"FOOD 2020: THE FUTURE OF FOOD, NUTRITION & WELLNESS

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Viewpoints

	Argentina: The Power of Love by Gustavo Averbuj		China: Melamine Crisis Hastened Consumers’ 2020 Demands by Hannah Carter
	United States: Remember Enjoyment by Ilene Smith		United Kingdom: Results in Sync with Search for Wholesome Foods by Daisy Pack
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Germany: Consumers Want Price, Taste—and Knowledge By Petra Völkl Vice President and Account Supervisor, Ketchum Munich View Bio

Despite a new agricultural focus within Germany, it continues to be the largest importer of food in the world. Germans are keenly aware of this, with 81 percent of those in the Food 2020 study saying that they believe the foods they eat come from another country. And while Germans were more likely than consumers from the other four countries to want to see more food produced locally by 2020, about half said they expect that food will still be produced outside the country.

Whether or not that happens, food companies and marketers should understand what Germans want from food. While price and taste were key considerations for consumers in all countries, Germans ranked these factors highest, with 81 percent citing price and 80 percent citing taste as deciding factors when shopping for food. That compares to 70 percent for price and 74 percent for taste among all countries combined. Germans also rank sourcing higher than those in other countries.

Interestingly, only 34 percent of Germans consider health aspects when buying groceries. Yet, German consumers would like to see companies create an easy way to quickly identify nutrition information and healthy foods. When asked what prevented them from buying foods that were healthy, German consumers, along with those from Argentina and China, cited knowledge. For food companies, this implies that there is a need for an easy system that informs consumers which groceries have the most nutritional value.

To increase the value of their brands, some companies already have started. For example, Campina, Friesland Foods and Unilever all have introduced the Choices program with a simple and positive front-of-pack stamp that helps consumers make the right choices. Food products with the Choices stamp have to maintain a set of qualifying criteria based on international dietary guidelines.

The most noticeable food consideration, or lack thereof, concerning the German consumer is that most do not consider brand names when buying groceries. German consumers greatly differ from their counterparts in this area of the study. Only 16 percent said that brand names play a role for them—the lowest percentage of any country surveyed. For Germans, the main food-consideration factors include nutritional value, price, recipes, taste, and source. Ultimately, brands that pay attention to these will win favor with consumers.