Fresh Foods

By: Rick Stein, Vice President, Fresh Foods, Food Marketing Institute

Summer is here I can hardly wait for all the concerts, outdoor picnics --- and let’s not forget a day at the baseball game! When it’s so nice out I think families want to focus on time with loved ones, and fresh foods tend to be at the center of those occasions. So let’s get your stores summer-ready.

Supermarket fresh prepared segments have grown exponentially over the last decade and in order to capitalize on this momentum Food Marketing Institute (FMI) and our research partners Technomic have joined forces to provide grocers with an easy to digest outline of the findings from our most recent webinar series on fresh prepared foods.

This is the second of three webinars on The Sophistication of Supermarket Fresh Prepared Foods report. If you watch the webinar, you’ll hear my voice alongside Wade Hanson from our partner Technomic, sharing our insider views on what this report means to grocers.

First and foremost, the study shows that the fresh prepared segment not only has staying power but it’s definitely worth future investments. From 2006 – 2014 fresh prepared grew from 12.5 billion to 27.5 billion, making it the second highest opportunity for growth, second to fast casual by only three percent. If you take a look down the road two years, with a 2x expected growth rate, you can’t go wrong investing in fresh prepared.

The third area that fresh prepared is growing is fine dining. Pay attention, because we know that fine dining is where all the new food trends begin. Fine Dining came in third behind fast casual and supermarket fresh prepared foods. So with Supermarkets leading, followed closely by Fast Casual and Fine Dining, it’s important as an indicator for how well supermarkets are doing.

Menu flavors and trends you ask? It’s all about those sauce/dips/spreads. We’ve seen some amazing double digit sales growth there and in sides, value-added meats, and ethnic entrees.  Our newest study also finds seafood among the go-to proteins for customers, which also pairs well with dips and sauce.

I can tell you that one emerging menu favorite is flatbread, which folds nicely into the popular Mediterranean and overall ethnic food trend. Mediterranean, in particular, has the added bonus of health benefits associated with those region’s diets which play into customers’ preference for healthier options. On the other hand, the burger bar is another way to appease customer’s appetites. Premium meat options and toppings can quickly add up to a better burger and an easy bump in sales.

Prepare for this opportunity in the supermarket kitchen with our tailored events this June at FMI Connect where we will have Supermarket Chefs as a resource for developing a plan to execute those fresh prepared food offerings.

Finally, we know that customers value their time and that’s why we recommend express checkout for fresh prepared. It’s already a must have for most top tier stores. Taking it a step further, we forecast that pre-packaged grab and-go items will boost sales too.

Our go-to recommendations for snacks? Give the shopper exactly what they want --- Freshness, quality, and trustworthiness.

Stay tuned for the upcoming third and final webinar where we will dive deeper into the top takeaways from The Sophistication of Supermarket Fresh Prepared Foods on May 12, 2016. You can find more information on this benchmarking whitepaper as well as download your copy at www.fmi.org/store.