Oser Communications Group

GOURMET NEWS NOVEMBER 2014 www.gourmetnews.com GENERAL NEWS 6 Trade Show Buzz The ultimate battle for today's consumer will play out over three days in Chicago, as more than a thousand exhibitors from 30 countries compete to get their store brands' products in front of the biggest players among America's supermarkets, drug chains and mass merchandisers. The Private Label Manufacturers Associ- ation's 34th annual show will be its largest and most vibrant marketplace to date, devoted entirely to store brands, surpassing even last year's record show for size and attendance. This year's show will present more than 2,400 exhibit booths throughout three major halls at Chicago's Rosemont Convention Center from November 17-18. Exhibiting companies will offer up tens of thousands of products across virtually every food and beverage category, including prepared foods, frozen and refrigerated, in- gredients, snacks, gourmet and specialty. Meanwhile, on the non-food side, ex- hibitors will feature health and beauty care, over-the-counter pharmaceuticals, vitamins & nutrition, household, kitchen and clean- ing products, do-it-yourself and general merchandise. Among the more than 4,500 visitors who attend the event each year are the leading U.S. supermarkets, drug chains, mass merchandisers, wholesale clubs, convenience and specialty retailers, in addition to wholesalers, brokers, im- porters and others. Year after year, private label's growth con- tinues to outpace the national brands, reaching new heights for sales and market share. According to the latest industry sales data compiled by The Nielsen Company, private label unit market share in super- markets has reached 23.4 percent, and dol- lar market share is now at 19.4 percent. Total private label sales in the United States last year surpassed $112 billion. In addition to the largest, most diverse and innovative assortment of private label products anywhere, the show offers PLMA's popular Idea Supermarket ® , show- casing store brands programs, products and packaging from more than 50 leading retailers across North America, Europe, Asia and Latin America. In addition, PLMA's New Product Expo turns a spot- light on the newest products being offered by exhibitors on the trade show floor. Speakers and seminars include Sunday afternoon workshops, a keynote break- fast on Monday and the PLMA Live! Breakfast on Tuesday, where leading ex- perts and industry executives will pres- ent the latest market research and discuss the insights, retail strategies and trends that are driving extraordinary growth for private label. Increasingly, the growth of store brands at America's major retail chains is attracting attention from international manufacturers who seek to build a market for their prod- ucts here in the United States. The 2014 PLMA show floor will present international pavilions from Italy, France, Spain, Den- mark, Turkey, South Korea, China, Malaysia, Taiwan and Hong Kong, as well as from Canada, Mexico, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Peru and Argentina. In addition, PLMA's own World of Private Label pavil- ion will extend global representation at the show to include Germany, United King- dom, The Netherlands, Belgium, Poland, Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Israel, Thai- land, India, Australia, Columbia, Chile and Brazil, among others. For information on attending or exhibiting at PLMA's Store Brands Reality Trade Show, contact PLMA by phone at 212.972.3131 or by email at info@plma.com. GN Products and Players Set to Compete for Private Label Business at PLMA Store Brands Reality Trade Show Food Shopping Continued from PAGE 1 availability as the "Roadside Pantry" ef- fect.) As a result, retailers are constantly looking for ways to anticipate and meet the unique demands of today's consumer. "People can get food anywhere now, and that's what this idea of the Roadside Pantry represents," said Blaine Becker, Senior Di- rector of Marketing at The Hartman Group. "For example, convenience stores have always been a place where you can hop in and hop out with a quick snack, but now these stores are offering higher-qual- ity, healthier snacks, which make them more attractive to consumers. And even drug stores now have these huge food sec- tions, some even with prepared foods … Food is everywhere." In addition to the shifting landscape of where consumers food purchases are oc- curring, the demographics of precisely who is doing the shopping is also chang- ing. While women had traditionally been thought of as the primary shoppers in most households, The Hartman Group's 2012 study actually found that 47 percent of primary shoppers were male. This re- sult proved valuable to retailers, since men and women display different shopping patterns and respond to different market- ing strategies. The upcoming study, whether it repeats, accentuates or reverses the 2012 results, could provide valuable insight as well. Previous research from The Hartman Group has helped