Takeaways From IFMA’s 2024 Marketing & Sales Conference

It’s no secret that the food industry has been in a difficult position since the COVID-19 pandemic. Rising food and labor costs combine with a workforce that is looking for a lot more from their employers and consumers who are tightening their wallets due to economic uncertainty.

Couple that with, as Lizzy Freier from Technomic pointed out during the recent International Foodservice Manufacturers Association Virtual Marketing & Sales Conference, the “dichotomous” nature of some of the top current trends – consumers wanting to buy local but eat global, desires to eat healthy but also have indulgent options, and the interest in complex, innovative recipes but a need among many operators to simplify menus due to a lack of skilled labor – and we have an incredibly exciting and challenging time for the food and beverage industry.

Technomic’s food trends session during our partner IFMA’s conference was one of many insightful webinars hosted by leaders from throughout the Food Away From Home ecosystem.

Overall, consumer pullback is happening (39% now say they’ll dine out less, compared to 28% in January) even though cost inflation is now predicted at 3.8% (down from IFMA’s February prediction of 5% for 2024). Menu price increases are slowing but still going up, labor issues continue, off-premise/delivery remains an impactful trend that stuck around from the pandemic, and value, experimentation, indulgence, and nostalgia are the important consumer trends driving purchasing decisions right now.

Here are some additional takeaways:

Sustainability Is Top-of-Mind For Everyone

This shouldn’t be a surprise, but 86% of foodservice operators in a 2023 IFMA survey said they are actively trying to reduce their food waste,  with 63% saying they want to grow and improve their sustainability initiatives. But the hurdles still exist – 42% say it’s too expensive, 29% say composting isn’t available in their area, and 23% say their customers don’t care.

The not caring component certainly skews older, because we know that Millennials and Generation Z prioritize the environment, with 60% from both groups willing to pay more for sustainable products (Deloitte). During IFMA’s “Challenges of the Sustainability Journey in the Away-From-Home Ecosystem” session, we heard from Syracuse University, Santa Clara Unified School District, and Wells Fargo, and all three mentioned composting being a priority, with SU’s Cheryl Fabrizi saying that composting is actually half the cost of taking food waste to a facility. Everyone is focused on reducing single-use plastics, but only 28% of those surveyed by IFMA are sustainably managing Styrofoam products.

There remains a very real challenge to setting up proper streams for recycling and educating diners on where to put utensils and containers, but companies can benefit from clearly communicating their sustainability policies and successes both internally and externally.

We are certainly seeing more marketing that pushes sustainability issues, so it’s something definitely worth considering: Former Unilever CEO Paul Pollman said 70% of Americans want companies to speak out and advised that if the issue is relevant to your brand, you can make an impact in the area, and if your employees care about it, it’s worth engaging.  

Two of the most interesting menu items we saw were a cocktail featuring salted pasta water (reusing something that would have gone to waste) from Jemma Hollywood in LA, and a roasted corn dish featuring chapulini (grasshoppers require far less land and water and produce fewer greenhouse gasses than traditional animal protein sources). Also, schmaltz (rendered chicken fat that has collagen benefits) is predicted to grow 133% on menus by 2026.

Global X Local

Italian, Mexican, and Chinese cuisines are still the most popular among international options in the U.S., but Technomic says to expect much more influence from West African, Caribbean, and East Asian cuisines.

The younger demographics are interested in spicier dishes (13% of those 18-34 like foods “extremely spicy” compared to 8% of those 35+), and peppers like Toreado (120% predicted menu growth by 2026) and Morita (+113%) from Mexico, Aji Amarillo (+109%) from Peru, and Fresno Chile (+118%) from California are trending. Chile dressing is actually expected to be the fastest-growing menu item (+300%) in looking ahead to 2026.

Items like Hot Honey and Chile Crisp are by now mainstream, but look for Ajvar (a Serbian blend of red bell peppers and eggplant that is expected to grow 200%) to be the next Gochujang (a Korean sweet/spicy paste that has been trending the last few years and will grow by 113%).

So while 29% of consumers want restaurants to offer more global-inspired foods and beverages, 40% say restaurants should have local ingredients based on their locations. It will continue to be important to promote local partnerships with farms and boutique manufacturers/producers while also being creative with interpretations of international trends.

Digital Marketing Insights

While 96% of restaurants said they use social media, only 18% use these platforms to connect with foodservice suppliers, according to IFMA. And in our conversations with clients and prospects, we know how challenging it can be to reach B2B audiences through digital marketing tactics. Targeting the right buyers is not easy, so many organizations rely solely on their sales teams and don’t strategically support those efforts on the marketing side.

In an IFMA session on B2B Digital Marketing, Linda Owens of Nestle Professional talked about focusing on being everywhere their customers are (email, search, content, social, trades, etc.), and how customers come to their website for recipe inspiration. In order to inform their foodservice marketing; Mallory Jones of Simplot polled their inside sales team for what their leads were following up on to better inform their B2B marketing efforts; and Heather Mummert of Smucker emphasized the importance of consistent messaging across all touchpoints and how their marketing team’s content and creative fuels the efforts on the sales side.

AI’s Continued Impact

No 2024 conference can escape without an AI segment, and clearly Food Away From Home is an industry that’s seeing a ton of impact from these evolving technologies. IFMA’s AI session featured leaders from the Food Institute, Dot Foods, Conagra, and UMass.

The biggest impact has been on analyzing data – quicker and with more volume. Conagra’s Azeem Kapadia said they’re able to react to trends quicker by using AI to sift through consumer preferences, while UMass’ Garett DiStefano said they’ve reduced food waste nearly 10% by analyzing data on food consumption by time, items, location, etc.

Key overall themes were that AI is a companion to your job and not a replacement, and that the focus should be on upskilling in order to become more efficient.

What trends are you seeing in the food and beverage industry? Drop us a line, and stay tuned for our next industry trends deck following the 2024 Food Industry Center of Excellence Summit.