Weekly Roundup – Week of 4.3.2023
April 7, 2023
Find timely food and beverage-related news in today’s weekly roundup – curated by our team of strategists and food enthusiasts:
Menu And Tech Upgrades Are In Full Swing At MLB Stadiums
Foodservice teams at Major League Baseball stadiums have been working hard in the offseason to refresh game-day classics with regionally inspired and ethnically forward menu concepts. Mariners fans will be enjoying Asian cuisine favorites like Din Tai Fung’s pork, veggie bao buns, and spicy chicken wonton soup along with Latin-inspired dishes such as crispy fish taquitos and BBQ brisket quesadillas. Legends Hospitality, which operates Yankee Stadium’s foodservice program, is serving up regional fare with its Cheesy Garlic Bread made with seeded Bronx bastone, mozzarella, pecorino, and Parmesan. Fans will also experience technology upgrades to boost checkout speed with Just-Walk-Out and Walk-Off technology at select stadiums. For instance, Walk Thru Bru at Rogers Centre, Citi Field, Fenway Park, and Minute Maid Park offer fans 21-and-older self-checkout kiosks for grab-and-go adult beverages. See More.
Walmart Makes Investments To Boost Automation Capabilities
By the end of its fiscal year 2026, Walmart expects about 65% of its stores will have automation capabilities, 55% of its fulfillment center volume will move through automated facilities, and unit cost averages could fall by some 20%. Walmart gave a tour of a fully automated facility located in Brooksville Florida to the Tesley Advisory group this week. Analysts experienced two robots handling an inbound shipment of some 3,400 packages; sensors and robots separating them before they moved to an automated grid, and robots building pallets of 130 cases, versus 75 for manually built ones. Robots were also used in storage and picking capacities. Read Full Article.
Restaurants Invest In Personalized Loyalty Programs To Meet Consumer Demand
According to a recent study conducted by Wakefield Research and commissioned by PayiQ, 91% of diners value a personalized customer loyalty program with 50% of them saying it’s very or extremely valuable. In response, restaurants are allocating an average of 10% of their company’s total budget to installing and operating their loyalty program as stated in a Restaurant Dive article. However, earning new loyalty customers and keeping existing ones happy is becoming challenging due to consumers desiring more personalized service. The study found that 87% of restaurants are concerned they’ll lose members if they don’t provide personalized experiences and in fact, 33% say they are already losing members due to a lack of personalized and relevant rewards. Learn More.
The Flavor Showdown At SNAXPO23 Showcased The Best Flavor Innovators
SNACPO23’s annual Flavor Showdown competition, sponsored by Snack Food & Wholesale Bakery, did not disappoint. Attendees tasted their way through sweet treats and savory selections to vote on their flavor favorites in both categories. Entries on the sweet side included gooey butter cake with chocolate drizzle from Elite Spice and strawberry cheesecake frosted chow from Revela Foods. Griffen Food’s aquachile cashews and Wixon’s pickled sweet onion flavor were popular tastes for savory entries. Ultimately, Chesapeake Spice won first place in the sweet category with their French toast flavor, and Elite Spice took the top prize in the savory category with their DC Signature Mambo Sauce. Find All Entries and Results Here.
Fun Easter Facts
With 85% of consumers planning to celebrate Easter this year, we thought it would be fun and timely to share some stats – from Numerator.
- Gen X and Boomers+ are more likely to celebrate Easter overall, while Gen Z and Millennials are twice as likely to travel for the holiday.
- 70% of celebrators intend to purchase food for the holiday, and 50% intend to buy candy, making Easter the second most popular holiday for candy purchasing after Halloween.
- Millennials are 1.6x more likely to purchase Easter candy at Target, choosing Trolli (37% more likely to buy) and Kinder (+36%). Gen Z prefers Nerds (+46%) and Airheads (+37%).
- Shoppers who purchase candy are 6x more likely to purchase bubbles on the same trip, 3.5x more likely to purchase clay and dough, and 2x more likely to purchase action figures or art supplies.
- Consumers with children spend 27% more on candy than those without kids.
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