"The biggest challenge for food companies offering healthy products is ensuring that the label is understandable and transparent to Generation Z," says trend watcher Tom Palmaerts of Trendwolves. "They pay close attention to price."

"An E number is seen as being negative, when it's not," he observes. “So another challenge for food companies is being clear about the ingredients and additives in their products." Sustainability, climate concerns, health and well-being are the trends embraced by Generation Z, born between 1995 and 2010. In terms of well-being, Palmaerts adds that half of young people regularly feel lonely. "Twenty-somethings are working and are more stressed than older people. And according to Deloitte, 46% of Generation Z run out of money by end of the month."

A different eating pattern

"Twenty-somethings who are now working and were at home when they were studying have changed their eating patterns: they no longer eat three meals, morning, noon and night, but seven smaller portions," Palmaerts continues. "We saw that before Covid-19, but it was amplified by the pandemic." Whereas snacks used to be chosen out of a sense of guilty pleasure, now they are chosen out of self-care. "75% of consumers want products to be healthy and tasty," says Palmaerts, referring to market research firm Mintel. One example is Callebaut NXT for vegan and lactose-, dairy- and allergen-free treats. They must be healthy, but 39% will sacrifice that to flavour, the trend watcher observes. "Because Generation Z is growing up in a diverse society and experiencing the world through TikTok, there is a lot of potential for ingredients that are new to us, such as insects, in snacks. The Belgian company Kriket is making the most of this trend.”

Affordable food

Generation Z also pays attention to the price of products and the costs of eating in a healthy and sustainable way. "In the shops, they look for cheap ingredients for their meals and they watch out for special offers in flyers and in stores," notes the trendwatcher. The Too Good to Go app is also popular. “It’s not just that the products are for sale at bargain prices. It also prevents them from being thrown away because of the best-before date. Isn’t that sustainable?”

www.trendwolves.com