Hartman Group

Taste still drives beverage choice among consumers, along with hydration, nutrition and simplicity

21-Aug-2023 By Deniz Ataman

From convenience to hydration and satiation, consumer preferences for beverages offer manufacturers an opportunity to hone in on value, attributes and nutrition with taste and simple ingredients as a common driver, according to Hartman Group’s Modern...

Softening consumer views of food-tech open door for precision fermentation, new food production methods

10-Mar-2023 By Elizabeth Crawford

The long-held and loudly voiced disapproval by some of science and technology in food production in favor of “idealized nostalgic narratives” of natural food is beginning to soften – opening the door for broader adoption of food-tech, including precision...

Organic gains distribution, but also faces increased skepticism, competition

11-May-2022 By Elizabeth Crawford

As organic continues to go mainstream with broader reach outside of the natural channel where it began, it faces increased competition from other attributes and production methods as well as skepticism about the certification’s veracity and value, new...

Early morning and late night snacking rise as traditional breakfast, lunch dip

21-Apr-2022 By Elizabeth Crawford

As Americans who have worked from home since the pandemic begin to return to their offices and become more comfortable socializing in the evenings, when and what they eat is shifting earlier and later – at the expense of more traditional meals – creating...

Keto in focus, part four: ‘It's the latest incarnation of low carb…’

20-Apr-2022 By Elaine Watson

In part four of our series on the high-fat, moderate protein, ultra-low-carb keto diet, FoodNavigator-USA checked in with experts at consumer insights specialist Hartman Group, and product innovation company Mattson to get their take on whether it is...

Soup-To-Nuts Podcast: How do consumers think about sustainability when buying groceries?

16-Aug-2021 By Elizabeth Crawford

While following a climatarian diet that prioritizes foods and beverages made in a way that protects and restores the planet’s health may still be niche, the trend is gaining traction quickly with some researchers and brands predicting environmental sustainability...

How are consumers thinking about weight management? 'Consumers don’t really talk about 'dieting' anymore,' says Hartman Group

26-May-2021 By Mary Ellen Shoup

As just one part of consumers' larger definition of health and wellness, weight management has become less about the number on the scale and part of a broader holistic definition of what it means to be healthy, says Shelley Balanko, Ph.D., senior...

Consumer desire for ‘resiliency’ during pandemic opens door for functional products, says Hartman Group

02-Sep-2020 By Elizabeth Crawford

New opportunities are opening for functional foods and beverages as the ongoing coronavirus pandemic pushes consumers to seek products that will boost their “resiliency,” support their health and wellness and personally empower them while simultaneously...

WEBINAR TODAY: Our Unlocking Innovation webinar series starts today, June 29... register now!

29-Jun-2020 By Elaine Watson

COVID-19 has impacted everything from how, when, and where we buy groceries (spoiler alert, online is gaining share), to consumers' health priorities (immunity is rapidly gaining traction), but what, if anything, does this mean for food innovation...

The Unlocking Innovation webinar series starts June 29: Have you registered yet?

19-Jun-2020 By Elaine Watson

Stress prevention replaces weight management as top health concern, creating marketing opportunity

16-Jun-2020 By Elizabeth Crawford

For the first time in a decade, weight management is no longer America’s top health concern as anxiety and stress prevention and treatment rise to the No. 1 position of a long list of health conditions with which households are grappling, according to...

Which consumer trends is General Mills monitoring as Americans navigate the 'new normal'?

15-Jun-2020 By Elaine Watson

As Americans tentatively emerge from lockdown, the industry is likely to face a very different consumer landscape. How might tighter household budgets change consumer priorities and behaviors? Will ‘Big Food’ really stage a comeback? Will habits (stress...

What does the ‘new normal’ look like for food & beverage? Join General Mills, Mattson, Hartman Group, ADM for a FREE webinar

07-Jun-2020 By Elaine Watson

Selling plant-based and cell-cultured meat will be about ‘benefits for me’ says Hartman Group

24-Jul-2019 By Elaine Watson

While ending factory farming and reducing GHG emissions are top priorities for start-ups such as Impossible Foods, most shoppers are primarily motivated by ‘benefits for me’ – be it taste and discovery, or health and wellness, when it comes to plant-based...

What is a snack, and how are snacking habits evolving? Hartman Group, SnackNation, weigh in…

27-Jun-2018 By Elaine Watson

If roughly half of the eating occasions in the US are now snacks, are snacks still ‘treats’ or have they become something else?

