Pandemic Shifts: Whole Foods Market’s Top 10 Food Trends for 2021

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

This article originally appeared in Presence Marketing’s November 2020 Newsletter

By Steven Hoffman

Citing the Covid-19 pandemic, “There have been radical shifts in consumer habits in 2020,” said Sonya Gafsi Oblisk, Chief Marketing Officer of Whole Foods Market, in an October 19, 2020, release announcing the world’s largest natural and organic products retailer’s Top 10 Food Trends forecast for 2021. “For example, shoppers have found new passions for cooking, they’ve purchased more items related to health and wellness, and more are eating breakfast at home every day compared to pre-COVID,” she said.

Entitled The Next Big Things: Top 10 Food Trends for 2021, the annual report highlights the predictions of Whole Foods Market’s Trends Council, comprised of more than 50 team members, including local foragers, regional and global buyers, and culinary experts who “compile trend predictions based on decades of experience and expertise in product sourcing, studying consumer preferences and being on the frontlines with emerging and existing brands,” the company said.

Significantly influenced by the current state of the food industry, Whole Foods’ 2021 trends report reveals some of the early ways the food industry is adapting and innovating in response to COVID-19 for a post-pandemic food world, the company said. 

Whole Foods Market’s Top 10 Food Trend Predictions for 2021*

Well-Being is Served – The lines are blurring between the supplement and grocery aisles, and that trend will accelerate in 2021. That means superfoods, probiotics, broths and sauerkrauts. Suppliers are incorporating functional ingredients like vitamin C, mushrooms and adaptogens to foster a calm headspace and support the immune system. For obvious reasons, people want this pronto.

Epic Breakfast Every Day – With more people working from home, the most important meal is getting the attention it deserves, not just on weekends, but every day. There’s a whole new lineup of innovative products tailored to people paying more attention to what they eat in the morning. Think pancakes on weekdays, sous vide egg bites and even “eggs” made from mung beans.

Basics on Fire – With more time in the kitchen, home chefs are looking for hot, new takes on pantry staples. Pasta, sauces, spices — the basics will never be boring again. Get ready for reimagined classics like hearts of palm pasta, applewood-smoked salt and “meaty” vegan soup.

Coffee Beyond the Mug – The love affair between humans and coffee burns way beyond a brewed pot of joe. That’s right, java is giving a jolt to all kinds of food. You can now get your coffee fix in the form of coffee-flavored bars and granolas, smoothie boosters and booze, even coffee yogurt for those looking to crank up that breakfast parfait.

Baby Food, All Grown Up – Thanks to some inspired culinary innovation, parents have never had a wider or richer range of ingredients to choose from. We’re talking portable, on-the-go squeeze pouches full of rhubarb, rosemary, purple carrots and omega-3-rich flaxseeds. Little eaters, big flavors.

Upcycled Foods – Peels and stems have come a long way from the compost bin. We’re seeing a huge rise in packaged products that use neglected and underused parts of an ingredient as a path to reducing food waste. Upcycled foods, made from ingredients that would have otherwise been food waste, help to maximize the energy used to produce, transport and prepare that ingredient. Dig in, do good.

Oil Change – Slide over, olive oil. There’s a different crop of oils coming for that place in the skillet or salad dressing. At-home chefs are branching out with oils that each add their own unique flavor and properties. Walnut and pumpkin seed oils lend a delicious nutty flavor, while sunflower seed oil is hitting the shelves in a bunch of new products and is versatile enough to use at high temps or in salad dressing.

Boozed-up Booch – We tipped you off about hard seltzer bursting on the scene in 2018, and now alcoholic kombucha is making a strong flex on the beverage aisle. Hard kombucha checks all the boxes: It’s gluten-free, it’s super bubbly and can be filled with live probiotic cultures. Cheers to that!

The Mighty Chickpea – You can chickpea anything. Yep, the time has come to think beyond hummus and falafel, and even chickpea pasta. Rich in fiber and plant-based protein, chickpeas are the new cauliflower — popping up in products like chickpea tofu, chickpea flour and even chickpea cereal. That’s garbanzo-bonkers. 

Fruit and Veggie Jerky – Jerky isn’t just for meat lovers anymore. Now all kinds of produce from mushrooms to jackfruit are being served jerky-style, providing a new, shelf-stable way to enjoy fruits and veggies. The produce is dried at the peak freshness to preserve nutrients and yumminess. If that’s not enough, suppliers are literally spicing things up with finishes of chili, salt, ginger and cacao drizzle. 

