Convenience is king

Current trends in the food and beverages market continually point to the fact that consumers want convenience. Whether that means easy-opening packs or individual portions, the demand for more practical solutions is only going to increase. Emma-Jane Batey speaks with the Co-operative's Steve Murrells, Charlotte Tisdall at Little Dish and Richard Lawrence at Weetabix.

Perhaps the UK's most famous convenience store, the Co-operative is "the fastest growing non-discounter foodstore" and confirmed as the UK's "most frequently visited major supermarket". This puts the 3,000-branch-strong organisation, with more stores opening every year, in a great position to tell us what convenience means to consumers right now.

Established in Lancashire in 1844, the Co-operative is "the UK's largest mutual business": it is owned by more than 8 million members, many of whom are among the 70,000 employees working across its various local, convenience and midsized stores. The group has created a convenience retailing report, entitled 'Mission Impulsive', to explore and define how shoppers' behaviours are changing and how the convenience market can ensure it responds accurately to those changes.
Key findings of the report reveal that around 16% of consumers do not use a shopping list, for example, while around 60% do but only write down key items. This, alongside other findings, has many implications for the convenience market. It means:

• spontaneous cooking is driving top-up food shops
• meal planning is falling out of fashion
• younger consumers prefer convenience shopping to doing one regular 'big shop'
• midweek supermarket shopping is more popular than shopping at the weekend
• the growth of 'semi-homemade' cooking is driving more convenient formats.

The report also observed that healthier eating and quicker cooking times were desirable across demographics and - although meal planning has become less popular - individuals, couples and families are seeking home-cooked meals that don't require too much time spent planning or in the kitchen.

It's the perfect storm for convenient packaging. Easier-opening cartons that save time and reduce frustration, smaller portions that reduce waste, smart packaging that can be popped straight in the oven or microwave, and on-the-go foods that allow consumers to feel like they're fuelling their body in a healthy way: all of this and more can help drive brands forward to meet consumers' needs.

Customer-focused packaging
Co-op's chief executive for retail Steve Murrells knows that packaging plays a large part in the rise and fall of the convenience sector. "Consumer shopping habits are changing, with shoppers increasingly buying what they want, when they need it," he says. "At the Co-operative, we understand that our customers have concerns over excessive use of packaging, so we're constantly on the lookout for ways to reduce the amount of packaging we use.
"One of the issues we face is that, in many cases, packaging is essential for food and drink, because of the protection it offers products and, often, the extension of shelf life. Research shows that we actually throw away more leftover food in the UK than packaging, so we're looking into new types of packaging that can reduce this. We also give information on how best to store food, and tasty ideas for how to use leftovers." Co-op remains committed to improving the sustainability of its packaging too, though: "One of our latest moves involves all our Co-op sandwiches now being sold in cardboard packaging, which is really easy to recycle."

Parent-approved packs

Another way to reduce leftovers and cut waste is to be smart with portion sizes in the first place. Small, handy packets, pouches and jars have always thrived in the children's food market, for instance, as their size and ease of use make them perfect for small hands and growing appetites.
London-based creator of nutritious meals and snacks for children Little Dish appreciates that the packaging of its products must be as appropriate as their 100% natural ingredients and no-added-sugar promise. Little Dish's latest product launch is its Go Gos: healthy, easy-to-eat biscuits that are packed with chia seeds and wholegrain oats. The product has won the award for Best New Children's Food at the World Food Innovation Awards.
Charlotte Tisdall, marketing director for Little Dish, tells Packaging Today, "Go Gos was the first Little Dish range developed for the baby aisle rather than the chilled-meals aisle, where you'll find our meals for toddlers. We wanted to create a packaging look that built on the existing much-loved Little Dish brand but with a fresh new design, in order to appeal to parents looking for healthy snack options for their little ones."
A strong and varied team helped create Little Dish's new packaging, with the design and artwork handled by Pearlfisher, the shelf-ready packaging cases printed by Encase, the cardboard multipack cartons printed by MSO Printers and the plastic film bags printed by Interflex.
"We wanted the packaging to clearly communicate Little Dish Go Gos' health credentials," says Tisdall. "We achieved this with a "nutritionist-approved" signpost and "good energy guarantee" printed on the front of the pack, and we used a natural colour palette to bring the nutritious ingredients to life. It was also important for us to be helpful to parents, so we included a free-meal coupon in every multipack, and a cute resealable sticker on each bag to stop spills. And, of course, we test all our packaging with parents to ensure it communicates our 'proper food for kids' promise."

