Restaurants: Shifting Consumer Patterns Lead to Shifting Meal Patterns
- InsightTrendsWorld
- 4 days ago
- 8 min read
Why it is the topic trending:
Changing Consumer Habits: The article addresses significant shifts in how consumers are eating meals away from home, particularly for breakfast and lunch, making it a crucial topic for the food industry and retailers.
Impact of External Factors: The influence of life stage changes, evolving workplace models (hybrid/remote), and the increasing role of snacking are highlighted as key drivers of these shifts, making the topic relevant to understanding broader societal and economic trends.
Data-Driven Insights: The article presents findings from Circana, a reputable research firm, adding credibility and weight to the discussion about these evolving meal patterns.
Opportunities for Businesses: The identified changes present both challenges and new opportunities for retailers and the foodservice industry to adapt their strategies and cater to shifting consumer needs.
Overview: The article from Circana discusses the evolving patterns of away-from-home meal consumption, focusing on breakfast and lunch occasions. The research indicates that these changes are driven by life stage transitions, the prevalence of hybrid work models, and the increasing integration of snacks as replacements for traditional meals. The findings underscore the importance for retailers and the foodservice industry to understand and adapt to these shifts in consumer behavior to remain relevant and tap into new growth opportunities.
Detailed findings:
Early breakfasts are becoming more prominent, with 39% of consumers eating before 8 a.m. in 2024 (a 5% increase since 2020).
Lunchtime is losing favor as consumers opt for convenient, on-the-go solutions.
Dinner is increasingly shaped by heat-and-eat or ready-to-eat options.
Snacks are frequently integrated into lunches and dinners, with items like chips, crackers, and nuts gaining popularity.
37% of consumers looked for quick bites instead of larger meals in 2024, compared to 36% in 2023 and 29% in 2010.
The shift to hybrid work has significantly changed away-from-home meal consumption for morning and lunch.
Initially, hybrid/remote work posed challenges for foodservice, but increasing office occupancy is now presenting opportunities.
White-collar workers increased their on-premises foodservice morning and lunch visits by 8% in January and February compared to the previous year.
Key takeaway: Consumer meal patterns, particularly for breakfast and lunch consumed away from home, are undergoing significant transformations driven by lifestyle changes, work trends, and the rising role of snacking, necessitating that retailers and the foodservice industry adapt their offerings and strategies to align with these evolving consumption moments.
Main trend: The Restructuring of Traditional Away-From-Home Mealtimes
Description of the trend (please name it): The Disrupted Daypart Dining. This trend describes the significant changes and fragmentations occurring in traditional away-from-home meal consumption patterns, particularly for breakfast and lunch. Driven by evolving lifestyles, flexible work arrangements, and the increasing substitution of snacks for meals, consumers are no longer adhering to conventional mealtimes, creating a more dynamic and less predictable landscape for the foodservice industry and retailers.
What is consumer motivation: Consumers are primarily motivated by convenience, flexibility, and alignment with their changing lifestyles. The rise of early breakfasts reflects potentially earlier work schedules or personal preferences. The decline of traditional lunchtime away from home is likely driven by the need for quick, portable options that fit into busier or more flexible workdays, including hybrid or remote work. The integration of snacks offers a more adaptable and often smaller portion size solution for meals.
What is driving trend:
Evolving Work Models (Hybrid/Remote): The shift away from traditional 9-to-5 office schedules has altered when and where people consume meals during the workday.
Life Stage Changes: Different life stages can influence eating habits and the time available for traditional meals.
Increased Snacking Habits: The normalization of snacking as a meal replacement or supplement is a major factor reshaping meal patterns.
Demand for Convenience and Portability: Consumers are seeking quick, easy, and portable food options that fit into their on-the-go lifestyles.
Availability of Ready-to-Eat/Heat-and-Eat Options: The increasing variety and quality of these prepared foods provide alternatives to cooking or traditional restaurant meals.
