I have been recently invited to participate and speak at the recent Agribusiness Executive Leadership program organized by AGR Partners. http://agrpartners.com My topic: Consumer evolution = food industry revolution? While we might debate whether consumer preferences and behaviors are having and will have a profound implications for the whole food value chain, one thing is sure is that they are changing at a fast pace. Expectations can be summarized by 3 questions: - What is in my food? - How is that made? - Where does it come from? The good news is that according to a Nielsen study, millennials and generation Z are very willing to pay a premium to have those questions been satisfactorily answered. Clean label, crafted, organic, non-XYZ, shared value, are part of the key words expected. Both generations will be responsible in the US for almost half of the discretionary spending by 2020. They cannot be ignored. The implications for the food value chain is that first of all, it offers excellent opportunities to differentiate both in terms of products/services portfolio being offered, but also regarding the values that a company embraces. The latter is becoming very important and can be captured by "morally conscious". The same consideration is also made by millennials when making decision about their professional career, i.e. choosing a company to work with (no more for). Sourcing has to take a very different path than the usual transaction based trading relying simply on industry standards. Directly from the farm, locally produced with a differentiated shared value story to tell (based on facts) are the characteristics of the holistic sourcing expected by demanding consumers. The feed industry is also expected to contribute as products labeling might as well soon include how the animals are fed to produce e.g. milk, eggs... Massive changes are and will happen at a very large scale. It also will redistribute how the entire value chain is coordinated and how value is being created. While consumers think more and more along the lines of “we are what we eat…eats”, the agribusiness, feed and food industries need to respond and embrace the change knowing that “we are what we offer and stand for”.

1. Consumer evolution
= food industry revolution?
Martial Genthon
AGR California Central Coast Agribusiness Executive Program
November 9-10th
2016

2. Where does it
come from?
What’s in
my food?
November 2016
How is
it made?
Digital Social Media
Listening
Source: CO-Agriculture, 2015, Volume: 515K; System boundaries: English speaking
markets, 90 days timeframe, excluding GMO (46% of overall conversation)
Consumers: what do they expect?

3. • No more watching TV
• No more shopping at the grocery
shop: Freshdirect/Amazonfresh
• No more 3 meals a day: munchies
• Only morally conscious food
• …
Changing behaviours

4. What is in my food?
Ingredients:
Unbleached Enriched Flour (Wheat Flour, Malted Barley Flour, Niacin, Reduced
Iron, Thiamin Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Water, Pasteurized Prepared
Cheese Product (Water, Partially Hydrogenated Soybean Oil, Casein, Modified
Food Starch, Whey, Salt, Sodium Citrate, Sodium Aluminum Phosphate, Food
Starch, Natural Flavor, Citric Acid, Sorbic Acid [As A Preservative], Xanthan Gum,
Locust Bean Gum, Guar Gum, Lactic Acid, Artificial Color, Mozzarella
Cheese [Milk, Cheese Culture, Salt, Enzymes]), Pepperoni (Pork, Beef, Salt,
Water, Dextrose, Spices, Lactic Acid Starter Culture, Oleoresin of Paprika,
Dehydrated Garlic, Sodium Nitrite, Bha, Bht, Citric Acid), Tomato Paste,
Partially Hydrogenated Soybean and Cottonseed Oil (With Lecithin, Artificial
Flavor, Beta Carotene), Pasteurized Prepared Cheese Product (Mozzarella
Cheese (Milk, Cheese Culture, Salt, Enzymes), Water, Casein, Partially
Hydrogenated Soybean Oil, Food Starch, Whey, Salt, Sodium Aluminum
Phosphate, Sodium Phosphate, Lactic Acid, Natural Flavor, Sorbic Acid, (As A
Preservative), Artificial Color), Contains less than 2% of: Dried Whey, Seasoning
(Spices, Salt, Garlic Powder, Maltodextrin, Xanthan Gum, Partially Hydrogenated
Soybean and Cottonseed Oil), Modified Food Starch, Dough Conditioners
(Calcium Sulfate, Mono- and Diglycerides), Sugar, Dried Egg Yolks, Salt,
Yeast, Dried Egg Whites. (Contains 8.5% Pepperoni)
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
from the food lab to the kitchen cupboard (clean label)
That’s it. Less is more

5. • Manufactured/processed with
economy-of-scale
• Preserved for year-round
availability
• Economical contribution
• Crafted and tailor-made for you
(mass-customization)
• Freshly harvested/picked with
short shelf-life
• Morally conscious and creating
shared value
How is that made?

6. • Purchased/traded based on generic
industry standards
• Directly from the farm and locally
produced with a specific method
(organic), but …
• …with a differentiated shared value
story to tell (holistic sourcing)
Where does it come from?
Transaction based Relation based

7. Source: http://cemerced.ucanr.edu/files/149683.pdf
This Milk is Produced by Cows Fed:
These Eggs are laid by Hens Fed:
Source: http://www.nutrenaworld.com/products/poultry/naturewise-poultry/naturewise-layer16/index.jsp
Where does it come from? 2 Feed is the next step.
Courtesy Shane Masters

8. • Clear impact on how the entire
value chain is coordinate and
how value is being created
• New opportunities to
differentiate and readiness to
pay premium
A profound transformation of the competitive
landscape
Consumers: “We are what we eat…eats”
Agribusiness, Feed & Food industries: “We are what we offer and stand for”