Wen 丨 Guan Tide New Consumption (ID: TideSight), Author 丨 Jin Mai Mai, Editor 丨 Du Zhong
In the past 2021, young people have eaten one new track after another, and many food companies have been sent to the market.
Functional food, health care, prepared dishes, zero sugar low calorie, plant protein have become the key words in the food industry in 2021. The curiosity and demand of young people are ignited, and the heat of capital is also rising.
As a track that is both traditional and keeps pace with the times, the product strength and innovation of food companies are particularly important. Guanchao New Consumption (ID: TIdeSight) specially launched the "2021, National Tide Industry Ten Major Track Inventory" series of topics, this article combs and summarizes the food keywords in 2021 and the industry trends in 2022.
01, 2021, seven keywords of food
Keyword 1: functional food
The same source of makeup and food, the expansion of new raw materials laid the foundation, and the ingredient party that was originally a fire in the skin care industry has now been "burned" to the food field.
In recent years, hyaluronic acid, grape seeds, niacinamide, melatonin, collagen and other ingredients have been added to food, whether it is food raw materials or packaging forms, there have been great changes.
In January 2021, the National Health Commission released that hyaluronic acid was listed as a food raw material that can be used for food additives. Bloomage Bio took the lead in launching the first hyaluronic acid food brand in China, "Black Zero", covering categories such as hyaluronic acid chewable tablets, fudge, water light drink, bird's nest drink, etc., which also created a precedent for hyaluronic acid to enter the food industry in 2021.
Subsequently, Hankou No. 2 Factory and the meal replacement brand Wonderlab launched hyaluronic acid sparkling water and hyaluronic acid fudge; Lechun and Bright Dairy launched hyaluronic acid yogurt; Lele Tea launched transparent yogurt tea; Wahaha launched hyaluronic acid sparkling water - light nai...
Grasping the "new needs" of young people, new brands and capital join forces to open up a new 100 billion track. According to the incomplete statistics of Guanchao new consumption, there are about 13 functional food financing incidents in 2021, behind which there are many leading institutions such as IDG Capital, Sequoia Seed Fund, Northern Lights Venture Capital, and Huaying Capital.
"Functional fever" is also hot to the secondary market. Dongpeng Beverage, the representative "first share of functional beverages", was listed in May last year, and the total market value reached 26.6 billion yuan on the day of listing. As of today's press release, its total market value reached 68.862 billion yuan, an increase of nearly 3 times.
Lin Lu, a partner at Northern Lights Venture Capital, once said that the consumer demand for health food and leisure food health has been verified in developed countries such as the United States and Japan, and China still belongs to an incremental market with extremely high growth, and the rapid rise of the demand side will also reverse accelerate the orderly liberalization of policies.
The China Commercial Industry Research Institute predicts that the market size of functional foods in mainland China will exceed 600 billion yuan in 2022. Data show that the penetration rate of functional foods in the United States exceeds 50%, of which 60% of consumers belong to sticky users. In Japan, the penetration rate of functional foods is about 40%. In contrast, the penetration rate of functional foods in China is only 20%, of which sticky users account for only 10%, so the large market space gives brands more opportunities.
Overall, people's health awareness is constantly improving, and the emergence of functional foods has given consumers a new perspective on healthy food. In the context of consumption upgrading, consumers began to choose more diversified functional foods.
Key word two: health
Yuanqi Forest has led the food and beverage industry into an era of zero calorie and low sugar, which also reflects that "health" has become the current consumption trend. Especially manifested in consumers' pursuit of low-fat/zero-fat, low-calorie/zero-calorie, low-sugar/sugar-free, low-salt and other products.
The improvement of health awareness has made sugar, salt, fat, other common food raw materials become an obstacle for consumers to pursue body shape and health.
Not only salt reduction, snacks, dairy products, beverages and other categories have been labeled as "sugar reduction", and even began to launch "0 sugar products" in order to capture people's hearts faster.
In 2021, Mars announced a reduction in the average sodium content of packaged foods by 20%; Leshi launched a 50% salt reduction series of potato chips; and even soy sauce brands such as Haitian, Lee Kum Kee, June Fresh, and Jiajia have played salt reduction, light salt, low salt, thin salt and other products.
The fire of 0 sugar low calories also burned to the children's snack track. Grasping the psychology of exquisite parenting of post-90s mothers, snack brands have also begun to play 0 to add children's food. 0 sugar, less oil, no additional salt, no added preservatives, artificial colors, flavors are the key points of children's snacks, and it has become the focus of the brand to do it on the ingredient list.
But is the ingredient list with low calorie, less salt and 0 sugar really healthy?
According to national standards, the sodium content per 100 grams or 100 ml of food should be less than or equal to 120 mg to be called low-sodium, low-salt food. Some products contain ingredients such as seafood and have their own salt, making it difficult to measure low sodium standards.
Not only that, some merchants are hunting health-conscious consumers in the name of zero sugar and low salt.
