Since COVID-19, there is a consistent debate going on in the food and beverage industry about changing consumer preferences and perceptions towards personal health and healthy packaged food and beverages products and current research in the industry shows that millennials and Gen Z are driving the demand for packaged food and beverages and choosing healthy packaged food items.
A study by OMR suggests that consumption of healthy biscuits is rising and is forecasted to record a significant growth of a CAGR of 5.4% during 2022-28. Similarly, another study by OMR forecasted that the cereal market will record significant growth of CAGR of around 4.9% during 2022-28. All these changes are driving due to rising health issues all around the globe and consumers are moving towards more healthy and convenient packaged food items.
This opens the door for further research to analyze the changing customer preferences to understand market trends.
Recent Changes in the Food and Beverages Industry Globally Related to Packaged Food
Said that, compared to other industries, the food and beverage industry is facing more changes than usual such as changes in government policies, changes in customer demand, changes in supply chain management and changing packaging norms which increased due to inclines towards sustainable and CO2 omitted products.
• FDA and FTC are reviewing the guidelines for "Green" and "Healthy" claims marketed by the manufacturer to stop them from misleading the consumers and will provide a final version by the end of 2023.
• Ban on Per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in plant-based packaging by New York Law Commission.
• Coca-Cola India made a deal with Thrive, an online food delivery service and acquired a 15% stake in April 2023 to increase their customer reach by advancing their food delivery supply chain.
• The Government of Canada has made an investment of around US$6.03m in three businesses to support innovative sustainable packaging in the food and beverage industry.
Technology is helping the consumers to understand what is better for them and now than ever the brands need to focus on the needs of their target markets. Cost-effectiveness while providing quality and healthy packaged food should be the focus of the brands to increase their market share.
Future Changes in Food and Beverage Industry Globally
Major changes imply in the industry due to changes in stakeholder preferences and similar will be happening with the food and beverage industry globally. Consumers are being environmentally conscious and leaning towards the brand which is more inclined towards sustainable food production and supply. Similarly, technology is changing and many brands are collaborating with different technology to enhance their productivity. Considering a few pieces of research by OMR, a few trends which will change the food and beverage industry are:
• Research suggests that the global organic food and beverage market is expected to have a CAGR of 12.07% by 2027.
• Various articles from The New York Times and The Hindu suggest that reducing CO2 emissions in food packaging will help food and beverage industries to support sustainable development goals (SDG).
• PepsiCo has recently launched Pep+ to support sustainability goals. The company has over $1bn from different brands to initiate sustainable packaging for all the products in their portfolio.
• Brand like Nestle has been targeted because of their high salt, sugar and fat products and urged to cut the proportion of unhealthy food items in the UK. To that company is working towards making food and beverage nutrition more transparent.
All these research and studies suggest that to sustain itself in the competitive food and beverage industry, every brand has to innovate and upgrade according to the trend and innovations in the industry. Packaged food brands that adopt changes early have significant chances to gain a leading position in the market which is why it is required to consist of research and consult with market experts to gain significant insights into the trends.