Breakfast on the go

It's not just children that portion-packs need to appeal to: increasingly, adults are seeking healthy, convenient meals and snacks too, with on-the-go foods currently enjoying a huge boost in popularity. For UK cereal giant Weetabix, research shows that while consumers still want to enjoy a healthy, filling breakfast, fewer people were actually able to take the time to eat breakfast at home. Weetabix On The Go is a breakfast drink that's packed with milk and cereal - perfect for the on-the-go breakfast.
Weetabix, based in Northampton, represents popular breakfast brands including Ready Brek, Weetos and Alpen; with Weetabix being manufactured and sold in the UK since 1932, it has been hailed as one of the country's most iconic brands. But even iconic brands have to remain relevant, and this new product is part of that. The success of Weetabix On The Go has given the company a 48% increase in sales in the on-the-go food category, which includes cereal bars.
As well as the initial range of 250ml bottles in chocolate, banana, strawberry and vanilla flavours, the company has recently added higher-protein options to the selection.
Richard Lawrence, head of brand for Weetabix, explains, "By building protein drinks into the on-the-go breakfast category, we aim to drive incremental growth, by addressing the number of breakfast cereal occasions currently lost to consumers grabbing snacks on the go or skipping breakfast entirely. Such lost occasions account for 18% of the breakfast category."
By targeting health-conscious consumers aged 25 and above, Weetabix On The Go Protein is a combination of fruit flavours such as blueberry with soluble wheat fibre, milk and protein. Lawrence adds, "The trend for a protein-rich diet has become more mainstream, and consumers now believe that high-protein products will keep them feeling fuller for longer and help build lean muscles. Our research shows that 38% of people want to add more protein to their diet."
Weetabix also offers its individual-serving breakfast cereal pots to the on-the-go sector, with leading flexible-packaging manufacturer Clondalkin Flexible Packaging Bury (formerly Chadwicks Lids) producing the high-quality polyester lids. These convenient pots join the company's drive to capture the on-the-go sector.
Mark Tyrrell, packaging control manager for Weetabix, says, "We introduced these new breakfast pots to appeal to consumers looking for a quick and nutritious breakfast they can eat anywhere. The on-the-go breakfast market is growing as more people eat their breakfast out of the home, and this is a big opportunity for retailers. We are delighted with the design and quality of the products. The lids are eye-catching and robust, and the service we received from Clondalkin Flexible Packaging Bury has been excellent."

Convenient solutions

Packaging manufacturers clearly have a role to play in the increasing desire for products to be more convenient, with Danish company SwiftOpen a keen supporter of innovative flexible formats. With its easy-open concept that allows flexible packaging to be opened without scissors or a knife, and a resealable strip that keeps the product inside fresher for longer, the company is certainly getting attention.
Kim Pihl, managing director of SwiftOpen, highlights the key advantages of the concept: "SwiftOpen is doubly convenient: it makes products more convenient thanks to how easy it is for all demographics of consumers to use, and it's convenient for manufacturers as it can be integrated with their existing packaging lines. We're inspiring our customers to add value to their products without having to invest in a whole new packaging line."
With the SwiftOpen concept able to be applied to all manner of packaging material specifications, including biodegradable and sustainable materials, it is suitable for horizontal and vertical form fill and seal packaging, and premade packaging.
"SwiftOpen is the ideal packaging solution across the food industry, as only low force is required to open the pack, it delivers safe and controlled opening of flexible packaging, and it offers a reclose option for convenient storage and longer shelf life," says Pihl. "We've already seen great results with customers offering products such as sandwiches, granola and cereal bars for the on-the-go sector - all sorts of growing markets where consumers don't want to get crumbs on their lap! "SwiftOpen is a simple solution that can be added to packaging lines at a reasonable cost and delivers a great return on investment. The trend for increased convenience is not going away, and SwiftOpen is a great way to keep consumers happy."