retailers tailor their in- store and extra-store messages to match shoppers' mindsets, and this new study aims to provide retailers with even more insights on consumer behavior. In its 2012 study, the company, for example, uncovered that a full 50 percent of shop- ping trips involved stops at two or more stores. A typical trip, then, might mean picking up a broiled chicken at the super- market, followed by a quick dash to Trader Joe's for a couple of microwavable ethnic sides with a few additional need- to-stock-up-on items gathered at each store as well. Retailers are anxious to see how this trend has progressed in the past two years. Another important finding from The Hartman Group's 2012 study concerns the continued use of shopping "plans" by con- sumers to help them plot out their shop- ping trips. This revelation was a particularly surprising one to retailers who had long believed most consumers shopped in their stores without a plan. "There had been a longheld belief that most decisions happened in the store," said Becker. "We found that just wasn't true. The vast majority of consumers' planning and decision-making is done before they head to the store. It happens primarily at home, and now because we're so mobile, also at work." For retailers anxious to see how con- sumer shopping patterns have evolved over the past two years, The Hartman Group's Food Shopping in America 2014 Study will surely offer an eye-opening glimpse into today's food retail landscape. "We help retailers and consumer packaged good companies understand how people are making decisions of not only what to buy but where they're going to buy it," said Becker. "Is it going to be club store vs. grocery store vs. specialty food or natural food store vs. any other number of chan- nels? And once you understand why con- sumers do what they do, then you can begin to formulate marketing strategy plans and things like that." For more information on the Food Shopping in America 2014 study, visit www.hartman-group.com/upcoming- studies/food-shopping-in-america-2014. GN More than 90 percent of U.S. children, aged 6-18 years, eat more sodium than recom- mended, putting them at risk for develop- ing high blood pressure and heart disease later in life. This is according to a new CDC Vital Signs report. This report provides the most recent data detailing how much sodium school-age children eat and where it comes from. Using data from CDC's 2009-2010 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, CDC researchers determined that about 43 percent of sodium eaten by children comes from the 10 foods they eat most often: pizza, bread and rolls, cold cuts/cured meats, savory snacks, sandwiches, cheese, chicken patties/nuggets/tenders, pasta mixed dishes, Mexican mixed dishes and soups. "Too many children are consuming way too much sodium, and the result will be risks of high blood pressure and heart dis- ease in the future," said CDC Director Tom Frieden. "Most sodium is from processed and restaurant food, not the salt shaker. Re- ducing sodium intake will help our chil- dren avoid tragic and expensive health problems." According to the report, U.S. children aged 6 to 18 years eat an average of about 3,300 milligrams of sodium a day, before salt is added at the table. The 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend that children eat less than 2,300 milligrams per day total. Most sodium is already in food before it is purchased or ordered. Approxi- mately 65 percent comes from store foods, 13 percent from fast food and pizza restau- rant foods, and 9 percent from school cafe- teria foods. To help reduce the amount of sodium children are consuming daily, parents and caregivers, as well as schools, communities, and places that sell, make or serve food, are all encouraged to take steps to ensure more low-sodium op- tions. For example, parents can establish healthy eating habits in their children by providing a diet high in fruits and vegetables without added sodium. Schools and school districts can implement food purchasing policies and standards that re- duce sodium in foods and put lower-sodium alternatives in vending machines, school stores and cafe- terias. They can also strive to meet or ex- ceed the United States Department of Agriculture's nutrition standards for foods served during the school day. "Thanks to the Healthy, Hunger-free Kids Act and the work of schools across the country, students are now receiving health- ier meals and snacks featuring less sodium, sugar and fat and more whole grains, fruits and vegetables, lean protein and low-fat dairy," said Under Secretary for USDA's Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services, Kevin Concannon, "This report demon- strates the importance of continuing to move forward in our efforts to improve nu- trition in schools and to ensure that chil- dren and teens nationwide have access to safe, nutritious meals and snacks during the school day." GN CDC Report Finds Sodium Consumption Too High among U.S. Children

• Cover