Amidst the pandemic, a new wave of consumer habits have been ushered in and more than ever, people are motivated to live a healthier lifestyle, eating clean-label, natural and organic foods at home.
According to a recent report from Accenture, 77% of shoppers post-COVID said they will be opting for healthier, clean label meals, versus only 30% in December 2019. According to Kantar’s COVID-19 Barometer, more than 50% of people claim to be eating more healthily and trying new recipes. Saffron Road, a clean-label, natural and organic leader in frozen entrees that focuses on using real, whole ingredients, is already seeing this shift.
According to SPINS NPI Index for the MULO channel, Saffron Road frozen entrée sales have increased 74.9% over the last 12 weeks ending 5/17/20, which is a 50% greater increase than any other natural products (NPI) brand’s growth.
CEO and founder Adnan Durrani, a 30+ year pioneer in the natural and organics food industry (Vermont Pure Water, Stonyfield Yogurt, Delicious Cookies), explains that in past crises, the default has been belly fillers and highly processed food, particularly in times of stress and financial uncertainty. However, due to the nature of the crisis, there’s been a shift towards healthier, cleaner options. And this won’t go away anytime soon as people continue to eat at home.
Barclays analyst Karen Short recently stated that they predict up to $118 billion in U.S. restaurant revenues will mega shift into consumer purchases of meals in grocery stores in the next 6 months.