Dispatches from FOOD VISION USA 2017

What ‘clean’ food cues are shoppers looking for? Hartman Group weighs in

21-Nov-2017 By Elaine Watson

Consumers are looking for cues signaling ‘clean’ and ‘natural’, but they don’t necessarily expect to see those words on food labels, and may even be suspicious of brands that use them on pack, says Hartman Group.

Premium price wars: Lidl undercuts competition by as much as 39%, finds The Hartman Group

05-Oct-2017 By Kacey Culliney

Lidl is successfully undercutting competitors in premium and organic and would benefit hugely from a restructure towards this strength, says The Hartman Group.

SPECIAL REPORT: Consumers and ‘clean’ food: Where is the clean label trend going next?

26-Apr-2017 By Elaine Watson

To the casual observer, ‘cleaning up’ our food sounds like an eminently sensible thing to do. But where is the clean label trend going, and is ditching every ingredient you can’t pronounce really the key to fixing the ‘broken’ food system (as Panera implies...

The big guns fight back: Five legacy brands that have turned things around

01-Nov-2016 By Elaine Watson

Many ‘legacy’ food brands are being outpaced by their smaller, hipper, counterparts. But should brand managers admit defeat and embark on a strategy of managed decline, or can they turn things around? Here are five brands that have defied expectations...

'America is becoming a nation of par-cookers, snackers and meal assemblers'

Hartman Group to supermarkets: Embrace fresh or die (slowly)

10-Aug-2016 By Elaine Watson

As supermarkets continue to lose market share to high- and low-end rivals, they must fully embrace consumer demand for fresh, stock more premium products and behave more like specialty retailers if they are to survive in today’s climate, according to...

Eating alone is the new norm, says Hartman Group: ‘The numbers are nothing short of revelatory’

21-Apr-2016 By Elaine Watson

Eating alone is the new normal, says Hartman Group in an article exploring the changing dynamics of meal times as Americans increasingly abandon sit-down ‘family meals’ in favor of more ad hoc eating behavior and continuous snacking.

Consumers want more local food, but are retailers geared up to give it to them?

12-Apr-2016 By Elaine Watson

While interest in many food trends tends to ebb and flow, consumer demand for ‘local’ food – which taps into many other movements, from organic to specialty – continues to rise. But what does ‘local’ really mean, which consumers are most interested in...

Restricting large packages may be key to reducing over-eating, researchers say

03-Dec-2015 By Elizabeth Crawford

Portion control packaging, like the 100-calorie pack, is ubiquitous in the food and beverage industry, but new research suggests smaller options may not be enough to curb over-eating and fight the obesity epidemic.

Hartman: ‘Local’ could topple ‘organic’ & ‘natural’ on labels

03-Aug-2015 By Maggie Hennessy

Foods and beverages carrying a 'local' label appear poised to become the leading symbol of trust and transparency to consumers as the authenticity halo of such terms as 'organic' and 'natural' lose momentum, claims market...

Hartman Group: Pleasure & distinction bigger drivers than health for premium products

The premium food opportunity: When are US consumers most likely to trade up?

28-May-2015 By Elaine Watson

While more premium brands from KRAVE to Noosa are being snapped up by big food companies and private equity firms, not every CPG category has the potential to be driven – or revitalized - by premium brands, according to a new analysis by Hartman Group....

What are the top-performing legacy brands in US grocery?

17-Apr-2015 By Elaine Watson

There are plenty of billion-dollar brands in the CPG market, but just 8% of 213 ‘legacy’ US food and beverage brands analyzed by market researcher Hartman Group are outpacing inflation and category growth rates.

Local claims are rising star as sun sets on organic claims

14-Jan-2015 By Elizabeth Crawford

New consumers continue to enter the organic category for the first time, but the health halo cast by the US Department of Agriculture’s certification is dimming as it becomes more mainstream and as shoppers’ interpretation of the standard evolves.

Private label takeover imminent? Picture more complex, says Hartman Group

26-Aug-2014 By Maggie Hennessy

Despite market watchers’ predictions that private label will all but take over the world, its share of the packaged food market has remained relatively flat since 2008.

High-pressure processing, protein, botanicals, premium private label and cultured foods & beverages.. Welcome to 2013

06-Feb-2013 By Elaine WATSON

Fresh juices and foods subjected to high pressure processing (HPP); protein - especially at breakfast; cage-free hen eggs; premium private label; fermented foods; culinary botanicals; and edible packaging could all be hot trends this year, predicts trend...