Source: The Next Big Things: Top 10 Food Trends for 2021, Whole Foods Market, Oct. 19, 2020

COVID Crisis Update: Natural Products Retailers Respond to New Normal by Opening New Stores

This article originally appeared in Presence Marketing’s July 2020 newsletter edition and on New Hope Network’s IdeaXchange.

By Steven Hoffman

As the United States slowly re-opens for business with the coronavirus pandemic entering its fifth month, many Americans are still playing it safe as cases continue to surge in states and regions throughout the country. Restaurants and bars are re-opening, however, with crowd capacities limited by public health regulations, food service businesses are still nowhere near where they once were. And, as the pandemic has shuttered day camps, benched Little League games, cancelled concerts and limited other warm-weather activities, families and kids are staying much closer to home this summer.

As such, grocery stores – including the nation’s natural foods stores – continue to play an essential role in feeding Americans during the pandemic crisis. Several natural food retailers we talked to anticipate there will not be much of a traditional “summer slump” in sales this season.

In fact, a number of retailers are taking advantage of the moment to open new stores. Boulder-based Alfalfa’s Market announced in mid-June it was taking over a former Lucky’s Market location in nearby Longmont to open a third store to serve Colorado’s Front Range population. Los Angeles-based Erewhon is adding two new stores to its five-store chain in the next 12 months. PCC just opened its 14th natural foods store in the Seattle area; and while it postponed Grand Opening celebrations, Natural Grocers opened a new store in Cedar City, UT, on June 10. Publicly held natural products retailer Sprouts, which CEO Jack Sinclair describes as “more of a farmers market than a grocer,” is moving ahead with plans to open 20 stores in key markets across the country, and like many retailers, has expanded at-home delivery and curbside pickup, as well as significantly increased its e-commerce sales. In addition, pandemic notwithstanding, conventional grocer Schnuck’s unveiled its brand new “EatWell” natural food concept store in Colombia, MO, on June 24. 

To help reassure customers and workers, many of these retailers have enacted strict COVID guidelines. For example, Maryland-based MOMs Organic Market published COVID-19 Action Steps on its website, and Natural Grocers also informs its customers about COVID safety on its website.

“Grocery Is the Business to Be In”
“Our comps are off the charts,” said Tony Antoci, CEO and owner of Erewhon, the legendary natural foods chain in Los Angeles. Antoci, a food service distribution veteran, purchased the original single Erewhon location in 2011, and self-financed the growth of the chain to five stores, with two additional locations planned to open between now and March 2021. “We’ve seen a 300-400% increase in grocery and produce sales since the coronavirus crisis began, he said. “Protein sales grew four-fold until the end of May; now we are starting to see a leveling off, but our deli and prepared food sales are increasing as our customer base starts to get back to a new normal. We also ramped up our web ordering and delivery capabilities – something we were trying to engage but never got around to – and we had a healthy online business in a week. Now, we are averaging 200-250 online orders across five stores per day. If this was a restaurant, I would not open a new location, but grocery is the business to be in,” Antoci said.

At Jimbo’s Naturally, a five-store independently owned chain in San Diego, customer counts have decreased since the coronavirus crisis began, but they’re more than made up for in the increased average purchase, noted founder and CEO Jimbo Somek. “People don’t want to make as many trips if they can avoid it, but the average ticket is twice as high as it was before the pandemic,” he said. Somek also admitted, “It’s one thing to plan for increased demand, however, it’s another thing when the stores are doing two to three times the sales they were doing the day before. There were a lot of long days,” he said. When asked about potentially opening a new store, Somek replied, “I don’t know if it’s a good time or not to open new stores. The challenge is to know where all this is going,” he reflected.

UNFI Stock Surges
In serving all this retail growth, leading natural foods distributor UNFI (NYSE: UNFI) saw its stock price surge 45.8% in the past three months. “Several food companies are benefiting from rising demand owing to increased at-home consumption and stockpiling trends amid coronavirus,” wrote analysts at Zacks Equity Research in late June. “The packaged food space is especially gaining on such trends as the lockdown has prompted shoppers to buy and hoard packaged food and beverages. This has boosted sales of several food players, including United Natural Foods Inc. (UNFI). United Natural’s ability to cater to the rising demand amid the pandemic reflects its robust market position and the important role it plays in North America’s food supply chain,” the analysts concluded.

