When considering what to address in this column, one topic in particular really stood out for me. Innovation or, rather, the lack of it is something that I think needs to be addressed within the prepared vegetable category.
I am concerned that the market may have stagnated somewhat in recent years when it comes to experimenting with flavour combinations. All too often we hear about yield, specification and size; growers often talk about tonnes per hectare instead of flavour – and 2016 has been dominated by the wonky veg debate – but very rarely do I hear taste as the number one criteria for choosing whether or not to list a product.
As such, the prepared vegetable category has seen relatively little innovation because the emphasis is too often on price rather than on taste. And that disheartens me; a car manufacturer wouldn’t compromise safety over price, the same as a fashion designer wouldn’t compromise style over price, so why should we feel like we have to sacrifice taste? Imagine if restaurants did the same.
My worry is that by focusing too much on keeping costs down, we run the risk of losing new customers we attract into the category by providing them with cheap, bland products.
We’re all familiar with the recent innovations within the prepared category, witnessing a rise in demand for carb alternatives, but what I’d like to see is more emphasis on creating a product that is not only ‘trendy’ but tastes great. I’d love to see the industry shaken up by experimenting with new and interesting flavours, not just textures. This is particularly crucial when it comes to children – cutting veg into different shapes is not going to convince most kids to eat more healthily, but making it taste fantastic just might!
Who do I think should be responsible for tapping into this opportunity and leading the way in innovation? I think it comes down to solid relationships between manufacturers and retailers and taking the time to genuinely understand shoppers and what is important to them. In terms of produce, this means starting the NPD process by listening to shoppers and working backwards, rather than continuing with the traditional ‘push’ approach that tends to lead to the same products or mixes being relaunched time and time again.
‘Convenience’ in the context of food used to be a by-word for compromise, in that there was a trade-off and if it was convenient then it probably wasn’t going to be great. Thankfully, those days are long behind us and, while convenience is as key today as it was 10 years ago, consumers no longer accept that this means a step down in terms of quality.
As an industry, we are uniquely positioned at the heart of so many current food trends, but if we fail to offer real benefits to shoppers, real innovation and real value for money (rather than cheap prices) then we will fail to catch the wave.
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