DAWN FARMS TOP 9 | ISSUE 12| 2019

GLOBAL UPDATE ON CONSUMER, MARKET AND MENU INSIGHTS. 

1. FAST FOOD COFFEE WARS   

Breakfast business is booming in the US and good quality coffee is key to driving footfall in-store.  Burger King in the US has introduced a Burger King coffee subscription service in which consumers can pay $5 a month, and receive one cup a day. The chain hopes that by discounting coffee, consumers will purchase other breakfast items and differentiate them from other fast-food breakfast providers. Meanwhile McDonald’s US has introduced new cinnamon-sugared donut sticks to its morning menu for when you need a morning pick-me-up – watch the advert here >>  

2. M&S FOCUS ON FOOD  

M&S wants to carve itself a role as destination for the weekly family food shop. It’s starting to offer full range home delivery in September 2020 in partnership with Ocado and plans to devote more store space to food items to showcase more of the M&S product range. Currently, only twelve locations offer all 6,500 of its products and moving forward, M&S plans to open larger, strategically-placed stores where customers can do their weekly food shop.

3. RISE OF THE SOLO DINER

The stigma around eating out alone continues to change around the world as more consumers are starting to value the importance of ‘me-time’. In the UK alone, solo booking reservations increased by 160% between 2014-18, according to booking site OpenTable. A similar spike was noted in New York. Restaurants are now designing more areas around counter-dining to accommodate this trend. What was once seen as lonely is now cherished and welcomed by those wishing to engage with locals, cherish the food without making conversation, or a spur of the moment treat to oneself.

4. FIVE GUYS GERMAN GROWTH

US burger chain Five Guys is expanding rapidly in Germany – aiming to have 15 by the end of 2019. The chain opened a second Munich location in February, and will open a second Berlin unit this month, with restaurants in Mannheim, Heidelberg and Stuttgart following soon. Five Guys was founded in 1986 in Arlington, USA, and its European expansion began in 2013 with a restaurant in London. It now has 92 sites in the UK/Ireland, as well as a presence in France and Spain. Its best-performing store opened on the Champs Élysées in Paris in 2016. Five Guys generated net sales of €9.3 million in Germany last year.

5. IFE WRAP-UP

The IFE took place in London’s Excel centre this week, with 1,300 cutting-edge food and drink manufacturers coming together from 111 different countries.  Brexit, eco-friendly products and gut-friendly ingredients were among the popular topics this year. The World Food Innovation Awards took place as part of the show across 27 different categories. Best Food concept award went to Aldi for its cauliflower crust pizza with an on-trend healthy-eating focus. Best convenience food went to Nim’s Watermelon Crisps. Other winners included Garcon Wines took home 2 awards for the eco-friendly flat wine bottle. Click here to see the IFE’s Winners Gallery >>

6. LATE NIGHT ECONOMY

The night-time economy is proving more appetising than day time – according to new research from the Delta Night Index. The average spend of an evening has increased by 15.5% yoy to almost £70 (food spend is up 11.7% year-on-year at £16.20). The frequency and duration of post-8pm has also increased, with 58% of respondents claiming to go out at least once a week. The age group 22-25 years appears to be the most frequent with an average of 1.77 days per week, with slightly higher statistics for men in this age group. Whilst this increased, 22.1% of consumers still want more eating out locations in their towns and cities.

7. INSIDE INTERNORGA 2019

A busy week for trade shows – Dawn Farms exhibited at Internorga, Germany’s main exhibition for foodservice operators. We showcased our new sous-vide slow cooked meats to a hungry audience, who were enthusiastic about finding new and great-tasting ideas, easy to replicate in a demanding QSR environment. Pulled meats were very much a talking point along with American/international food trends mixed with a little German traditionalism (open sandwiches, pastrami on rye with mustard). Click here to see who were the Internorga Future Award Winners 2019 >>

8. CAN YOU HANDLE THE KFC KITCHEN?

KFC is opening its kitchens to customers at up to 300 of its restaurants across the UK and Ireland on 30th March.  Fried chicken fans will be given an exclusive look behind the scenes to see first-hand how the company makes its Original Recipe chicken. They will be put through their paces to see if they can master the art of hand-breading chicken, handle the heat of the fryers and work at pace to build their own KFC burger. Participants will be able to eat their own burger creation and will also be given a KFC-branded apron and hat.  Profits from £5 ticket sales will go towards the KFC Foundation.

9. LEON REWARDS RECYCLERS

Leon is working with recycling group, Veolia, to reward customers who recycle plastic bottles and cans. The pilot will place reverse vending machines in high foot-traffic areas to encourage consumers to be responsible with their empty drink containers. Those who deposit a 750ml plastic bottle or aluminium can in the machine instead of littering the streets will receive a voucher for 10% their next meal at a Leon restaurant. On-the-go and single-use products are most commonly thrown out so both groups want to instil the importance of reusing and recycling through this project.