IFIC Spotlight Survey: Understanding The Purchasing Behaviors & Preferences Of Dairy Consumers

The options in the dairy section of the grocery store are becoming increasingly diversified with non-dairy, plant-based alternatives—whether they be yogurt, milk, ice cream or cheese. But for Americans who consume dairy, how often and why do they choose dairy products versus plant-based alternatives? And how does their selection of dairy-based versus plant-based vary depending on the type of product? In addition to seeking the answers to these questions, this survey took a deeper dive into behaviors and perceptions around one particular dairy product: yogurt. This survey examined motivations for consuming yogurt, along with preferences for and awareness of the nutrition and health benefits commonly identified on yogurt labels, including “live and active cultures.” The International Food Information Council (IFIC) commissioned an online research survey with consumers based in the US to measure knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs about dairy consumption. One thousand adults aged 18+ years completed the survey from April 1-6, 2021, and responses were weighted to ensure proportional results.  Key findings include:

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Five Food Trends To Watch in 2019

Consumers Adopting an Origins-Focused Approach When Buying Food (Washington, D.C.) — While consumers cite broad aspects like taste, price and familiarity as the top reasons to purchase certain foods, they also crave a deeper understanding of what they are eating. Americans want to learn more about the origins of their food and its entire journey from farm to fork, according to the International Food Information Council (IFIC) Foundation. “Americans have a growing appetite for more information about their food, and technology is enabling eaters like never before,” said Joseph Clayton, CEO of the IFIC Foundation. “It’s also driving transparency across the food supply chain.” IFIC Foundation predicts that 2019 will bring a larger focus on the food journey, greater attention to food safety and allergens, continued consumer concern about sugar and increased popularity of plant-based eating. Discovering Our Foods’ Origin Stories Consumer interest and awareness of the origins of their food used to start and stop at the grocery store or restaurant. Today that’s a thing of the past. Consumers want to know how their food is produced, where it came from and the quality of the ingredients. They also have broader questions about environmental sustainability and many seek brands that align with their broader social values. The 2018 Food and Health Survey revealed over half of respondents indicate recognizing the ingredients, understanding where food is from and the number of ingredients as key factors that impact purchasing decisions. Interestingly, women were more likely to rate these factors as more important when compared to men. In addition, compared to 2017, more Americans cited that understanding how the food is produced altered their decision to buy a food or beverage. From seeds planted to crops harvested to products sold and served, we seem to crave a 360-degree picture of what we’re eating. Tackling […]

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9 Best Coffee Alternatives Our Nutritionists Say Energize You Without Jitters

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Energy-boosting coffee alternatives: What to know

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The safety and research behind top coffee alternatives

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The Joy of Soy Milk

The Joy of Soy Milk Hopefully you enjoyed learning a bit more about how cow’s milk is produced and the nutritional benefits of consuming it from the first installment in our “Milk Series.” Many people like cow’s milk, many do not. And for some, there may be dietary restrictions that prohibit them from drinking cow’s milk or enjoying other dairy products. For these folks there are dairy alternatives such as soy milk, coconut milk and almond milk. Heard of these dairy alternates before? Well, if not, read on to first learn more about soy milk—a healthy and great-tasting milk alternative. And guess what! We are just in time to celebrate National Soyfoods Month (April).  In the next installments in our series, we will cover coconut and almond milk. Soybean Farming First things first: We want to tell you where soy milk comes from. Of course, there are no “soy-cows” out there being milked, so let’s shed a little light on how this healthy beverage is produced. It all starts with soybeans. Ah, little soybean, who knew you were so awesome? Well, many food nerds, like us around here, do! Soybeans are among the top commodities in the United States. Farmers have invested years of effort to guarantee high productivity of their crops by ensuring proper soil drainage, sowing disease-resistant seeds, picking the right time of spring to plant (mid-April is best) and supplying optimal amounts of nitrogen to the soil.  In U.S. farming, there are three main kinds of soybeans: green, black and yellow. Green soybeans can be eaten as is (yummy edamame), black soybeans are for drying and yellow soybeans can be used to produce our beloved soy milk. Once the soybeans are harvested, the pods are dipped in boiling water so that the beans can be more easily […]

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Labs or Plants: Which Makes the Best Meat?

In the past year, our consumer research has explored peoples’ perceptions of environmentally sustainable and healthy diets and what they might mean for protein consumption. We’ve also seen an uptick in interest in alternative eating patterns, including a plant-based food diet and the flexitarian diet. These and other alternative eating patterns have led to an increased interest in consuming alternative meat products (e.g., “meat” made from vegetables). Variations of meat alternatives that have been around for years typically use ingredients such as soy, gluten and textured vegetable protein. More unusual alternative ingredients include tempeh, jackfruit, lentils, quinoa, mushrooms and more. What if you could still enjoy animal-based meat products without causing harm to animals and the environment? To meet this desire, food scientists are working to bring cultured meat (also known as “lab meat” because it is produced in a facility) to a grocer or restaurant near you. As consumers are committing to eating healthier—both for themselves and the planet—environmentally sustainable diets consisting of meat alternatives and/or plant-based meat products are becoming increasingly popular. Let’s take a closer look at the latest innovations in alternative protein production. Cell-cultured meat: if you grow it, they will come? Cultured meat goes by many names: cell-based meat, cell-cultured meat, lab-grown meat and “clean” meat. At the end of the day, all these designations refer to the same thing: growing a full piece of meat from animal cells in a lab. As we previously have discussed, these meat cells start from animal stem cells, a specific type of cell that can give rise to many other kinds of cells. After the stem cells are harvested, they are incubated in a nutrient-rich broth. Cells multiply, divide and begin development into muscles cells. After a time, these cells will start to rearrange themselves into small fibers, […]

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New Plant-Based Foods Round-up

The plant-based foods trend is nothing new, but it does seem to be growing as fast as a weed. In particular, plant-based proteins are gaining attention and consumers are gradually becoming more interested in diversifying their plates to include more plant-based proteins. Although plant-based alternatives to animal products have been around for millennia, it seems that new options arise constantly, as innovators redesign everything from milk, to burgers, cheeses and even eggs. While products like soy milk and veggie burgers are now commonplace in many coffee shops and burger joints, new technology is bringing goods like plant-based cream cheese, hard-boiled eggs and chicken nuggets to our grocery stores. For the bagel connoisseur: plant-based cream cheese First in our new foods round-up is plant-based cream cheese. Vegan cheeses that use soy or nuts to mimic the texture of dairy-based cheeses have existed for decades, but cheese-derived products like cream cheese have constantly been in development to mimic the characteristic creamy texture. Current plant-based cream cheese products are typically soy or nut-based, similar to other plant-based cheese products, and will usually have lactic acid or lactic acid-producing bacteria added during production. Despite what its name implies, lactic acid does not add lactose; rather it is needed to acidify the product to make the plant-based “curds” that are essential in dairy-based cream cheese production. Acidification changes the structure of the start product, which is often liquid drained from soaking nuts or soy, creating a thicker, creamier structure, which is expected in cream cheese. Additionally, since milk fat isn’t inherent in these plant-based alternatives, some manufacturers may use coconut in their formulations to add more creaminess. For the champion of breakfast: plant-based hard-boiled eggs Plant-based eggs have been around for a short while, though typically in liquid form, which makes for easy scrambled eggs […]

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