In related news, Sprouts Farmers Market (Nasdaq: SFM) was ranked on June 18 by Zacks Equity Research as a top growth stock, acknowledging that it is a long-term beneficiary of the pandemic. Kroger (NYSE: KR), too, has been outperforming the stock market as a beneficiary of the “eat at home” trend driven by the pandemic, along with the company’s moves to cut $1 billion in costs and invest in digital growth. Bank of America Merrill Lynch analyst Robert Ohmes reiterated a Buy rating on June 19, noting that he believes Kroger will continue to see strong sales even as COVID-related restrictions are lifted in many areas. Natural Grocers (NYSE: NGVC), too, saw its stock price more than double to well over $12 per share at the end of June from a low of $5.80 on March 12 when the pandemic first struck the U.S.

Consumers Are Leaning in to a Healthy Lifestyle
Driving sales is a growing number of consumers seeking out healthier, more nutritious products during the COVID-19 crisis to boost immunity and health. “Far from abandoning their natural lifestyle during COVID-19, natural products shoppers are widening their preferences, seeking and avoiding various ingredients, label claims and certifications,” states COVID-19 and Navigating the Path Ahead: Supporting The Natural Products Consumer, a report published on May 29, 2020, by leading market research firms SPINS and IRI. Leading the charge, said SPINS/IRI, are paleo products, plant-based meat alternatives, baking products and staple items, household cleaning items, soap and bath preparations, natural remedies to help support immunity and reduce stress and anxiety, and value-based products as many people struggle through unprecedented economic times brought on by the COVID-19 crisis.

In addition, according to Laura Batcha, CEO of the Organic Trade Association, consumers are purchasing more organic products than ever before. Organic products sales topped $55 billion in 2019, up 4.6% from the previous year, and as health comes into focus, many organic categories have seen demand increase even further. Organic produce sales jumped 50% in the early days of the pandemic, and by spring 2020, sales were still up by more than 20%, Batcha noted.

“It’s hard to know what’s ahead of us, but consumers will continue to trust in and depend on the organic label,” said Batcha. “Organic producers and processors – indeed the entire organic supply chain – have been working around the clock through this difficult time to keep our stores filled with healthy, toxic-free and sustainably produced organic food and products. Organic is going to be there for the consumer.”

Speaking at the United Fresh LIVE virtual conference on June 17, Tonya Antle, cofounder of the Organic Produce Network (OPN), corroborated that organic produce has outperformed the conventional produce category at retail during the pandemic. According to Antle, OPN’s latest retail scan data show that both volume and dollar sales of organic produce were up more than 16% during the month of May. In addition, according to OTA data, organic staple categories including dairy, eggs, bread, pasta, rice, grains and baking supplies are expected to see increased growth in 2020, along with organic vitamins and immunity-related products.

Controversy over Face Masks
The surge in grocery and natural products sales has certainly not come without its challenges. The wearing of face masks, required in many municipalities and public and commercial places, for instance, has become divisive and some conflicts in stores have happened. According to TribLive, more than 30 lawsuits have been filed against Giant Eagle over the grocery chain’s face mask policy, claiming it is discriminatory under the Americans with Disabilities Act. The Mirror UK reported on June 22 about a Walmart incident in which a defiant customer refusing to wear a mask got into a scuffle with a security guard.

“It’s a very difficult position for us to put our staff in, whether it’s an 18-, 19-year-old college student working, or a single mom, a dad,” Bryan Neiman, operator of Neiman’s Family Market, a small Michigan grocery chain, told Time Magazine in reference to face masks. Neiman’s has signs posted asking customers to wear facial coverings, and shoppers can get a mask at customer service, he said. But, according to Time, he’s telling his employees not to confront mask-less customers, for fear of triggering a confrontation. The magazine reported that similar incidents have happened all over the country.

Texas-based grocer H-E-B, which initially required customers to wear face masks in mid-April, announced in early June that it was relaxing its policy; now, shoppers are no longer required to wear face masks in its stores, reported Grocery Dive. The chain still encourages customers to wear face coverings. In addition, wearing masks will remain mandatory for employees and vendors, Grocery Dive reported.

Seasonal Promotions Affected in 2020
As retailers scrambled to respond to the tectonic shifts in consumer buying behavior brought on by the coronavirus crisis, any focus on seasonal sales and promotions was stalled, said Donnie Baldwin, Senior Director of Conventional Grocery for the Central and Western U.S. for leading natural products broker Presence Marketing / Dynamic Presence. “For 2020, we are staying busy serving our retail partners’ immediate needs,” he said, but the crisis impacted promotional sales and planning for such holidays as Easter, Mother’s Day, Memorial Day, Father’s Day and more. “However, while retailers may miss the seasonal sales this year, they’ve got their hands full keeping the store shelves stocked as full as they can,” he said. 

