The Specialty Niches That Are Becoming Main Stream
There are many healthy eating niches we see in the marketplace, “Organic”, “Natural”, “Non-GMO”, “Free-Range” and “Antibiotic-Free”.
Previously I wrote about the growing discussion regarding Non-GMO products. New information on this topic has come from Whole Foods, a U.S. food store driven around healthy eating. The below insert is from the Whole Foods website defining who they are.
“…we seek out the finest natural and organic foods available, maintain the strictest quality standards in the industry, and have an unshakeable commitment to sustainable agriculture.”
Whole Foods recently announced a commitment to have all foods labeled with GMO content by 2018. They also have a section on their website called “Animal Welfare and Our Meats”. This is a major company moving healthy eating, animal welfare and quality eating segments to the mainstream.
Two recent marketing campaigns with TV advertising by Chipotle and Panera Bread restaurants will also be the drivers to move these niches to the mainstream. These restaurants are huge, just like Whole Foods.
Panera Bread restaurants recently launched a campaign called “Live Responsibly, Eat Deliciously”. See the video on their website at http://www.panerabread.com/liveconsciouslyeatdeliciously or you can find it on YouTube. It speaks to “Antibiotic Free Chicken” as an example of how they are working to find healthier meats and vegetables. However, the campaign is clearly much bigger than this one example and really is driving a total movement to healthier eating from what was considered more niche products.
Chipotle restaurants launched last year a campaign called “Back To The Start”. You can see this video on their website at http://www.chipotle.com/en-us/fwi/videos/videos.aspx?v=1. This video is under an entire section on their website called “Food With Integrity”. Below is an excerpt from their website where they are speaking to the pigs they are utilizing to provide the pork in their restaurants.
“There are ranchers whose pigs are raised outside or in deeply bedded pens, are never given antibiotics and are fed a vegetarian diet. It’s the way animals were raised 50 years ago before huge factory farms changed the industry. We believe pigs that are cared for in this way enjoy happier, healthier lives and produce the best pork we’ve ever tasted.”
With multi-billion dollar companies such as Whole Foods, Panera Bread and Chipotle pushing not only the benefits of healthier eating but also better quality eating in the process, these niches are now becoming mainstream. For those of you who are targeting these segments with our chemical free, natural processes with better tasting, better quality foods, you are likely already seeing the benefits. For those of you who are not targeting these niches, I recommend taking a hard look at them now, because you may find the ride toward the mainstream a very profitable one.
