March/April 2021 - 4

THE PROCESS
ZEKE JENNINGS
Reading the room
Barely two months into 2021 and - thanks
online webinars and virtual trade shows - I've
been noticing a lot of talk about being " preemptive "
rather than " reactive. "
Whether applying to monitor a crop or a
Zeke Jennings
Managing Editor
production line, it essentially means being able
to better watch what's happening and predict
a potential problem, as opposed to a problem
happening and then having to fix it.
While collecting data from a food production
line and monitoring the pulse of consumers
isn't an apples-to-apples comparison, advancing technology is
making both tasks easier, nonetheless.
On page 10, you'll find an article, titled " Sharing the
sustainability story, " which is based on data collected from an
online study of more than 465,000 people who made comments
somehow linked to potatoes and sustainability, whether it was
on social media, comments sections of stories or message boards.
The study, which was conducted by The Center for Food Integrity
and its research partners, found that middle-to-upper class
people, ages 25 to 44 - essentially the millennial generation -
were the major drivers in those discussions, as well as other
food-related topics.
Presenter Charlie Arnot, the CEO of The Center for Food
Integrity, broke down the top five talking points these discussions
gravitated toward. He noted that, although this particular study
was about potatoes, the talking points were largely similar for
other commodities.
Sustainability can include a lot of topics and mean different
things to different folks, so data outlining what the mostcommon
topics can be helpful in what information to highlight
on packaging and in marketing campaigns.
People, ages 25-44, that classify as middle or upper class is
only a percentage of the market. How much of your marketing
should you cater to that group? It largely depends on your
product and price point. Yes, things always come back to price
and taste ultimately.
The million-dollar question in these discussions always is: are
consumers going to pay a premium price for products produced
the way they want them to be?
At this point, that answer is yes in terms of the people driving
the sustainability discussions; they have the means to do so.
While that doesn't apply to everyone, the folks steering the
ship probably are worth paying attention to, even if they're
not the majority.
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Editorial Advisory Board
Adrienne Seiling, American Frozen Food Institute
Rudi Groppe, Heinzen Manufacturing International
Lou Cooperhouse, Rutgers Food Innovation Center
Sherrie Rosenblatt, Can Manufacturers Institute
Leonard Batti, Taylor Farms, Salinas, California
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4 MARCH/APR I L 2 021
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March/April 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of March/April 2021
