New brand entrants into the grocery sector face an uphill battle to generate brand awareness and stimulate trial purchase. This is especially true given retailers provide new food entrants a short probationary period (6-9 months) to prove themselves and brand icons dominate most if not all of the categories. Yet, most new brand entrants neglect […]
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Growing up it was common practice in our household to regularly consume milk, eggs, and meat. In fact, when we went out for dinner, the main course was my favourite part of the meal. The word vegan – vegetarian was not part of our vocabulary. Yet, it was in 1944 when Donald Watson co-founded the Vegan […]
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Cannabis, also known as marijuana among other names, is a psychoactive drug from the Cannabis plant used for medical or recreational purposes. Doctors have prescribed marijuana as a treatment for pain. They also may prescribe medical marijuana to treat: 1. Muscle spasms caused by multiple sclerosis, 2. Nausea from cancer chemotherapy, 3. Poor appetite and weight loss caused by chronic illness, such […]
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Plastic is material consisting of a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic organic compounds that are malleable and so can be molded into solid objects. The world’s first fully synthetic plastic was bakelite, invented in New York in 1907 by Leo Baekeland who coined the term plastics. Plastic today is enemy # 1. The United Nations’ environmental agency says every year 8 million metric tons of plastic […]
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Cauliflower used to be a boring vegetable that was typically only bought when there was nothing else on the grocery shelf. Typically perceived as the less colourful, less delicious cousin of broccoli, it was usually boiled and served plain, as an uninspiring side dish. Those perceptions have changed. Driven by consumers’ desire for a healthier […]
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Kraft Dinner is a brand icon in the Canadian grocery sector. Referred by Canadians as KD, it was launched in Canada in 1937. Canadians love this brand so much, they consume a whopping 55% more of it a year than Americans do. In fact, former Prime Minister Paul Martin listed KD as his favourite food and former […]
Read More ›Big, national food companies have been the main players in the food industry for many years, making up most of the market share and taking up the majority of supermarket shelves. Whether it be carbonated soft drinks to snacks, the choice came down to Coke or Pepsi, Frito Lay or Humpty Dumpty. Today, times have […]
Read More ›Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is a motivational theory in psychology comprising a five-tier model of human needs, often depicted as hierarchical levels within a pyramid. He stated that people are motivated to achieve certain needs and that some needs take precedence over others. For business, a successful grocery store listing caps off their dreams. Like […]
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When organic products were first introduced into the Canadian market, shopping for such foods required a special trip to a natural foods store or farmers market. As interest in organics grew, organic foods became widely available in conventional supermarkets, but premium prices usually meant only affluent shoppers could afford them. Today, the Canadian organic food […]
Read More ›Insects have six legs and most have wings. They were also the first animal capable of flight. In our sights at home most consumers get the raid out and go for the kill. Yet this small arthropod animal may become the next emerging food group phenomenon. For instance, crickets are often trumpeted as the future of […]
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