Healthy, fresh, local foods are not just for the young crowd.
The only bracket where the trend doesn’t fit, according to Mushkin’s research, is the extreme lowest income, under $25,000 a year, he says.
Mushkin is the lead food trends researcher at Wolfe Research in New York, a firm that specializes in consumer trends. On the basis of his multiple studies over 15 years, he has a reputation for spotting things early. “Retail food is my passion,” he says.
Here are the big food trends he highlights now.
Ethnic choices are growing, too, he says. Twenty years ago, there was not the breadth of Hispanic, Italian, Korean, and other choices.
“These are very dynamic shifts,” he says. “Our research says that it now transcends geography. The Midwest tends to trail the national trends, but not by much. The South has definitely caught up with the coasts when it comes to eating healthier.
“It has become an obsession with lots of people of all age and income brackets. In fact, the most robust growth since 2013 comes from women who are outside the millennial generation,” he says.
The driving force, he speculates, is growing distrust of big business and government. “People just want to go against them. That includes how they’ll eat,” he says.
Social media plays a role, he continues. “You can see stories everywhere in conservative or liberal media about something that causes cancer. That builds distrust, and it spreads.
“We are living longer and we want to be healthier, and the secret is, at least partly, in what we eat. We know the science says that diseases like diabetes are avoidable if we would just eat healthier,” he says.
Mushkin admits to a fascination with the millennial generation. “The oldest are turning 35 this year,” he says. “The average age is still only about 25. Their peak is still over 10 years away,” he says.
His advice for farmers comes down to one word: transparency.
“It’s a hot-button issue. In our focus groups with young women, they want to know where their food comes from. The actual source.
“The family farm still has great appeal with them. Now they want to know the story behind the food. If it’s a family farm story, that’s a very good thing,” he says.
This article is part of a series titled Meet Your New Boss: The Millennials.