At SIAL, the international food trade fair, which runs until October 19 in Paris Nord Villepinte, Maria Bertoch, foodservice expert at The NPD Group, gives an update.
- The revolution of teleworking and time spent at home
41% of employees in Europe work remotely at least part of the week. This has led to fragmented mealtimes, a surge in home deliveries (up 65% in Europe – France, Italy, the UK, Spain, Italy – between 2021 and 2019 in value), and a decline in restaurant patronage during the workweek. The pandemic has fundamentally transformed consumers' relationship to both work time and place, and to mealtimes and place: there is a clear before and after 2020 for the food service industry.
- The impact of new, anxiety-inducing macroeconomic factors
While Covid-related fears are subsiding, other external factors are impacting restaurant patronage and consumer choices when dining out: inflation, staff shortages, and supply chain disruptions. Our figures show that fear related to health risks persists but decreased in 2022: 26% of European consumers prefer takeout to dining in (compared to 32% in 2021). 25% opt for delivery to avoid restaurants (compared to 31% in 2021). Pessimism regarding deteriorating financial conditions appears to be overtaking Covid-related anxiety – one in two consumers in France, Germany, and the UK expects a decline in their standard of living within the next six months.
- The aura of healthy products
58% of consumers in Europe check the ingredients before choosing their meal at a restaurant, and 35% say they are more inclined to opt for healthy options than before Covid. Many have also shifted their preferences towards meat-free options (28%), less sugary options (22%), and organic products (15%).
- Sustainability: a selection criterion
Consumers are increasingly demanding that their restaurants go green - 69% stated in December 2021 that they wanted restaurants to be more committed to an eco-responsible approach - an increase of more than 16 points compared to 2020. Among the top 5 criteria for choosing a restaurant related to a sustainable approach are menus with local products, an effort to reduce waste, the use of seasonal products, the absence of plastic packaging and the possibility of taking leftover food home.
- Digitalization: essential and deeply ingrained in habits
Digital orders increased throughout the pandemic, reaching €30 billion in cumulative annual spending by the end of August 2022 in five European countries (UK, Germany, France, Spain, Italy), and continued to grow after restrictions were eased. New digital ordering options emerged even after the pandemic, and consumers appreciate their advantages. Click & collect orders, in particular, tripled in 2022 compared to 2019 and are expected to continue increasing (Total Foodservice, UK, Germany, France, Spain, Italy).
Source: The NPD Group/Foodservice Uncertainty Impact Survey, BIG 5, September 2022 and The NPD Group/COVID-19 Foodservice Sentiment Study, BIG 6, Different Waves.
With kind permission from the Journal de l'Hôtellerie