FoodInsight: Innovation Is Still Key to LTO Success

This pandemic may have hit the pause button on a lot of things for consumers, but if sourdough and whipped coffee are any indication, their excitement for the latest food and beverage trends did not slow down. In fact, according to Datassential COVID-19 research, the majority of consumers are still interested in key pre-pandemic macrotrends like simple ingredients (88 percent), plant based (86 percent) and functional foods (85 percent).

While it may come as no surprise that better-for-you trends continue to be paramount as consumers face a new set of health and wellness concerns, food is also emotional medicine. More than a fourth of consumers are eating more comfort foods than they were pre-pandemic. Comfort foods — especially nostalgic ones — remind consumers of happier times.

Since COVID-19 appears to be here for the foreseeable future, we can expect a continued focus on better-for-you and reinvented nostalgic comfort foods.

Find out which convenience store retailers are scoring with on-trend menu additions: