Specialty Food Magazine is the leading publication for retailers, manufacturers and foodservice professionals in the specialty food trade. It provides news, trends and business-building insights that help readers keep their businesses competitive.
Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/950112
& A look at the events, issues, and innovations shaping specialty food, plus industry news, trends, and more. trends happenings GOT COCKROACH MILK? The global market for non-dairy milk beverages is esti- mated at $16.3 billion in sales, according to Innova Market Insights, and 50 percent of Americans say they buy non-dairy alternatives, according to Mintel. Believe it or not, this makes room for protein-rich, caloric cock- roach milk. Made by replacing a paper filter in the brood sac for the embryos, Pacific beetle cockroach milk is three times richer in calories than buffalo milk, previously seen as the most rich. And with insect prod- ucts becoming more acceptable, this flavorless milk stands a chance.—D.S. The End of Chocolate? A world without chocolate is impossible to fathom, and yet, scientists at the University of California, in partnership with Mars Chocolate, are working to prevent cacao plants from dis- appearing as early as 2050 because of warmer temperatures and dryer weather conditions, as predicted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. As part of its "Sustainability in a Generation" initiative, Mars has teamed with UC Berkeley to try to save the cacao crops. Says Denise Young, global director of external commu- nications at Mars, "This grant supports UC Berkeley's research into exploring whether they can make a precise tweak to the cacao tree's DNA using CRISPR technology [a tool for edit- ing genomes] so that it's no longer susceptible to two diseases that are serious concerns for cocoa farming communities in West Africa, where approximately 70 percent of the world's cocoa is grown." Research is still in its prelimi- nary stages.—D.S. The Millennial Mom's Needs With $2.4 trillion in spending power, millennial moms feel misunderstood as they're different than previous generations. "They make decisions based on value, which is a combination of price, convenience, and quality," says Heather Froelich, senior manager at Inmar Analytics, and "under- standing this is key for winning her loyalty." These moms are not swayed by traditional advertising or celebrity endorsements, and 84 percent don't trust advertising and prefer peer-to-peer content, or even sponsored content written by a non- celebrity mom influencer. The millennial mom is time-starved and over indexes for the mass-market channel, so helping her cut down on the number of shopping trips is essential. And despite 62 percent having a strict budget, 59 percent say they like to buy grocery products that they haven't tried before—and promotions, especially digital ones, are effective. Forty-six percent have a list for three-quarters of what they'll buy, but like instant redeemable coupons, shelf pads, and social content sharing. —Denise Shoukas