“The good news is the average dollar ring per basket is up, but while the head count of customers shopping in stores is down – or they are shopping quickly through the store – it has impacted sales of seasonal items and impulse items,” Baldwin said. “As we talk with account executives around the country, buyers are still focused on staple items. They want to make sure they’ve got control of the supply chain on staples. That’s been a priority, and the good news is we are starting to see them get a handle on that.”

Baldwin’s counterpart, Jim Crotty, Senior Director of Conventional Grocery for the Eastern U.S. for Presence Marketing, added that retailers are looking at Fall and the holidays, but many are still not quite ready to focus on new items, or execution has been slowed. “Operations and taking care of their people are coming first right now,” said Crotty. “Come September, they might start bringing new products in; it is just happening at a slower pace. We are presenting holiday items such as eggnog and pumpkin flavors now and will continue to do so. Hopefully, we will be able to see things open up in November/December,” he added.

Meanwhile, Baldwin noted that some of his team members have been getting creative in leveraging technology and developing YouTube video presentations for retail partners, a sample of which can be viewed here.

“I really feel that by late in the Third Quarter and early in the Fourth Quarter, things are going to start opening up and retailers will start getting back to the basics,” Baldwin predicted. “This industry is very adaptive and resilient and we always look to find a way to carry on.”

Resources

The Pandemic Shows Us the Genius of Supermarkets: A Short History of the Stores that – Even Now – Keep Us Supplied with an Abundance of Choices
Atlantic Magazine, July/August 2020
https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2020/07/supermarkets-are-a-miracle/612244/

Market Research Report: COVID-19 and Navigating the Path Ahead – Supporting the Natural Products Consumer
SPINS/IRI, May 29, 2020
https://www.iriworldwide.com/IRI/media/Library/SPINS-Joint-Thought-Leadership-5-28-20.pdf

Tracking Coronavirus Closures at Food and Beverage Factories
By Food Dive, Updated June 19, 2020
https://www.fooddive.com/news/tracking-coronavirus-closures-at-food-and-beverage-factories/576559/?mc_cid=5c0261a1e5&mc_eid=49fe8c77e3

Natural Products Industry Matures; Independents See Sales Growth

As the natural and organic products industry reached $141 billion in sales on 7.4% growth in 2016, Natural Foods Merchandiser’s 2017 Market Overview reports independents are starting to thrive again as the market shifts.

By Steven Hoffman

Source: Natural Foods Merchandiser, July/August 2017, published by New Hope Network

As a new Managing Editor back in 1986 with the Natural Foods Merchandiser, I was charged with conducting, analyzing and reporting on the natural products industry’s annual retail market overview survey. I recall spending late evenings poring over data with New Hope Network founder Doug Greene to determine overall sales, growth categories and emerging trends. That was when the industry was just breaking $5 billion in sales – a fraction of what it is today.

Thirty years later, the natural and organic products industry is maturing, reaching $141 billion in sales on growth of 7.4% in 2016, according to the 2017 Market Overview, published in the July/August 2017 edition of Natural Foods Merchandiser (NFM) in partnership with Nutrition Business Journal, with additional data provided by SPINS and the Organic Trade Association’s annual organic industry survey.

Over this time, the natural, organic and better-for-you products sector has become widely recognized as a hotbed of innovation and growth in the overall food industry. Point in fact, the Amazon – Whole Foods Market deal announced in June promises to be a game changer not just for the natural products landscape, but also for the entire retail food market worldwide.

Independents Find Stronger Footing

Yet, as the market shifts, independents that have been able to weather the past few years may now find themselves in a stronger position, according to NFM’s 2017 Market Overview.

While sales growth was modest among independent natural products retailers – sales grew 4.3% to $54.4 billion, or 39% of overall natural products sales in 2016 – NFM also reported that 69% of natural products stores surveyed recorded a sales increase, and 72% noted they did not have a competitor open up in their neighborhood in the last year.

“It may go against conventional wisdom, but well-managed and strongly positioned independent grocers can coexist with big retail. While large, often publicly held chains may have scale and strong financial backing, independent grocers are often more agile, enabling them to move quickly to address emerging trends and shifting consumer preferences,” the editors of Food Dive observed in a July 19, 2017, report. 

