As the economy improves in 2010, consumers may be more interested in (and willing to pay a premium for) healthy convenience foods. In 2009, only one in four identified frozen entrees as key to buy organic. We expect those percentages to increase in 2010…first with more customers shifting to organics when buying frozen fruits and vegetables and then to healthy convenience foods.

Retailers can get ahead of the trend by expanding their offerings of organic prepared foods and offering more healthy take-out options. Premium quality store brand and private label organics will be an important part of the product mix for 2010 as consumers will continue to look for value in their natural and organic purchasing.

As for name brand organics, they’ll be looking to coupons, consumer education and promotions to maintain consumer loyalty.

Movies like Food Inc. and the continuing popularity of books such as The Omnivore’s Dilemma and Michael Pollan’s latest release Food Rules: An Eater’s Manual should continue to build consumer focus on both healthy eating and safe, sustainable agricultural methods. That means consumers will be looking for more locally raised food, clear labeling and signage introducing new health- and earth-conscious products.

In this Brave New World of bioterrorism, retailers who truly value their own in-house brands are presenting vendors with a Yellow Pages-size stack of forms to fill in for food safety purposes. All I can say is “Bring it on - it’s about time!”

The question I ask myself is why it took a terrorist attack to finally focus attention to the products pouring into our food supply.

One of the perks of my job is traveling the world to visit factories that manufacture food products. That said, one can only imagine what I’ve witnessed over the years — a veritable Clint Eastwood feast of “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly”!

I am not sure that I can always consider this aspect of my job a perk. When you are living out of a suitcase for weeks on end, washing undergarments in the hotel sink, exhausted from too much travel, too much food, too much stimulation and far too little sleep, you finally arrive home only to have folks ask about your vacation!

A vacation for me means that I can set aside worrying about quality issues for a few short days, knowing that I’ve done my part. more

As part of its food makeover, Target Corp. has boosted the nutritional profile of its bestselling, premium Archer Farms private label. The company is calling the extension “Simply Balanced.” Right now, it includes more than 70 products, such as pasta, cereal, bread pictured), crackers, granola bars and frozen pizza.

Each product meets nutrition criteria for fat (not more than 30% of calories); saturated Fat (a maximum of 10%); trans fat (none); sugar (maximum 25% of calories); and no artificial flavors, synthetic colors or artificial sweeteners.

While there’s not limit on sodium, “Target keeps tabs on the sodium content of the Archer Farms Simply Balanced products while still maintaining the taste quality for which the Archer Farms brand is known,” read the company’s statement.

Archer Farms was one of the first in a new generation of store brands that really built an identity separate from the store that was selling it. These so-called signature brands have become the preferred vehicle for private label growth, and almost every single supermarket offers something like this.

Expanding the name to cover wholesome ingredients and better nutrition is the next logical step for Archer Farms, which has already undergone a pretty extensive overhaul, and comes as the retailer is embarking on a major push deeper into food sales.

It’s interesting to note that Target took pains to point out the affordability of the Simply Balanced line. According to the retailer, prices range from $1.48 for a box of whole wheat pasta to $5.49 for chicken skewers. Once again, supermarkets are using private label to bring home the idea that eating well doesn’t have to be expensive.

Like fashion, food retailing, too, goes through cycles where everything old is new again. Just as we see styles coming back every few decades, food seems to be following this same trend. In our part of the business world, we’re seeing many supermarkets expand their private label portfolio to include more green brands.

Why are we experiencing this veritable “Back to Basics” now?

Frankly, I think much of this has to do not only with current health issues, but with copycat product development. The leaders of the trend that put all this into motion are a select few: Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods Market and Safeway, with their introduction of high-quality, natural and organic private label products that respond to a growing customer demand.

It’s been interesting to watch how this segment of private label has evolved, and quickly, at that. Initially, retailers (like those above) who were part of the initial roll out of such products did it because the core natural and organic consumer demanded them. It was the right thing to do.

However, once the these retailers began offering green private label items in their natural and organic sets, the crossover customer became intrigued; the low price barrier to entry into natural and organics and the surprising quality began capturing this class of consumers, as well.

Kids have played a huge role in the transition from conventional to natural and organic. They learn about sustainability and recycling at school and want to do good for the planet and for themselves; natural products and organics appear to them to be the answer to everything they’re learning about in the classroom. They come home and tell their parents and the ideas start trickling up. more

I often get asked by retailers, “Are we big enough to have a private label program?”

The answer is always the same: A resounding “Yes!”

Recently, I attended a function with dozens of retailers in attendance. At my table there were several small scale operators (less than twenty stores each) who were anxious to start private label programs, but didn’t know how to go about it and were afraid that their volumes would not be significant enough to offer a full fledged, appropriately valued program to their customers.

After some cajoling, deep-breathing exercises and hand holding, I was able to persuade them that, in this case, size was fairly insignificant. We have created a customer who understands that modern day in-house brands are generally the same as, if not better than, national brands. This customer has come to trust what our store’s banner offers. If they trust us, then they’ll tend to trust our private label.

