ARLINGTON, VA – Food Marketing Institute (FMI) today released its annual assessment of the state of the foodservice at retail, demonstrating the opportunities for retailers to leverage a $13 billion category. Growing annually at 8.2%, foodservice is presented as a primary strategy for food retailers to differentiate and appeal to convenience-seeking consumers.
FMI’s 2019 Power of Foodservice at Retail finds that 63% of consumers continue to incorporate time-saving solutions in the form of semi- and fully-prepared items for dinner, but opportunities exist for grocers to garner greater visibility as the primary dinner solution. Survey participants offered feedback for their stores to focus on faster service; more cuisine variety; healthier dishes as well as healthier alternatives to current options; competitive prices; more information; freshness; knowledgeable and available staff; and various operational improvements such as cleanliness and in-stock performance.
FMI Vice President, Fresh Foods, Rick Stein noted that consumers continue to look for convenient ways to get all – or part – of their meals away from home, and supermarkets play a pivotal role in this decision making. Stein said, “The study notes that grocers with a positive reputation in retail foodservice can serve as strong motivation for 64% of shoppers who say they will actually go out of their way to find these stores.” .
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