Ready for a New Decade and its Next-generation Consumers

Avocado and egg sandwiches, gluten-free croissants, vegan cinnamon banana bread: what reads like an Instagram feed also illustrates how Millennials have changed the food industry, bakery included. Enter indulgence but not forgetting health, unexpected experience but also eco-friendly concerns, single-serve portions but readily available as snacks anytime. With its disruptive tastes, millennial consumers are changing the game – and bakery goods are creatively meeting their preferences. Just before the end of the decade, Millennials are about to surpass baby boomers as the largest generation, the ones with the influence over food brands. As one generation nears retirement in life and in consumption power, and their voices are soon all but quiet, we are eyeing the next for long-term directions of the industry.

We are about to embark on a new decade that is bound to bring its own shifts and transformations; anticipating the needs and wants of the generations coming after millennials is a good way to prepare. We are already learning how Generation Z sees things differently and how that impacts their behavior. Time magazine has just named one as its “person of the year”, acknowledging who they are and what they stand for. Technology was a defining factor for Millennials (born 1981-1994) and is even more so for the digital-native Gen Zers, which is why they are also known as the iGeneration (born 1995-2009). By 2020, Generation Z accounts for a third of the U.S. population. They are the multi-taskers, across locations, devices, projects, and resources. A stream of continuous updates runs through their everyday life – which poses an important question of how to catch and retain their attention. They will not click as much as millennials on online ads, research shows, since they will not hunt bargains like the recession-grown Gen Y. Their expectations are higher and they are more entrepreneurial in comparison with millennials, social studies show.

Technology brings radical changes to everyday life, and it has done the same in manufacturing plants and kitchens the world over. Innovations will continue to target achieving the utmost accuracy, helping to minimize waste and making the best use out of all resources – ingredients and energy.

What We Know

Current trends visible in the baking industry reflect what millennials and Generation Z consumers like: street food, fermented foods, plant-based ingredients, snacks, and pizza – to name a few of their preferences. Social media will increasingly factor into food choices as well as eatery locations, as will products and concepts that are fresh, innovative, and sustainable. ReGrained is offering an example of such a project, transforming recycling into upcycling with the SuperGrain+ nutrient-dense flour. It is made from brewers’ grain and it has become the start-up’s “hero ingredient” for what they call “the most sustainable way to snack”. Research showed that brewers’ grain has incredible nutritional value: the sugars go into the beer, leaving behind plant protein, prebiotic fiber, and micronutrients.

Consumers are more knowledgeable and they like to share their food; Gen-Z especially is the first generation spending more money on food than other items like clothes. “They are driving us to create; the new generation likes bold and ethnic flavors in particular,” Bridor was recently telling us at IBIE. For the French specialist, the future is organic and vegan.

As we are closely profiling Millennials and Gen Zers, signs are clear that they expect personalized foodstuffs. Food is not a mere energy source; it has been elevated to a form of self-expression. “You are what you eat” has met Instagram and received a complete makeover. Diversity is also celebrated with adventurous propositions of cross-cultural flavors where surprising combinations are creativity at its best meeting curiosity to experiment. For example, Macha is traveling out of Japan and meeting the enthusiastic approval of taste buds everywhere, as we could just see at Food ingredients Europe at the beginning of the month.

In the new decade, transparency will rival taste itself in importance, and it will completely transform the production chain. People will choose brands that offer not only excellent-tasting but also meaningful products, aligned to the values they pursue. Supporting local communities, sustainability, fair trade, and urgency in minimizing the impact to the environment (and how to essentially bring radical changes to undo existing damage) are aspects younger consumers seek, especially. These priorities have bolstered the growth of artisan bakery goods, and it will only continue to expand in the upcoming years. Proteins, fibers, seeds, vitamins – ingredient options abound for artisan products.

Convenience also shares the spotlight among factors that influence food choices; the bakery industry is particularly well-adapted in terms of convenience, with a range of snacks for all tastes, diets, and lifestyles. It’s an especially dynamic segment and it will be interesting to follow into the new decade – the creativity is the limit.

What We Will Learn

In addition to millennials and Gen Z, a brand-new and important segment is growing up and it’s imperative that we become acquainted in the next 10 years. Meet Generation Alpha, ages 10 and up, as social researcher Mark McCrindle identifies the group born from 2010 to 2024. It is early to coin the preferences of this generation just yet, as their profile will crystallize as they become young adults. However, certain features can be distinguished, while food products made for children specifically should always be handled with extra care. “This generation of children will be shaped in households that move more frequently, change careers more often and increasingly live in urban, not just suburban, environments,” the researcher was quoted saying. Generation Alpha is going to benefit from technology advancements that are changing education. This is the generation that will live together with advanced Artificial Intelligence and make strides towards space travel; they will need to be creative. An unprecedented diversity in all aspects of their lives will make this generation challenging to profile for consumption habits, sociology research shows. To match its name, the Alpha will, perhaps, inadvertently also imply what it responds to, in such a fluid environment: the alpha mentality, the leader that opens doors and innovates successful practices, concepts, and technologies. I am particularly looking forward to technology advances that will transform manufacturing, as it will every aspect of life for the Alpha Generation. We will continue to closely monitor new entries and improvements they bring along the production chain.

In the meantime, from all of us at World Bakers, we wish you the happiest of celebrations into the new decade and wonderful family time! Happy New Year, for a successful year ahead!