An Increasingly Diverse Population – Driving Changes in the Marketplace

Our recruiting specialists at Key Corporate Services’ Food Ingredients division follow trends in the food industry closely as they place top candidates in executive positions.

An increasingly diverse society is driving changes in buying habits

One undeniable trend relates to the changes in consumer preferences at the retail level brought about by an increasingly multicultural society. As our society becomes more diverse, we are seeing a trend towards spending more in the meat and seafood department than any other fresh department.

This change was recently highlighted in an article by FoodBusinessNews.com.  Flavor profiles are changing quicker than ever before, driven by more buyers representing multiple cultures. As a consequence, we are seeing increased availability of bulk quantities of fresh food in the deli.

Fresh food purchases being driven by ethnic preferences

Asian Americans, Hispanics and African Americans are a growing segment.  They represent a $2.2 billion market for food retailers. And, they spend more on fresh as a percentage of their total food purchases as compared to non-Hispanic White households who opt for convenience over fresh. Not only do these ethnic groups spend more on fresh, they shop more often!

Retailers need to rethink their delivery and assortment strategies

Since multicultural shoppers are looking for more fresh and since they are in the stores more often, retailers need to adjust their delivery and assortment strategies. Their displays should represent fresh, culturally relevant products to appeal to this growing segment. That’s not to say they should ignore mainstream shoppers.  The reality is, multicultural palates are having a growing influence on non-Hispanic whites and society at-large.