6 Food and Beverage Industry Trends for 2021 – Alibaba Seller Blog

The occasions of 2020 have shifted shoppers’ behaviors, mindsets, and approaches in lots of areas of life. Many industries, together with the meals and beverage {industry}, have felt the results of those shifts.

On this publish, we’re going to speak about 6 of the highest traits within the world meals and beverage {industry} in 2020 that can stick with it into 2021. All through this publish, we’ll assess how the COVID-19 pandemic has influenced these traits. To wrap issues up, we can even discuss briefly about the most well-liked meals merchandise of the previous yr and go away you with some info on promoting meals and beverage merchandise on Alibaba.com.

What’s occurring within the meals and beverage {industry}?

For the bigger a part of 2020, the worldwide unfold of COVID-19 modified individuals’s lives in all corners of the world. Companies started to function at restricted capacities, individuals have been pressured to remain at dwelling and life modified.

Quarantining and self-isolation modified many individuals’s habits. Some got down to enhance their cooking abilities whereas caught at dwelling, and others made adjustments in direction of more healthy residing. Many individuals turned to meals for consolation throughout this aggravating time.

Client habits isn’t the one shift we’ve seen this yr. Factories and farms have shut down at totally different closing dates in an try to sluggish the unfold of the virus. Shutting down factories has the unlucky consequence of delaying manufacturing and creating non permanent shortages in some areas.

This yr has been removed from regular, which has positively affected the meals and beverage {industry} in some ways.

Prime 6 traits in meals and beverage

Every of the components that we talked about above has made a unique contribution to traits within the meals and beverage {industry}. Let’s check out the highest 6 traits that we’ve seen on a worldwide scale prior to now yr.

1. Plant-based meals

Vegetarianism and veganism are two rising traits. Persons are making these life-style shifts for a wide range of causes, together with selling well being and wellness, eliminating animal cruelty, and prioritizing sustainability.

Past Meat and Inconceivable Meals have been two main forces on this {industry}. They create meat substitutes from plant-based substances. Their merchandise can be found in grocery shops, eating places, and even some worldwide fast-food chains, together with Burger King¹. These manufacturers should not the primary to fabricate plant-based meals, however they grew in recognition as a consequence of their capability to provide meatless merchandise that style like meat.

The outbreak of COVID-19 has additionally led to a meat scarcity in sure areas. The costs of things like rooster breasts and floor beef skyrocketed. It’s the animal-based meat scarcity mixed with growing curiosity in pure and natural merchandise that contributed to the numerous spike of retail plant-based meals gross sales prior to now yr based on the researches².

Meatless “meats” should not the one plant-based merchandise which are on the rise. Some companies, like Green Mustache, a Gold Provider on Alibaba.com, produce snacks which are completely vegan to attraction to shoppers that keep away from animal merchandise as a consequence of sensitivities, beliefs or the final need for “higher to your meals.”

Since the marketplace for the sort of product is rising³, extra companies are rising to fill that want.

2. Will increase in recent and frozen produce consumption

Though produce isn’t a brand new pattern, shoppers are shopping for extra fruit and veggies than ever earlier than to make sure an satisfactory consumption of immune-boosting nutritional vitamins and vitamins.

In accordance with a research completed by 210 Analytics, IRI, and the Produce Advertising Affiliation (PMA) in Could 2020⁴, recent product gross sales noticed a 14.3% YoY enhance and frozen produce gross sales had a formidable YoY progress of 33.8%. Customers have been of their stock-up mindset and have been turning to frozen produce to keep away from a number of grocery retailer journeys through the quarantine.

“Pre-Covid gross sales for our [produce] merchandise have been round 2-3% of the entire basket. We’re seeing…no less than 10% at a sustained degree post-pandemic.”
            – Cathy Burns, the CEO of PMA

The unfold of COVID-19 has sparked a revolution in the way in which that folks view their well being. Many individuals have got down to strengthen their immune programs to the very best of their capability⁵ Top-of-the-line methods to get a wholesome quantity of those nutritional vitamins is thru fruit and veggies. This precipitated a rise in demand for produce.

Since Vitamin C is extensively recognized for its immune system assist and oranges are referred to as an excellent supply of this vitamin, gross sales for oranges and orange juice noticed a major enhance.

The rise in produce consumption will doubtless go on for years to come back since enhancing immune system well being was only one catalyst for this modification. The popularization of plant-based diets that we talked about additionally comes into play, however we’ll discuss extra about this later.

3. “Premiumization”

Spending extra cash on premium merchandise, together with premium meals that emphasizes the superior high quality and exclusivity, is known as “premiumization”.

As we talked about, individuals have had many alternative psychological and emotional responses to the pandemic which have influenced meals and beverage consumption. Because the “self-care” and “deal with your self” mentalities proceed to develop in recognition through the pandemic, pampering and treating your self with premium meals has develop into much more vital, as a means to deal with the robust occasions.

