Industry Trends

Fresh Takes on Dips and Spreads
(Food Product Design)

Consumers still enjoy traditional snacking treats such as French Onion Dip and Spinach Dip, but our palates are always changing. Today, we seek healthier snack alternatives and the market is reflecting that. The 2007 Consumer Snacking Study, Information Resources, Inc. (IRI), Chicago, reveals the growth rates for healthier snacks and predicts dips or dip mixes will be a high-growth category in 2008.

Hummus
Hummus is mainstream and moving beyond the introductory Middle Eastern flavors. Hummus, made of chickpeas, garlic, olive oil and lemon juice, is served as a dip with such items as pita bread and fresh veggies and is often used in wraps. Nutritionally, it’s a terrific choice for snacking – it’s high in protein and fiber and has no saturated fat or cholesterol. The generic hummus base also provides a blank canvas for flavor experimentation. Use suggestions are varied and often include the obvious dipping as well as topping baked potatoes, a spread on bagels, and as a condiment on burgers and sandwiches.

Salsa
Part of what drives sales of dips and spreads is that they are multifunctional and can be used as condiments and in cooking. Salsas have long been used to accompany meats and to create dishes like pizza, desserts and pastas.
Chunky is more of the bigger trend and salsa with fruits such as strawberries, pineapple, mango and peach are bold in the eye of the consumer. Also, salsas, with their tomato, vegetable or fruit base, provide sound nutrition and important phytonutrients.

Guacamole
“Guac” is another healthful crossover dip either on a salad or tortilla chip. The basic formula is mashed avocados, lemon, garlic, tomato and spices. Avocados are rich in vitamin C, vitamin E, fiber and monounsaturated fats. And a bonus… they are also sodium-free.

Yogurt-based creamy dips
We’re seeing more products using yogurt as a dairy base, due to the healthiness of yogurt. Yogurt has fewer calories and is higher in protein and has a lower fat content. As such, health-conscious consumers often substitute yogurt for sour cream.

The possibilities for dip and spread development are as boundless as the imagination. And today, consumers can snack for health rather than as a guilty indulgence.

Serving New Tastes
Salad’s image as a health food has helped the category to grow quickly, with seafood, Asian, Southwestern and Mediterranean particularly popular.
(Prepared Foods)

Salads have been extremely popular this year, as consumers’ growing desire for foods with a “fresh” and “healthy” profile stimulates operators to find creative ways to fill those needs. High on the list of favorites are: seafood salads, Asian-influenced salads, Southwestern salads and Mediterranean and Greek salads.

Technomic’s research shows today’s consumers want salads they cannot easily make themselves at home, so offering a salad with a wide variety of ingredients, or a “create your own” salad, can be the perfect opportunity to provide something customers perceive as unique and special.

Consumers who say they are trying to “eat healthy” tend to purchase salads more frequently. Perhaps this is because purchasing a salad lets them eat something viewed as “good for them,” or because it guarantees a full serving of vegetables.

Forty–three percent (43%) of consumers indicate they are likely to purchase a salad if it is unique or new to them and sounds appealing, according to Technomic’s “Salad Category Report.”

Full Service Salads
While interest in seafood on the part of American consumers is at an all-time high, it may be that the price premium commanded by these salads could, to some extent, limit their growth potential in the large chains.

Ethnic, Emerging and Niche Trends
Pasta and noodles were incorporated into salads at the Top 250 FSRs (full-service restaurants) and limited-service restaurants but not in the independent restaurants and emerging chains. As consumer interest in fresh produce and low-carb choices accelerate, interest in pasta salad is declining.

Among the most striking ethnic trends, Mediterranean-influenced (particularly Greek) salads are gaining the spotlight.

The rise of Southwestern salads coincided with the decline of Cajun blackened meats, which completely disappeared from Top 250 salad menus in the past year. Buffalo seasoning also became less prominent. This may indicate that consumers with a taste for spice and heat may be substituting such items with more Mexican/Southwestern-oriented flavors.

Greek and other Mediterranean cuisines continue to be popular, and there are numerous other traditional Mediterranean salads still to explore, such as Tuna Nicoise (from the French Riviera).

