What’s in Store 2018, the latest edition of the annual trends publication of the International Dairy Deli Bakery Association (IDDBA), and What’s in Store Online, a collection of more than 150 downloadable graphs and tables, as well as white papers, are now available. With over 30 years of credible reporting, What’s in Store is an essential dairy-deli-supermarket foodservice-bakery-cheese resource providing vital data on the retail and market trends, growth, and category changes shaping the food industry.

The What’s in Store research report features exclusive expert interviews and 3^rd party sourced content, infographics and key insights, and graphs and tables that provide readers with insightful commentary on retail fresh trends.

Four themes help readers gain new insights and learn about marketplace influences and shopper buying habits:

• The Economy & Retail Trends
• Channels and Competition
• Consumer Lifestyles
• Eating Trends

This themed narrative is also reflected in each of the product chapters: Bakery, Cheese, Dairy, and Deli/Retail Foodservice.

What’s in Store 2018 helps members understand how retail and manufacturer go-to-market strategies continue to transition to best-in-class shopper-centric food and merchandising solutions, according to Jeremy Johnson, vice president of education, IDDBA. “The shopper landscape is continuously shifting.  What’s in Store 2018 tracks consumer data and stories to offer retailers and manufacturers opportunities to target the broadened customer base,” he said. “Consumers divide and devote loyalty to products with stories and that offer ease or alignment to personal interests across channels. Consumer trends give insights on how to engage with shoppers’ desires, lifestyles and trip missions, which are critical toward ensuring a prominent role for our fresh categories in today’s changing food roadmap.” 

Top highlights of the Economy & Retail Trends chapter include:

• Key issues that could affect U.S. retail operations in 2017, including a macro landscape, healthcare, immigration, and the “Have Not Shopper” – emphasizing U.S. income inequality as one of the biggest opportunities and challenges for food retailers.
• With consumer spending split evenly between preparing meals at home and eating out, retailers are in an optimal position to take advantage of the trends to eat foodservice offerings at home.
• Big box stores captured the most sales for 2016 with the Middle East and Africa holding 47 percent of 2016 sales shares and North America with 41 percent.
• Complete transparency is an important factor for building brand loyalty; 94% of consumers in a Label Insight survey stated they would likely be loyal to brands that offer complete transparency.

Top highlights of the Channels and Competition chapter include:

• Shopper demand is rising for convenience. Twenty-three percent of households are purchasing food online, with 60 percent of these consumers expecting to spend 25% of their food dollars through an online channel by 2026.
• Supermarket prepared foods are the fastest-growing segment of the foodservice industry, account for 58% in deli sales in mid-2016. The segment is predicted to grow 3.8 percent in 2017.
• Meal kits are particularly appealing to younger adults—43% of purchases are from consumers between 18-34—and men are more likely to purchase them than women and households with children at home.
• John Karolefsky, supermarket analyst and purveyor of GroceryStories.com, said one of the top five trends for grocery stores in 2017 is more check-out options. These include the use of a smartphone or handheld scanner, as well as a new format concept from Amazon that utilizes a mobile app for checking in and out of a store.

Top highlights of the Consumer Lifestyles chapter include:

• There are four generations in the aisle with a fifth close behind. Fifty-three percent of consumers will pay more for foods that promote health benefits.
• Almost 45 percent of Millennials identify as ethnic or multicultural, making the generation the most diverse in US history. While certain cuisine, tastes, and flavors may originate from the culinary traditions of specific cultures, they’re much less likely to be viewed in those terms.
• Millennials’ spending power will reach $3.5 trillion in 2017, and they will account for nearly 30% of consumer-packaged goods (CPG) spending by 2020.
• Older generations shop more often, but younger generations offset fewer trips with bigger baskets. The biggest annual spenders are those more likely to have larger families—Boomers and Generation X.

Top highlights of the Eating Trends chapter include:

• Snacks account for half of all eating occasions, and one in five consumers state that their snacking behaviors have changed over the past few years and they now snack more often.
• Brands that are socially responsible, charitable, and authentic to a shopper’s heritage were more desirable to Millennials and shoppers with children.
• Consumers continue to view health and wellness in two ways: fresh, less-processed (i.e., clean labeling, inherently nutrient-dense, organic); and “premiumization” (i.e., high-quality ingredients, storytelling, transparency).
• Older generations — Silents, Boomers, and Generation X — cited convenience as a primary reason for shopping traditional retail for their organic purchases. Convenience is not a primary motivator for Millennials.

Top highlights of the Bakery chapter include:

• American households are now comprised of one to two people, who are less likely to purchase family-sized or larger-portioned products. There is a growing interest in mini, single-serve, and smaller-sized varieties of baked goods.
• 50 percent of American consumers say they find the idea of on-pack information that allows you to see where a product was made to be “very appealing.”
• Cakes dominate the dessert category with 26 percent of the dessert share, but specialty desserts growing fastest at 27.3 percent.
• Research shows that people are more apt to select products with more descriptive language. Digitized health information—such as home DNA testing or wearable devices—is leading consumers to seek food and retail solutions tailored exclusively to their needs.

Top highlights of the Cheese chapter include:

• Per capita cheese consumption in the United States continues to grow, reaching more than 35 pounds per year in 2015, double the amount consumed in 1975, but only about 60% of the cheese consumed in France.
• After shoppers experience new cheese flavors in restaurants, they often look for the new cheeses at retail.
• Italian-type cheeses other than Parmesan, Mozzarella, and Romano are gaining popularity as shoppers can now choose from numerous Italian-type cheeses in the supermarket deli.
• In the United States and the rest of the world, consumer demand for full-fat dairy has been increasing and will continue to drive cheese sales.

Top highlights of the Dairy chapter include:

• The average household purchases dairy items 44 times per year.
• Almond milk, and other plant-based milk alternatives, have proved to be a long-term trend rather than a fad.
• Dairy superconsumers mentioned that they use dairy as snacks.
• Dairy naturally contains many vitamins and nutrients. It’s such a missed opportunity that they aren’t more prominently called out, according to Matt Lally of Nielsen.

Top highlights of the Deli chapter include:

• According to the Culinary Visions Panel, 44% would make the deli their go-to eatery if a chef was creating the menu.
• Deli meat trends include “clean” and “clear” labels; stories behind specialty meats; and merchandising through pairings and tastings.
• In addition to using local ingredients and sharing their story, delis need to appeal to resident audiences with menu items that are eaten locally and host community cultural and social elements.
• All generations—not just the younger ones—want more natural, organic, antibiotic-free, and non-GMO foods, as well as proper labeling.

The purchase price of What’s in Store 2018 is $99 for members and $399 for nonmembers. To learn more and to purchase one or more copies, click here.