Food and beverage sales at retail are holding strong so far in 2021, even when compared to the 2020 stock-up trends that occurred in the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. But what else is going on in 2021 for packaged and fresh food suppliers?
Below are a few trends to watch, affecting the food and beverage industry across most categories:
- Food prices are rising in a significant way. Sometimes these rising prices are coming from increased sales of higher value versions (e.g., the rise of plant-based or organic versions) and sometimes they are due to rising costs of ingredients, packaging, and shipping being passed along. This is propelling gains above what would be expected when looking at volume sales or inflation adjusted value gains.
- The foodservice market is coming back. As traditional restaurants reopen, expand operational capacity, or see more in-person diners, sales to this market are trending up. This will be especially important for foods aligned with quick service or fast food options (e.g., semi-prepared foods and frozen foods). Fresh food might still be slower as restaurants will be cautious about overbuying so as not to get burned by having too much fresh stock as in 2020.
- Foodservice is not just restaurants. Schools and colleges are expected to reopen to more normal operations (in-person learning, on-campus dining/living) in the fall. Cafeterias at hospitals, offices, and other places are also reopening. Also, it’s worth noting that rising vaccinations will correlate with increased foot traffic at malls and their food courts, and more visits to recreation places like amusement parks, museums, and zoos, along with their corresponding food and snack stands.
For more information and discussion of opportunities, see The Freedonia Group’s extensive collection of off-the-shelf research, particularly in the Packaging area, as well as Food and Beverage industry analysis from our sister publisher Packaged Facts. Freedonia Custom Research is also available for questions requiring tailored market intelligence.