Once a staple of kitchen cupboards in the 1950s, processed foods have seen much better days. In fact, their fall from popularity has been pretty swift and is due – in large part – to a massive shift in what consumers want to eat. Healthy, fresh food (or at least food that’s perceived to be fresh and healthy) is the holy grail, and anything less is being shunned by buyers who are choosing to eat foods that are labeled as healthy, organic, and non-GMO.
In fact, it’s not just a trend that’s being seen in grocery stores. Fast food chains have been scrambling to keep up, as well, with healthy fast food chains like Chipotle, Subway, and Panera gaining steam while McDonald’s and Burger King struggle to keep up.
Changing Consumer Tastes
It’s not surprising that health food trends have become the be-all-end-all of consumer food tastes. What is interesting, however, is that the appearance of being healthy is actually far more important for food sales than actually being healthy. That may not seem like an important distinction to make, but it is when you’re talking about processed foods. That’s because ultimately it means that processed food manufacturers have the possibility of turning sales around if they modify and repackage processed foods into products that may look healthier, while not providing a huge amount of health benefits
Are Sales of Processed Foods Declining?
You may have noticed that supermarkets are laid out in a very specific way. The perimeter of the store usually features fresh produce, meat counters, dairy counters, and other types of fresh foods and herbs. The interior aisles, on the other hand, are stocked full of boxed cereals, chips, cakes, cookies, and other types of processed foods. Understanding this layout is important, as analysts will use this layout often when they talk about whether sales are increasing or decreasing in the perimeter vs the interior.
According to research firm, Morningstar, sales in the interior of the grocery store have increased by 1% while sales of items around the perimeter (mostly fresh meat, dairy, and fruits and vegetables) have increased by 5%. So in short, yes, processed food sales have been declining, although they haven’t declined as much as you’d think given the public outcry for healthier eating. That’s likely at least partly due to large processed foods manufacturers acquiring healthier competitors. Because of the change in consumer taste, large food corporations have been snapping up smaller, health food brands in an effort to hedge against slowing sales of some of their other food brands.
Will Processed Foods Disappear Completely?
Even with processed food sales slowing, it’s pretty unlikely that they’ll disappear completely. Many processed foods store well and last forever, so even if mass consumer tastes change, there still might be a use for them. And even if there isn’t, the low cost of many processed foods may still appeal to large sections of the population.
But we want to hear from you. Do you eat processed foods? Have you cut them out or are there processed foods that you love and refuse to stop eating? Let us know in the comments!
