Consumer Insights Archive

Top 5 Dealbreakers for Modern Diners

The 2025 American Diner Trends Report uncovered the top dealbreakers that deter diners, such as negative word-of-mouth, health inspection warnings, and long wait times. With distinct preferences emerging among Gen Z and older cohorts, the report illustrated how restaurants can win over consumers.

Grubhub Resuscitates Seamless, Bets Big on NYC

Grubhub recently announced it is bringing Seamless back as a standalone brand specifically for the NYC community. The strategy endeavors to target the market as part of the “next chapter” in its partnership with Wonder.

Policy Heats Up: Hot Foods Act Poised to Modernize SNAP

The bipartisan reintroduction of the Hot Foods Act aims to modernize SNAP policies by allowing participants to purchase hot, prepared meals. This legislative change, strongly backed by industry leaders, could open new avenues for the food sector to meet the evolving needs of over 42 million Americans.

Airlines Look to F&B to Up Their Customer Experience

If you’ve flown in the past few years, you’ve likely run into a poor customer experience on an airline: albeit from overworked staff trying their best, delayed and canceled flights, more turbulence, and smaller seats. …

Violife’s Plant-Based Marketing and Influencer Playbook

Dairy-free cheese maker Violife debuted a line of lentil-based coffee creamers, Violife Supreme Coffee Creamers. To spread the word, the brand launched Creamy Confessions, a nationwide ad campaign featuring a series of reality TV stars, social media influencers, and online content creators.

Coming Clean: Consumers Prioritize Ingredient Transparency

The global clean-label ingredients market is expected to reach $212 billion by 2035, driven by increased consumer awareness of the health risks associated with artificial preservatives. The demand for minimally processed foods is prompting companies to prioritize ingredient transparency.

The Rise of Churrasco: A Tasty TikTok Sensation

Churrasco, a South American grilling tradition, involves cooking cuts of meat over an open flame, often seasoned with coarse salt. Its popularity on TikTok is driven by its visually appealing grilling process and cultural authenticity.

Healthy by Association: How Alt-Meat Brands Are Earning Trust

Alt-meat brands like Beyond and Impossible are launching new and reformulated products to earn the trust of health-conscious consumers and national health organizations. These innovations have enabled the meat alternatives to quality for the nutrition initiatives of both the American Heart and American Diabetes Associations.

2025 Trends and Opportunities for Plant-Based Brands

Despite recent challenges, the plant-based sector is primed for growth in some respects, with opportunities to innovate through functional ingredients, whole-food formulations, and clean-label transparency.

Consumers Fall in Love with Hawaiian Eats

Hawaiian cuisine is getting more popular on the mainland, with searches for Hawaiian barbecue up 88% from last year and Hawaiian Mac Salad up 523% over the same period. What’s behind this boom?

Regional Grocers Win in Value-First World

A recent report from dunnhumby found consumers continue to prefer regional grocers with H-E-B holding firm as the most preferred. Kroger and Albertsons, however, fell out of favor, likely due to the ongoing post-merger turmoil.

Value 2.0: Catering to Shoppers’ Personal Priorities

In 2025, consumers will redefine “value,” prioritizing brands that align with their personal values, according to Acosta Group. Retailers must embrace this shift by enhancing experiences through personalized retail media, leveraging social commerce, and addressing health-conscious demands with transparency.

FDA, USDA Evaluate Food-Labeling Burnout

The FDA and USDA are taking steps to understand how consumers interpret common food date labeling terms such as “Sell By” and “Use By” to understand whether it is leading to confusion.

Gen Alpha and Gen Z Food Trends to Watch in 2025

Gen Z and Gen Alpha are driving food trends with a focus on health-conscious, yet adventurous eating, according to research by Chartwells Higher Education. Emerging favorites among today’s youth include cottage cheese, as well as miso.

Thanksgiving 2024: Surveys Suggest Consumers Will Feast Frugally

A new survey revealed that substituting store brands for name brands can save consumers $17 on a Thanksgiving dinner for 10. Still, many families weigh cost savings against the sentimental value of using specific ingredients tied to cherished holiday recipes.

Purée Play: Restaurants Boost Profits with Purées

Restaurants are leveraging fruit purées these days as an effective method to adapt to rising food costs. Fruit purées bring versatility to dishes while helping operators reduce food waste.

What Killed Kmart? Key Retail Missteps Led to Demise

Kmart’s downfall, accelerated by poor management and failure to adapt to modern retail trends, ended with the recent closure of its last full-size U.S. store. Experts say there are lessons to be learned from Kmart’s demise.

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New Report Shows Latina GDP in U.S. Surging

The Latina GDP in the U.S. is growing rapidly, surging at 2.7 times the rate of the non-Hispanic GDP. That figure reached $1.3 trillion in 2021, making Latinas a growing economic force.

Consumer Behavior Modifying Retail Seasons

The back-to-school shopping season has spread across multiple waves due to shifting consumer behavior. This trend may impact holiday shopping too, with retailers expecting slower sales growth.

Pistachios: The Little Green Nut Surging in Popularity

Google trends analysis shows a 60% rise in searches for pistachios since 2019, putting product manufacturers, restaurateurs, and grocers in a unique position to leverage this explosive growth to their advantage.

The Cheat Code: 4 Tips for Marketing to Video Game Fans

Food and beverage brands are tapping into the gamer market with marketing tactics like in-game product placements and creative snack options. Protein-packed and handheld snacks are also on the rise as gamers seek healthier choices.

5 Innovations Shifting the Alternative Meat Landscape

In a recent webinar, Food Business News shared emerging data, trends, innovations, and consumer insights impacting the alternative meat, dairy, and seafood markets, a $1.03B industry attempting to recover from a sharp decline beginning in 2018. Here are five key takeaways.