DAWN FARMS TOP 9 | ISSUE 47| 2020

GLOBAL UPDATE ON CONSUMER, MARKET AND MENU INSIGHTS. 

1. ONLINE GROCERY SHOP ANALYSIS

Waitrose has identified some key trends in its annual Food & Drink report. One identified trend is experimental cooking with over 50% of respondents having tried new recipes and cooking styles in recent months. Their research found that cooking has become the “new commute” as 74% felt that cooking provided a break between ‘work time’ and ‘home time’. Nutrition has been a key focus seeing that high fibre recipes searches increased by 230% and high protein searches went up 330%. Asian products, slow-cooked meats, winter barbecues, organic produce and fermenting are some other key food trends found by Waitrose. 

2. STARBUCKS' NEW STORE CONCEPT

Starbucks is building more walk-thru cafes in major cities as the metro equivalent of a drive-thru. In these ‘Starbucks Pickup’ locations, also known as ‘Starbucks Now’ in China, customers will digitally place and pay for orders before coming in to quickly collect. The global chain does not intend to eliminate their traditional seated cafes but are expanding the variety of store formats to suit all needs. They also plan to incorporate more artificial intelligence to help store managers with staff scheduling, inventory management and personalise deals for Starbucks Rewards members.  

3. FAST-CASUALS ADAPT FOR SUCCESS

As many dine-in outlets have closed, fast-casual pizza joints have been racing to keep up business during the pandemic. Blaze Pizza has been successful through building up their off-premise business. The 340-unit chain launched curb side pickup, added Uber Eats as a delivery provider and started selling DIY pizza kits. Jet Pizza, which has about 380 units, has found success by rolling out text-to-order capabilities and launching a new loyalty program. The brand’s digital sales are up 62% and, as of September, have sold 2.8 million more pizzas compared to the same period last year, leading to a 20% increase in annual sales. 

4. HIGH PROTEIN DINNER POTS

Fray Bentos have unveiled a new line up of microwaveable meal pots which are based on hearty home-cooked dishes made from quality ingredients. The new range includes four options: Chicken Curry, BBQ Sausage & Black Bean Stew, Meatball Arrabiata and Vegan Bolognese. The meal pots, priced at £1.50 each, are ready to eat in three minutes and come in a convenient bowl-style packaging. 

5. PIZZA HUT'S TRIPLE TREAT BOX

Pizza Hut is launching a new triple-decker box featuring two medium one-topping pizzas, 10 Cinnabon Minis and 5 garlic bread sticks or cheese sticks in the U.S. The Triple Treat Box can be bought for $20.99 Customers can customise their pizza base by choosing from 3 crust types, 4 sauces and 2 crust flavours followed by one tasty topping.  

6. DODO PIZZA EXPANSION STRATEGY

Russian pizza delivery brand, Dodo Pizza, has several new openings planned for next year in the UK. The brand has 4 sites currently in England and 660 operating worldwide. They have revamped their original pizza concept with a focus on a lighter Roman-style, square-shaped pizza with a twice-baked crust. The new Dodo Pizza locations will only operate through delivery and takeaway orders to start in 2021 and have withdrew from third part delivery platforms with plans to do deliveries themselves.  

7. GROCERY FINDINGS IN UK & USA 

Nielsen data reported November as a strong month for UK supermarkets with sales up 10.1% in the four weeks ending 28 November. During that month, online sales increased by 109% and frozen food sales grew 20% compared to this time last year. Inmar Intelligence, who recently performed a study on American grocery shoppers, found that 61% have converted to less expensive brands since the beginning of the pandemic. Promotions are a key selling point and shoppers are not afraid to try new products if it means saving money.  

8. RESTAURANT ROBOTICS

As more robotics enter restaurant kitchens, businesses are reconsidering employee efficiencies. Robots have the ability to manage heavy workloads by preparing food or keeping track of operational functions. Operators stress that automation is not intended to replace human jobs, but to save time and place focus on customer service. They act as another appliance in kitchen settings which still require human support while improving consistency and output.  

9. MEGATRENDS IDENTIFIED FOR NORDICS

Research published this week by The Nordic Council of Ministers shows 8 mega trends of food systems in that region. The top trend is the influence of technology including data collection from numerous inputs. Food systems will be redesigned with ideas on how food should be produced, distributed and sold aiming to reverse environmental issues. Consumers will become more aware of the waste their food produces and transparency will reign as people build trust on certain brands. 

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