Although post-95 and Generation Z consumers are the driving force behind 0 sugar and low calorie and low salt, at present, consumer acceptance of foods that are really de-sugar and salt-reducing is still limited, and it is difficult for "mitigated" foods to meet the heavy tastes of young people, and the demand for 0 sugar and low salt has not been fully activated.
Key word three: plant protein
In 2021, as Beyond Meat swept the foreign market, indigenous plant-based brands also continued to emerge.
New brands such as Zhou Zero, Rare Meat, and Cudding Meat are growing rapidly; Golden Ham and Twin Tower Foods have also begun to cooperate with DuPont Nutrition and Biotechnology and Beyond Meat to start a share of the soup in the plant meat track; KFC has launched plant meat fried chicken nuggets; McDonald's has also launched the first plant meat breakfast series in Chinese mainland; even the old dog has also launched plant meat buns.
For a time, plant meat products began to bloom everywhere. Plant-based meat products have penetrated into major supermarkets, star hotels, and even private restaurants and casual restaurants.
Due to the low-carbon environmental protection of the manufacturing process and the ability to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, plant meat is known as the next outlet for the "carbon neutral" era and new energy.
In addition to low-carbon environmental protection, nutrition is also the selling point of plant meat. Unlike real meat, which is rich in protein, vitamin B12, iron and other nutrients, plant meat does not contain cholesterol and contains dietary fiber, which can reduce the intake of saturated fatty acids and cholesterol to a certain extent.
The rise of plant meat is not only due to the improvement of consumers' health and environmental awareness, but also because traditional meat processing has gradually tended to the ceiling, if you want to continue to meet the needs of meat eaters, the development space has been limited, and new meat food has become a substitute for meat processing.
But "plant meat" has always been controversial in China, and people eat not "meat", but ideas.
From the "breakthrough of plants" in 2017 to the "plant-based revolution" in 2020 to the "first year of plant meat" in 2021, plant-based has been regarded as an important trend in food and beverage in the future for 5 consecutive years.
Although the scale of the domestic market is not large, the acceptance of consumers is gradually increasing.
Keyword four: convenient fast food
The epidemic has pressed the shortcut key for convenient fast food, and young people have been surrounded by snail powder, self-heating hot pot, red oil dough skin, etc., and the pre-made dishes at the end of the year have rushed up again.
Starting with instant noodles, flour noodles have become a classic category of instant food. From the initial taste innovation, to the quality upgrade of ramen noodles, jin noodle hall, and plum ziqi, fast food not only pursues "speed", but also pursues "taste".
Compared with Master Kong, instant noodles and sour and spicy fans who are unified for less than 3 yuan a pack, ramen noodles and Jinmiantang often have refreshed consumers' cognition. However, the rich ingredients and non-fried noodle cakes make consumers feel that they are worth the money, so consumers' tastes have also been re-cultivated by the new brand.
The emergence of new forms of categories such as self-heating hot pot and prepared dishes has also become a must-have for "hit workers". The fast pace of life has compressed the meal time of office workers, and young consumers who are not ready to do so have begun to think about how to be fast and efficient.
Health, real materials, convenient and fast, and restored taste are the original intentions of Xinsu Food, and it is also the brand's deliberate efforts to cater to consumers.
Keyword five: price increase
Driven by costs, mainstream food companies have raised prices, especially in 2021.
In September, Angel Yeast fired the first shot of price increases; at the end of October, Chacha Food and Haitian Flavor Industry also began to join the price increase army; in November, Anjing Food and Fuling Squeezed Vegetables also raised the ex-factory price, causing heated discussions on the whole network. Snacks went up, drinks went up, even spices went up.
According to public statistics, as of December 2021, there are more than 28 consumer goods-related listed companies that have raised prices or evaluated price increase plans. In fact, behind the successive price increases of brands, the cost of raw materials has risen sharply, and the upstream price increases have naturally affected the downstream industries, and the phenomenon of price increases has emerged.
The reason is that the increase in CPI is blocked by the suppression of consumer demand, and the scissors gap between PPI and CPI is widening. Upstream commodity prices have been soaring, the middle and downstream industries are not far behind, under the price transmission, the price increase momentum is colorful.
However, it is not easy to raise the price of the product, taking Fuling squeezed vegetables as an example, although the gross profit margin has been preserved, but the sales volume has declined.
Not only domestic enterprises, but also foreign food brands have also announced price increases. In November last year, Mondelëz International said that from 2022, Oreo biscuits could raise prices by 7%.
Dongxing Securities expects that the rise in upstream raw material prices will be further transmitted to the downstream in 2022, more enterprises have price increase expectations, and enterprises with the ability to transmit prices to the downstream will benefit more.
Keyword six: medicinal and food homology
Young people who are "afraid of death and afraid of death" have been seeking a "guide to self-help".
For the post-90s and Generation Z, 2021 is a "health year". Emotional health, body management, and sleep improvement have become the three major health demands of the post-90s and post-95s, and hair loss, sleep, and oral problems have become the three high-growth health needs.