What is motivation beyond the trend: Beyond the immediate needs for convenience and flexibility, consumers might be motivated by a desire for more control over their eating habits, portion sizes, and the types of food they consume throughout the day. Snacking can offer more frequent, smaller eating opportunities, which some consumers may perceive as healthier or better aligned with their preferences.
Description of consumers article is referring to (what is their age?, what is their gender? What is their income? What is their lifestyle): The article refers to a broad range of consumers, but specifically highlights white-collar workers in the context of the return to on-premises foodservice for morning and lunch. The trends discussed likely affect adults of various ages whose work and lifestyle patterns have been impacted by the factors mentioned (work models, life stages). The article doesn't provide specific details on gender or income demographics for all the trends, but the mention of white-collar workers suggests a focus on those in professional or office-based employment. Their lifestyle is characterized by being potentially busier or having more flexible schedules than in the past, leading to a need for adaptable meal solutions.
Conclusions: Traditional away-from-home meal patterns, particularly for breakfast and lunch, are being significantly disrupted by evolving lifestyles, work trends, and the increasing prevalence of snacking as a meal component or replacement. Retailers and the foodservice industry must recognize these shifts and adapt their offerings to meet the changing needs of consumers across different dayparts.
Implications for brands:
Retailers (Grocery Stores, Convenience Stores): Need to offer a wider variety of convenient, portable breakfast and lunch options, including grab-and-go meals and an expanded selection of snackable items. They should also consider the increasing demand for heat-and-eat and ready-to-eat dinners.
Foodservice (Restaurants, Cafes): Need to rethink their strategies for breakfast and lunch, perhaps offering more flexible meal options, smaller portions, or items specifically designed for on-the-go consumption. They should also capitalize on the return of office workers.
Implication for society: The shift in meal patterns could reflect broader changes in work culture, lifestyle priorities, and attitudes towards traditional meal structures. It might also have implications for public health depending on the nutritional quality of the snacks and ready-to-eat options consumers are choosing.
Implications for consumers: Consumers will have more diverse options for breakfast and lunch, with a greater emphasis on convenience and portability. They might also find themselves snacking more frequently throughout the day.
Implication for Future: The trends of disrupted daypart dining and the rise of snacking are likely to continue, requiring ongoing adaptation from the food industry. Future innovations in food products and foodservice models will likely focus on providing convenient, healthy, and customizable options for consumers who are eating outside of traditional mealtimes.
Consumer Trend (name, detailed description): The Anytime Eater. This trend describes consumers who no longer adhere strictly to traditional breakfast, lunch, and dinner times, instead eating at various times throughout the day based on their schedules, hunger cues, and the availability of convenient food options.
Consumer Sub Trend (name, detailed description): Snackification of Meals. This sub-trend highlights the increasing tendency for consumers to replace traditional meals, particularly lunch, with snackable items or smaller, more frequent bites throughout the day.
Big Social Trend (name, detailed description): The Flexibility Imperative. Across many aspects of life, including work and eating habits, there is a growing demand for flexibility and the ability to customize routines to individual needs and circumstances.
Worldwide Social Trend (name, detailed description): While the article focuses on the US, the trend of changing meal patterns due to urbanization, evolving work structures, and the convenience of snacking is likely a global phenomenon in many developed countries.
Social Drive (name, detailed description): The Pursuit of Convenience and Efficiency. In today's busy world, consumers are often driven by the need for convenient and efficient solutions that fit into their packed schedules, and this extends to how they consume meals.
Learnings for brands to use in 2025 (bullets, detailed description):
Offer Versatile Products: Develop food items that are suitable for various times of day and can serve as both snacks and light meals.
Emphasize Portability and Convenience: Design packaging and products that are easy to take on the go.
Cater to Early Morning Needs: Recognize the growing prevalence of early breakfasts and offer appropriate options.
Re-evaluate Lunchtime Strategies: Understand the shift away from traditional lunchtime away from home and offer solutions that fit this new reality.
Capitalize on the Return to Office: For foodservice, focus on appealing to the morning commute and lunchtime needs of returning office workers.