Once we have our own brand to put on the shelf, customers will trade down to save money and walk away satisfied that they aren’t trading down in terms of quality.

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First Safeway, now Nash Finch. The idea of taking a private store brand and offering it to other retailers is catching on.

In a recent interview with The Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Nash Finch CEO Alec Covington said he hopes to make the company’s new line of Nash Brothers Trading Co. organic products available to other supermarket chains.

The label rolled out with 54 products a few weeks ago, and the plan is to expand it to 420 items by 2011.

Of course, Safeway was the first U.S. company to exercise this strategy, selling its “O” Organics and Eating Right private labels through a subsidiary created specifically for the purpose. The Better Living Brands Alliance has so far met with great success.

Covington, who before Nash Finch was CEO of Tree of Life, the Florida-based natural/organic distributor, envisions a similar plan. Currently Nash Finch gets more than half of its revenue from the wholesale side of the business, and striving for a bigger presence on store shelves will help boost that number.

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Give today’s kids some credit. According to a recent restaurant report from the NPD Group, they’re turning down unhealthy kids’ meals (orders are down 11%), and the toys that come with them, in favor of healthier, more sophisticated fare. Sure, they still love pizza and hamburgers and French fries; but they’re also coming around to things like yogurt (+21%), fruit (+6%) and grilled chicken sandwiches (+26%).

This specific report reflects restaurant habits — but the results apply to the entire food industry, and supermarkets like A&P are getting the message loud and clear. The Montvale, New Jersey-based retailer just rolled out a new riff on its America’s Choice private label line called “America’s Choice Kids”, developed in cooperation with registered dietitians. The products, all of which are low in saturated fat and high in vitamins and fiber and whole grains, are a mix of healthy twists on the typical snack and drink box favorites, and more grown-up items like whole-wheat bagels and soy butter.

Me, I’m trying to imagine childhood without a Happy Meal. But for A&P, all of this represents another step in the right direction. After 150 years in business, the chain has undergone some major changes, the most recent being its private label expansion. more

Life has never gone by at a faster clip, and yet we are experiencing a return to dining at home due to the economic downturn.

This means that this year’s food trends are most likely to be centered around casual, comfort food that’s simple to prepare. The trick is making it healthier, too. Look at what’s being highlighted on menus and in food magazines lately: approachable (as in recognizable!), value-oriented foods like pasta, meatloaf, potatoes, slow-cooked foods and even finger foods.

The state of our economy could ultimately translate into healthier eating for many Americans. We’ll exchange expensive butter for olive oil; eat less meat and more veggies, sit down for meals cooked with ingredients we know about at home rather than dining out and assuming the entrée promoted as “Healthy” really is. Folks who did no more than “speed scratch” cook (using partially prepared ingredients to make a complete meal) are finding themselves experiencing the joy of cooking basic meals at home. more

Better-for-you snacks were coming into their own even before the recession. Now, with low-cost meal replacements more prized than ever, the segment is really starting to take off. Vegetable chips in the checkout aisle? You bet.

According to a recent trend mapping report from Packaged Facts and the Center for Culinary Development, consumers are more discriminating about the snacks they’re buying. They don’t just want any old stomach-fillers — they want healthy energy and gourmet flavors that can stand in as a breakfast or lunch.

“Snacks are less and less the hunger-soothing bridge between formal meals. They have become valuable gastronomical events in their own right,” said Kimberly Egan, CEO of the Center for Culinary Development, in a statement. more

Another piece of Meijer’s wellness umbrella was sewn into place this week with the announcement that the 185-store chain is introducing Meijer Naturals, a line of products free of additives, high fructose corn syrup and genetically-modified ingredients.

Among the 75 products that are part of the rollout are Chocolate Chip Pancake Mix, White Cheddar Popcorn, Roasted & Salted Almonds, Ketchup, Apple Sauce, Pomegranate Juice, and Tomato Sauce, among others.

The line, coming out just before Earth Day, will join the Meijer Organics line that came out a few years ago. Naturals is an interesting companion private label in that there’s still no federal definition of “natural” beyond “minimally processed.” Meijer officials point this out, saying that the Michigan-based retailer “established its own high standards and strict guidelines. This means Meijer will not include any “food negatives” — such as artificial ingredients or additives — in Meijer Naturals.”

We most recently wrote about the supercenter format in February, when it began stocking a selection of green cleaners from ecostore; and again about a year ago, when it started selling certified organic potted vegetable and herb plants in its garden center departments.

The Naturals products, priced about 15% less than comparable national brand items, will certainly appeal to those customers who aren’t interested in organic (and category growth notwithstanding, there are plenty of these folks around) but still feel compelled to try and eat better. Meijer’s new private label tier is a nice middle ground.

(photo by Dave Raczkowski)