“The difference between the corporate model, which you would now have to say includes Whole Foods, and the authentic, community-owned independent, is becoming clearer every day,” retail specialist Jay Jacobowitz of Retail Insights told NFM. “Those who embrace that authenticity and are passionate about serving their unique community will do well.”

Jacobowitz also noted that while the natural products industry may be maturing, there are areas of the country, including the East South Central region (Missouri, Alabama, Tennessee and Kentucky), that are far from saturated. “It’s a big country, and the big boys can’t be everywhere at once,” Jacobowitz said. “There are still opportunities out there.”

Independents also are more nimble in that they can feature local products, and are often the first to take advantage of such emerging product trends as cannabidiol, or CBD, a new category driving growth in dietary supplements and personal care.

Conventional Retailers Own 44% of Natural Products Market Share

During this time, razor-thin margins, increased competition and price wars impacted large mainstream grocery chains, as well as of some of the “supernaturals.” Kroger reported its first decrease in same store sales in 13 years in March 2017, NFM reported, and Whole Foods Market struggled with declining same store sales throughout 2016, prompting shareholder activism in April 2017 from Jana Partners, which held an 8.8% stake in Whole Foods, and ultimately, the announced sale to Amazon in June 2017.

Other publicly traded supernatural chains, including Natural Grocers and Sprouts, saw their stocks decline in 2016 as a result of increased competition from all sides. Natural Grocers’ stock price continues to be depressed in 2017, though Sprouts’ stock price has rebounded.

Yet, through all that jockeying for market share, the bottom line is that conventional retailers, including food, drug, mass, convenience and club stores, now command the majority of natural and organic products sales.

According to NFM’s survey, in 2016 conventional retailers captured 44% – or $61.5 billion – of all natural and organic products sales, while traditional independent natural products retailers and chains claimed 39% ($54.4 billion) of overall natural and organic products sales in 2016. Additionally, while sales among independents grew a modest 4.3%, sales of natural and organic products among conventional retailers grew at double digits, or 10.2%, in 2016.

Here Comes the Internet

As consumers become ever more comfortable shopping on the Internet from the comfort of their homes, offices and mobile devices, ecommerce sales of natural and organic products grew 11% to $5.7 billion in 2016, capturing 4% of overall natural products sales, reported NFM’s Market Overview survey. 

Online sales are sure to continue a strong growth curve, as ecommerce retailers such as Thrive Market, meal kit providers including GreenChef.com and independent brick and mortar retailers increase their online presence. Plus, a growing number of manufacturers are finding markets by creating their own online shopping pages and also by offering their products on Amazon, which continues its juggernaut as the dominant force in online retail. (With its acquisition of Whole Foods Market, it will be exciting to see how Amazon integrates and advances its brick and mortar and online retail strategies.)

The online channel is likely to capture significantly more market share in the next decade from brick and mortar stores, predicted a January 2017 report by Food Marketing Institute and Nielsen. Online sales could grow five-fold over the next 10 years, with U.S. consumers spending $100 billion on “food-at-home” items by 2025, FMI and Nielsen predicted. The report also found millennial shoppers surveyed were more willing to buy groceries online in the future than other consumer groups.

Health supplements, in particular, are benefitting from ecommerce, with $2.6 billion in online sales reported in 2016 by market research firm 1010Data. Brands that focus on “natural” products experienced the most online sales growth last year, 1010Data reported.

Herbal Blends, CBD Drive Supplement Sales Growth

Sales of herbal and homeopathic products increased 13.4% over the 52 weeks ending March 19, 2017, to reach a market value of nearly $2 billion, according to SPINS data shared in NFM’s Market Overview. Vitamin and supplement sales also grew 3.5% to approximately $12 billion in sales. Overall, SPINS reported 5% growth, valuing the total supplements market at approximately $14 billion.

SPINS also reported that sales of herbal blends grew 22% over the previous year, accounting for much of the herbal category’s success. According to research firm Mintel, consumers are responding to supplement formulas that call out benefits, rather than ingredients—and blends often meet that criteria, NFM reported.

Other top-performing supplements in 2016 include turmeric/curcumin and cannabidiol, or CBD, which is emerging as a leading supplement for anxiety and pain management. Despite the regulatory grey area surrounding CBD, sales of CBD supplements grew more than 1700% last year, primarily in the natural channel, reported Hemp Business Journal. Leading market research firm SPINS named CBD oil one of the “ingredients to watch” in its 2016 Trend Watch report.

