| | The Natural Foods-Wellness Connection
Scientific studies continue to explore the relationship between a more natural diet and improved health, but the common-sense connection is firmly established in consumers’ minds:
“natural and organic mean less to worry about for consumers. They simplify increasingly complex and complicated health and nutrition choices.”
- Health Focus International 2005
Good for You On the Go
Consumers who value organic and natural foods take that preference with them when they dine away from home.
- 48% of consumers report that they try to maintain the exact same food standards when dining out as they do in their own homes.1
- Among consumers who currently use organic foods, 80% “…would visit a restaurant or foodservice outlet more frequently if organics were on the menu.”1
A Critical Opportunity in Foodservice Organic and natural food and beverage purchases in foodservice show a combined annual growth rate of 55-60% over the past five years.1 No longer dismissible as a passing fad, consumer demand for organic and natural foods is a well-established trend that is only expected to grow as awareness and product availability increases.
Furthermore, consumers value these options enough to pay a premium. - According to one survey, 62% of organic milk consumers will pay a 10% premium.
- Other studies show that most consumers are receptive to organic premiums of up to 15%.1
Savvy foodservice operators are already on board with the health and wellness trend. In its new survey, Datamonitor found that 41% of industry executives rank health as “very important” to their business, while only 9% ranked it “unimportant.”
The rapidly-growing in-supermarket dining segment has been among the first to effectively leverage consumers’ natural and organic focus. In fact, fully one quarter of all natural and organic purchases in foodservice come from in-supermarket dining.1
Perhaps because of their unique insight into consumer at-home behaviors, supermarket foodservice operators have been quick to respond with healthy choices from trusted organic and natural brands. Their success would indicate a fertile field of opportunity for other operators ready to provide similar healthy options.
WhiteWave Foods: Your Health and Wellness Solution Representing Horizon Organic® and Silk,® two of the nation’s leading organic and natural brands, WhiteWave Foods is perfectly poised to help foodservice operators support and enhance their patrons’ healthy lifestyles.
Learn more about health and wellness from Silk.
Learn more about health and wellness from Horizon Organic.
What’s Next? Education Drives Growth The more consumers know about organic and natural options, the more likely they are to seek them out. - Of consumers who choose organic foods daily, 93% consider themselves knowledgeable about the topic.1By contrast, among those who rarely choose organics, fewer than 20% consider themselves well-informed.1
- Today’s foodservice operators agree that education is critical to expanding organic consumption, with 82.5% ranking education as “important.”
WhiteWave Foods is proud to be a leader in consumer education. Through our dynamic brand web sites, community outreach programs, on-pack communications and other initiatives, we provide the information consumers need to make smart choices for their own health and the planet – both at home and away. Visit the Silk and Horizon Organic web sites to learn more.
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