The improvement of health awareness has made users interested in healthy ingredients and nourishing dietary foods grow continuously. The post-90s generation adopts the method of internal and external adjustment, food intake and health care products have become their health "secret recipes", and "medicine and food homology" have attracted the attention of young people.
Compared with men, post-90s women pay more attention to health. According to the survey, women account for 68% of the health group. Among them, blood replenishment, beauty and care have become the effects that consumers are enthusiastic about. Merchants have also tapped more hidden business opportunities and launched a variety of functional foods using natural ingredients such as dates, goji berries, and ejiao.
However, compared with their parents, the post-95 generation has a completely different attitude towards health care products. Middle-aged and elderly people regard health care products as medicines, take them regularly and in quantity, and pursue long-term adherence to the purpose of maintenance; while the post-95 generation regards them as "remedies", which is considered to be the compensation after "evil acts" such as staying up late, eating and drinking, and pursuing rapid effectiveness.
According to the "New Food Shangism" report released by CBNData, Ali Health and Tmall Home Appliances, traditional tonics have grown by more than 20% for two consecutive years, and in the past 3 years, the post-90s generation has become the backbone of online purchase of traditional tonic nutrition.
A more diversified consumption scenario has reshaped the food industry, and companies have changed their previous tone and begun to target the "new health" group. Enterprises with traditional Chinese medicine as the background have broken through to the food field with technology and supply chain, and consumer brands have begun to think about how to achieve new and old integration, and give Internet thinking to the same source of medicine and food.
Binfu Capital has publicly stated that under the background of the continuous revival of traditional Chinese national culture and the continuous improvement of residents' health awareness, new Chinese tonics have become a good choice for residents in the field of health functional foods.
Keyword seven: new brands are more national
The rise of great powers, national self-confidence, and the increasing unity of the state and the tide. According to the Baidu search big data report, the search popularity of domestic food brands accounted for 73% in the past year.
National tide flavor, national tide beauty, national tide culture, in the name of "national tide", to the Z generation of favor, Mo Mo Dim Sum Bureau, Hutou Bureau Standard Chartered Cake Line, Xianghe Rao Shop, Wen Heyou and other new Chinese brands in 2021 have broken the circle, and continue to decipher the new consumer brand wealth code.
It is not difficult to see that these brands, whether it is style or product innovation, are combined with Chinese elements such as Unicorn Rui Beast and Dragon And Lion Dance, so that the "eating" thing is rejuvenated.
The sudden rise in the popularity of traditional culture is inseparable from the post-90s consumers eating the "nostalgic marketing" set. There are also more and more snack shops and restaurants with nostalgic themes, and the improvement of national identity has made "new Chinese style" a fashion.
Wang Yuxiao, founder and CEO of Momo Dim Sum Bureau, once said at the National Tide New Consumption Conference: "Chinese flavor is the traditional taste of China, but it is still necessary to iterate on the taste that some young people prefer. After you put together some Western-style flavors suitable for young people, you will have more explosive points. ”
Chinese brands continue to embrace the national tide, and have also changed the pattern of the food and other industries. China's long-established brands have also taken the opportunity to rise again, constantly digging deep into new opportunities for the combination of traditional culture and new consumer groups, accelerating the further development of the national tide.
02, 2022, the next stop in the food industry
When the meaning of eating is not limited to the stomach, the value of the food itself is also more abundant. From physical needs to spiritual needs, the post-90s and Z generations have redefined food, and the industry has added hundreds of billions of new markets.
Overall, the food industry will show the following five major trends in 2022:
1. Accelerated popularization of plant-based has become a new trend. The increase in health and environmental awareness has led to an increasing number of flex vegetarians and vegetarians. Agribusiness and food company Archer Daniels Midland says that in 2022 consumers expect more and more foods to use unexpected and unique protein sources;
2, snacks towards health. For the new generation of consumers, the concept of health care is deeply rooted in the hearts of the people. Health has become the current consumer trend, and the food industry is ushering in the era of "ingredient first, vertical function";
3, technology on the table. Behind the rise of the domestic food industry is the continuous strengthening of the supply chain, and the transformation and upgrading of the supply chain are inseparable from the blessing of science and technology. In addition, the progress and improvement of science and technology also brings consumers a new experience, such as personalized customized nutrition programs, food nutrition analysis, etc.;
4. The industry continues to standardize and accelerate the reshuffle. The track is hot, and the phenomenon of homogenization is also intensifying. How to break through the "change of soup without changing the medicine" of the new brand will also be the problem that will be considered in 2022;
5, consumption is more emphasis on spiritual attributes. With the improvement of people's living standards, consumers have not only pursued the satisfaction of taste buds, but also the sense of freshness and experience have become factors to consider. In other words, this generation of consumer groups prefers products with high spiritual attributes.
Simple material conditions can no longer meet the consumption needs of young people, high value, innovation, diversification, sense of identity, authenticity, etc., Generation Z is willing to pay a premium for product appearance and characteristics. For brands, a good experience is more attractive than cheap.
2021 is another year of eating and drinking. What new stories will the food industry tell in 2022?