Salad-centric Concepts
At restaurants, salads work to grow the customer base by offering something for just about everyone. In addition, they are a cost-effective way to introduce trendy, ethnic flavor profiles. Something as simple as a cucumber-wasabi dressing or Asian peanut dressing capitalizes on the growing appeal of Asian flavors—one of the most important taste trends of the past year.

The salad category is fiercely competitive, and competition comes from many segments. The major chains and other emerging salad operators will continue to compete, particularly in the quick-casual realm, by focusing on what makes a salad appealing in the first place: high-quality ingredients, interesting flavors, fresh, globally-inspired dressings and a commitment to speed and convenience for the customer.

Salads and Salad Dressings
(Prepared Foods)

Salads are one of the most easily customized food choices around and can easily be “dressed” to anyone’s liking.  And dressings aid in the personalization aspect. But they also stand well on their own, enhancing everything from cold veggies to cooked meats to sandwiches and wraps. Salad dressing adds flavor and character to every food it touches. 

The Market for Salads and Salad Dressings
Some new trends in salad dressings include a rise in ethnic flavors and spritzers that allow consumers to better control the amount of dressing they add to their greens. With health and convenience benefits firmly on its side, bagged salad has enjoyed popularity with American shoppers in recent years. Pre-packaged salads are easy to use and offer people a reliable way to fit fresh, healthy vegetables into their diets. Mintel reported that in 2006 sales of bagged salads exceeded $3.3 billion in FDM channels, excluding Wal-Mart, a 5.6% increase from the $3.1 billion in sales in 2004.

Although salad dressings is strongly associated with bagged salad, sales are not. Mintel reported that from 2004-2006 salad dressing sales fell 5.2% to $1.6 billion in FDM channels, excluding Wal-Mart. Sales of salad dressing have fallen every year since 2001 due to competition from other salad toppings such as bacon and cheese.

Together, total sales of bagged salads and dressings increased 42% at current prices from 2001-2006, with bagged salads carrying the market during those years. Mintel predicts that sales for the bagged salad ad dressing market will reach roughly $10 billion by 2011, a rise of 38% in current dollars.

Market Challenges
Though bagged salad sales have been strong, 2006’s widely publicized E. coli case for bagged spinach greatly affected the market. In FDM channels, excluding Wal-Mart, total bagged salad sales dropped 4% in current terms from 2005-2006. Bagged spinach sales fell nearly 20% during this time, undoubtedly the effect of consumer fear.

Organic and All-natural
As consumers demand less processed, more natural foods, food companies have quickly responded. In 2007, “organic” was the second top claim featured on new salad and salad dressing products, according to Mintel GNPD. “No additives/preservatives” ranked third and “all-natural” fell close behind for both salads and salad dressings. As such, research from Mintel shows that 13% of bagged salad buyers say they “only buy organic greens.”

Premium Positioning
As people are paying more attention than ever to the foods they are eating, product “premium-ness” has become a prime concern. Consumers are always looking to elevate the status of their salads, whether by buying fancier greens or more luxurious dressings. This premium trend has played out well in the salad dressing world. While overall salad dressing purchases have fallen in recent years, sales from the store refrigerated section have risen. Consumers want premium and fresh and find these options easily on the labels of refrigerated dressings.

Convenient Health
All bagged salads and prepared dressings have one thing in common – convenience. Bagged salad makers have focused more on convenience, attempting to make salad even easier to use and enjoy than it already is. “Convenient” was the top claim for new U.S. salad products in 2007, according to Mintel GNPD.

Weight Management
In addition to being linked to health and nutrition, salads are associated with weight management.

More Adventurous Flavors and Ingredients
The entire point of salad dressing is to add flavor to any salad. And dressing manufacturers continue to develop innovative and exciting new dressing flavors. The U.S. Hispanic population continues to grow as does its influence on dressing flavors - such as mango and jalapeno. Asian cuisine also influences dressing flavors – sesame and ginger. Beyond ethnic trends, another food trend of note in America lately has been that of the super healthy “superfruits”. Pomegranates, blueberries, and acai berries have been noted for their antioxidant content and have added a punch to many products including vinaigrettes.

Top Claims for New U.S. Salad Dressing Products