Healthier Eating in 2008

It is no secret that America has a weight issue. According to an IRI Times and Trends report, nearly two-thirds of U.S. consumers are overweight to obese. The good news for our ever growing waist lines is that as many as 75% of consumers report that they are making changes to their diets in effort to eat healthier (sometimes referred to as the Better-For-You trend). Of course we know that what consumers say they are going to do and what really do are two different things, but that is a separate issue.

While I would not suggest that you should totally revamp your brand to match the Better-For-You trend (that would be a much larger branding question than what I am addressing), but you should consider adding a few healthier recipe and usage suggestions to your marketing arsenal. For example you could develop recipes that incorporate your product into a salad or a vegetable side dish or use whole grains like barley in the dish. Not only can these new healthy options draw in new more health conscious consumers who would have never considered using you product, they can keep you product relevant to consumers who may be considering healthy lifestyle changes.