Other supplement categories of note include organic supplements, which grew 7.4% in 2016. Retailers in NFM’s Market Overview survey also cited probiotics, bone broth and kombucha as top growth categories.

Other categories showing strong growth in 2016 include organic meat, fish and poultry (9.1% growth); organic beverages (6%); organic condiments (6.3%); and organic personal care and other products (8.1% growth in 2016).

The Indie Universe: Over 26,000 Independent Stores

Among NFM’s findings is that, among independent natural products retailers, on average, 60% of a store’s offerings are organic and 40% are described as “natural.” Also, roughly half of all sales in independent natural retail stores are from products that are “Non-GMO certified.”

Additionally, NFM estimates there are 26,042 independent stores in the U.S., including health food stores, natural foods stores and supermarkets, specialty food stores, personal care and herb shops and related boutiques and kiosks, and natural chains including Whole Foods Market, GNC, Vitamin Shoppe, Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage, Sprouts Farmers Market, PCC, Earth Fare, Fresh Thyme Farmers Market, MOMs Organic Market, and others.

Click here to download the complete 2017 Market Overview report, including all data charts, published in the July/August 2017 edition of Natural Foods Merchandiser.

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Steven Hoffman is Managing Director of Compass Natural, a full service agency dedicated to Public Relations, brand marketing, digital communications, social media, and strategic business development in the healthy lifestyles market for natural, organic, regenerative and eco-friendly products and services. Contact steve@compassnatural.com.

The Natural Scene: Will these Food Trends Shape 2014?

Source: Pexels

As a former food editor and evaluator of the natural products scene, many times I've wished for a crystal ball to help me determine the next big food product. While there have been plenty of surprises (who could have predicted chia would make its way from infomercial novelty to functional food?) through the years I've landed on a formula for helping me determine what will stick around and what will likely fade away.  It seems when innovation meets a market need, a brand is on to something. Sprinkle in quality ingredients at a fair value and success is nearly guaranteed. Based on my not-so-scientific analysis, here's a look at the some of the trends I'll be following this year. Insect protein. Beetles for breakfast anyone? Ten years ago, this idea was total yuck. Fast forward to tomorrow and I won't be surprised if we're sprinkling crushed crickets on our cereal. Think I've missed the mark? Consider that most of the world eats insects in one form or another and the reasons are simple:  they're nutritious, sustainable and cheap. I know of at least one innovative company that's experimenting with cricket meal for use in a nutrition bar (think of it like cricket flour). This may be the perfect entry for American consumers who are likely not ready to bight down on bits of antennae or hindlegs in their food snacks—at least, not before noon!

Hyper convenience. On-the-go consumers have long fantasized about the perfect meal in a pill. Pop it, and keep going. While I'll never totally understand this mentality since meal times are built in excuses for taking a break, who's not been hit with hunger pangs and nowhere to turn? Airport terminals, malls, suburbia—these are common danger zones. Convenience foods save the day, and we're learning that the more portable and nutritious a product, the more likely consumers will give it a try… even if it doesn't entirely deliver on flavor. Any early Power Bar fans out there? Manufacturers are experimenting with convenient ways to deliver nutrition that break out from the now boring bar.  I've seen fortified ice cream cups, and yogurty push pops, but what's catching my attention is the pouch.  Similar to the bar, pouches are great for on-the-go, and can be filled with just about anything. Offerings currently are primarily fruity but I see protein-fortified formulations and possibly even savory options in the horizon.

Pale-eee-ohhhhhh! Blame Crossfit Boxes or simply consider Paleo a rebound from the high-carbohydrate low fat days of our past. Consumers are experimenting with this entirely new style of eating, and I think it will stick around. Why? Much about the Paleo diet is based on sound wisdom. The eating plan emphasizes sustainable meat sources such as buffalo and grass fed beef and encourages consumers to look to whole food sources for daily nutrition.

Big brands appear to be taking a wait-and-see approach before marketing to the Paleo crowd, but smaller companies aren't holding back. Snack formulations emphasize transparency, better-for-you ingredients and minimal sweeteners. Who doesn't like that? Expect more convenient food products such as cereals, cookies and bars made with just nuts, seeds and berries that are Paleo ready even if they're not ready to call out their primal appeal.

Kelsey Blackwell is former Senior Editor of New Hope Natural Media, publisher of Natural Foods Merchandiser and New Hope 360, leading print and online trade publications serving the natural and organic products industry. She is currently based in the San Francisco Bay area.