products, which is a definite tendency today. “The increase in migration works both in spreading culinary culture, but also in creating a demand in the place of arrival. Also, there has been an increased interest in cultural diversity. Part of this is in a cause-and-affect relationship of tourism expansion and people willing to spend money for so-called experiences,” Dr Barcelos said. One example of investment in this tendency is the programme “Quality Meat Scotland” (www.qmscotland.co.uk), which aims, among other things, to promote Scottish red meat, obviously tapping onto the strong regional and rural image of the country.

 

The third trend relates to health and wellbeing; both their lack and the search for them. Today, nobody would question that people are ever more concerned with these issues.

 

“In showing the strength of such a trend, recent Euromonitor data indicates a substantial growth in consumption of food products somehow related to health. Sales of naturally healthy products grew 57.7%, functional foods by 67.2%, and organics have experienced an astonishing 86.3% increase,” Dr Barcelos said.

 

There may be a couple of initiatives taking advantage of this tendency. In the pork sector, there’s the British VitaPork programme, aiming to increase omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in the meat through a special diet. This would have a health appeal, particularly interesting in the case of pork, commonly regarded as unhealthy.

A different approach is being taken by the Brazilian Association of Swine Producers (ABCS), with their new campaign “A new look upon swine meat”. One of the focuses of such a programme is to target consumer prejudice in relation to perceived negative health impacts of pork consumption.

 

Dr Barcelos said that in Australia there is another initiative under this trend. Their national science agency, CSIRO (Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation), launched the Total Wellbeing diet. This diet is based on a high intake of lean meat and fish, marketing weight loss in a healthy way.

 

However, there are also cases where the meat industry is not taking advantage of the potential opportunities. “In Brazil, which is a beef consumer par excellence, there is little marketing of differentiated products, such as organic beef. In fact, here it could be part of any of the four health-related categories mentioned before, even as a functional food, given the conjugated linoleic acid present in grass-fed animals,” Dr Barcelos concluded.

 

The last trend she identifies relates to many faces of modern life: more people living alone; population aging; fewer children; less time available; and preference for leisure at home. “All these translate into tendencies for smaller portions, with more information, and frozen or chilled ready-to-eat and pre-prepared meals. Visually appealing products with added technology adds to the list, which is completed by innovations,” Dr Barcelos explained.

 

She presented Euromonitor data on expenditure on pre-prepared meals to highlight the strength of such a trend. Topping the list was the UK, with US$161 per capita in 2005, followed by Japan, France and the US. “In the UK, we can see an interesting mix of ethnic and traditional British dishes, also in line with other tendencies,” she said. Growth is expected to occur in Russia, Mexico, Italy and Spain, the first two still below the world’s average. “On the other hand, Brazilians spent only US$2.1 per capita on such products in 2006. This is not expected to increase much in the near future, something I don’t know if relates to our local culture or to industry flaws,” Dr Barcelos completed.

 

Knowing the trends is important. However, this means nothing if such knowledge is not translated into marketing strategies and product innovations. In that respect, the food industry is still lagging a bit behind, according to Dr Barcelos. Other research shows how far the beef sector might be out of touch with consumers’ wants. Aimed at promoting subsidies to the dairy industry, a 2002 study by the French organ Cidil (acronym for Inter-Professional Centre of Dairy Information and Documentation) actually hit on the beef sector. “Regarding ease of use, the rate fell to 24%. Even lower was the figure of those that agreed that it was ideal for the new lifestyles of consumers, a mere 22%. At the bottom, with a shameful 19%, were those who thought beef products were adapted to consumers’ demands,” Dr Barcelos said.

 

Regarding innovations, we have already seen what should be done. So what about what has been done? Looking specifically at the sector of fresh or frozen pre-prepared products, there have been some recent changes. She detailed that between 2004 and 2005 “saving-time” products remained in the lead. However, the use of “convenient and easy to prepare” products fell quite strongly, from 18.4% to just 11%. “People want to have some input to the dish, to have a feeling they have also prepared it,” explained Dr Barcelos. Increases were also observed for exotic foods, natural and fresh products, and, lastly on “funny” and ethical products.

 

Dealing with so many separate issues, Dr Barcelos wrapped up with some general tips. The first is to focus marketing strategies to strengthen consumers’ positive attitudes. “On the other hand, one must pay close attention to the negative attitudes, addressing and tackling them through the various kinds of certification available, dissemination of good practices, communication, and so forth,” Barcelos added. Although it seems obvious, she reminded about the importance of exploring the habits and demands of the consumers, so as to launch products that match them. And lastly, there is the importance of paying attention to the reference group.

 

“A model that I like for the agrifood sector is the one of the 3 P’s, developed at Wageningen University in the Netherlands. The three Ps stand for the People, the Profit, and the Planet. The sector must pay attention to all of them, which are closely interconnected, otherwise it will not be successful,” Dr Barcelos concluded. MI

 

Source: Meat International magazine Volume 18 No. 4