The lack to journey and revel in different out of doors actions has freed up many individuals’s budgets leaving them with cash to spend. Researches additionally present that millennials and Gen Z make premium purchases way more usually. Along with the superior high quality and higher efficiency – the two most evident traits of premium merchandise that justify a better worth level, the younger shoppers additionally cite emotional causes that align with their “deal with your self” mind-set. Manufacturers ought to leverage the “premiumization” pattern with the intention to faucet into Gen Z’s rising buying energy.

Among the prime premium meals merchandise embrace:

• Baked items
• Sizzling drinks
• Chocolate
• Processed fish
• Aged meat
• Egg merchandise

Though the world slowly begins to open again up and folks can start to exit once more, premiumization is predicted to develop into much more well-liked within the coming years. In accordance with a report printed by MarketWatch⁶, the worldwide premium chocolate market is anticipated to develop at a compound annual progress price (CAGR) of seven.28% from 2018 to 2022.

4. Improve in demand for spices and condiments

A typical quarantine pastime was choosing up cooking abilities. Individuals who have been used to being on the go and frequently consuming meals from eating places started to be taught their means across the kitchen.

As individuals found new recipes, they usually wanted spices and condiments that they hadn’t bought earlier than. In actual fact, the primary quarter of 2020 noticed a 67% year-on-year enhance in ingredient and condiment gross sales on Alibaba.com.

This pattern in all probability won’t be sustainable for lengthy, as a result of sooner or later, individuals with the demand for these merchandise will finally construct well-rounded spice and condiment collections. This may trigger a lower in demand.

In fact, there’ll nonetheless be some demand for these merchandise, however it should doubtless not be as excessive because it was when it surged earlier in 2020.

5. Manufacturing uncertainty

Totally different nations, territories, and municipalities have gone by way of lockdowns at totally different occasions over the course of the previous yr. Some conditions known as for manufacturing unit shutdowns that lasted per week or two whereas different shutdowns lasted for months.

In accordance with the World Financial institution, growing nations have had essentially the most points with meals shortages and provide chain disruptions prior to now yr⁷.

In the US, nevertheless, there was by no means an actual concern of meals scarcity⁸ for the reason that nation already produces an overabundance of meals, however individuals have been scared that there can be. This precipitated individuals to panic purchase.

Tyson Meals, an American meat producer, had a number of shutdowns in giant vegetation which led to worry of shortages over the summer time⁹. Smithfield was one other American meat manufacturing unit with comparable closures.

6. Choice for sustainability

Over the previous couple of years, extra individuals have began taking actions and prioritizing sustainable residing. The motivation for this shift comes from the collective need to scale back the worldwide carbon footprint and protect the non-renewable pure assets on this planet.

Researchers suggest {that a} plant-based food plan is best for the Earth¹⁰ than a food plan that’s centered round meat and dairy. Whereas some environmentalists completely rebuke the consumption of animals, the final consensus is that the world would eat much less meat.

The manufacturing of plant-based meals that we talked about above can also be associated to this choice for sustainability. The concept is that it’s rather more resource-efficient and eco-friendly to lift crops than it’s to lift animals.

Prime meals and beverage merchandise on Alibaba.com in 2020

Survival mode has kicked in for many individuals over the course of this yr as we’ve all navigated by way of uncharted territories.

Between the lack of jobs, financial instability, and the looming worry of the longer term, many individuals stocked up on meals that might final within the occasion that they have been unable to go away their properties for lengthy durations of time. Canned items and non-perishables have been a should.

Listed here are just a few of the top-selling meals and beverage merchandise in 2020 on Alibaba.com’s worldwide market.

Prime-selling meals merchandise

• Canned tuna
• Corned beef hash in a can
• Canned wild Alaskan pink salmon
• “Fad Free” tuna (sustainably sourced)
• Canned fruit (pineapple, mango, and so on.)
• Black olives

Prime-selling beverage merchandise

• Redbull
• Tampico
• Tender drinks
• 5 Hour Power
• Oviten Power Wake Up

Last ideas

If there was one conclusion that we will draw from the meals and beverage traits over the previous yr, it will be that well being is wealth. Meals traits in 2020 have been primarily influenced by the unfold of COVID-19 and a rising need for wholesome residing by youthful generations.

The subsequent yr is stuffed with uncertainty as world COVID-19 circumstances proceed to rise and vaccines are launched, however the meals and beverage {industry} will doubtless see some shifts if or when the world finds some sense of pre-COVID normalcy.

Nonetheless, we do imagine that the traits in direction of plant-based consuming, wholesome meals preferences, and sustainability will stick with it into 2021 and past.

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