Strategy Recommendations for brands to follow in 2025 (bullets, detail description):
Retailers: Expand grab-and-go sections with diverse breakfast and lunch options. Increase shelf space for snackable items and ready-to-eat meals. Consider offering meal kits that cater to the heat-and-eat dinner trend.
Foodservice: Explore offering flexible meal bundles or smaller portion sizes suitable for snacking or lighter lunches. Optimize online ordering and delivery for convenience. Tailor morning and lunchtime menus to the preferences of office workers in specific locations.
Final sentence (key concept) describing main trend from article: Shifting lifestyles and work models are driving a notable restructuring of traditional away-from-home meal patterns, with early breakfasts and snack-replaced lunches gaining prominence.
What brands & companies should do in 2025 to benefit from trend and how to do it: In 2025, retailers and foodservice companies should adapt to the "Disrupted Daypart Dining" trend by:
Conducting thorough research to understand the specific needs and preferences of their local consumer base regarding breakfast and lunch away from home.
Innovating their product offerings to include a wider variety of convenient, portable, and snackable options suitable for consumption at various times of day.
Optimizing their service models to cater to consumers seeking quick and easy solutions, including efficient in-store layouts for grab-and-go items and seamless online ordering and delivery systems.
Final note:
Core Trend: The Disrupted Daypart Dining: Significant changes in traditional away-from-home breakfast and lunch consumption.
Core Strategy: Prioritize Convenience and Portability in Meal Solutions: Offering flexible options that fit consumers' evolving lifestyles and schedules.
Core Industry Trend: The Rising Influence of Lifestyle on Food Consumption: How shifts in work, daily routines, and eating habits are reshaping the food industry.
Core Consumer Motivation: Seeking Convenience and Flexibility in Eating Habits: Consumers want meal solutions that easily integrate into their busy and varied lives.
Final Conclusion: The food industry in 2025 must recognize and respond to the restructuring of traditional mealtimes by prioritizing convenience, portability, and a wider range of options that cater to consumers' evolving lifestyles and the
Core Trend Detailed: The Disrupted Daypart Dining
Description: The Disrupted Daypart Dining trend describes the significant changes and fragmentations occurring in traditional away-from-home meal consumption patterns, particularly for breakfast and lunch. Driven by evolving lifestyles, flexible work arrangements, and the increasing substitution of snacks for meals, consumers are no longer adhering to conventional mealtimes, creating a more dynamic and less predictable landscape for the foodservice industry and retailers.
Key Characteristics of the Trend (summary): This trend is characterized by the rise of early breakfasts, a decline in traditional lunchtime, and the increasing role of snacks as meal replacements, all driven by lifestyle and work changes.
Market and Cultural Signals Supporting the Trend (summary): Data from Circana showing increases in early breakfast consumption, a decline in traditional lunchtime participation, and a rising percentage of consumers opting for quick bites instead of larger meals all support this trend. The shift to hybrid work models is also a significant signal.
How the Trend Is Changing Consumer Behavior (summary): Consumers are eating breakfast earlier, are more likely to choose convenient, portable options for lunch (or skip it for snacks), and are increasingly incorporating snacks into their daily meal patterns.
Implications Across the Ecosystem (For Brands and CPGs, For Retailers, For Consumers, summary):
For Brands and CPGs: Requires the development of versatile, portable, and snackable food options suitable for consumption at various times of day.
For Retailers: Necessitates adjustments in product offerings to include more grab-and-go breakfast and lunch items, expanded snack sections, and ready-to-eat meals.
For Consumers: Results in a wider variety of convenient meal and snack options, allowing for more flexible eating patterns.
Strategic Forecast: The trends of disrupted daypart dining and the rise of snacking are likely to continue, requiring ongoing adaptation from the food industry. Future innovations in food products and foodservice models will likely focus on providing convenient, healthy, and customizable options for consumers who are eating outside of traditional mealtimes.
Final Thought: The food industry in 2025 must recognize and respond to the restructuring of traditional mealtimes by prioritizing convenience, portability, and a wider range of options that cater to consumers' evolving lifestyles and the increasing role of snacking in their daily diets.
Comments