A NEW GOLDEN AGE FOR NUTRITION:Opportunities for the food sector to add value, communicate and innovate.

Today we are living in a New Era of Nutrition, with interest in healthy products growing exponentially year on year. No longer just a basic necessity, food has become a veritable social phenomenon.

A wave of change has swept through the food sector with dizzying speed, presenting both challenges and opportunities for reinvention, development and, ultimately, growth.

If we want to design a winning strategy in this rapidly changing landscape, an in-depth understanding of the players, environment and channels that make it up will be indispensable.

Today, as many as 60% of digital consumers search for health advice online, with 54% looking for information relating to food and healthy habits.¹ These figures give some idea of the intense interest that these topics provoke. The right information can also help us understand how to maximise our impact on our target markets, telling us, for instance, that their key information sources are blogs and forums (50.4%), followed by social media (47.1%) – both more widely consulted than either nutritional experts (42%) or doctors (38.8%).²

As new online platforms have emerged, social media channels have matured and the impact of micro- and macro-influencers has grown, these sources have become hugely important in shaping consumer behaviour and shopping habits. Those offering advice on nutrition and health can forge an even more direct connection with their audience.

Trends and new concepts like mindful eating, plant-based diets, green packaging, zero-waste and vertical farming have all been promoted through social media and, in many cases, through the lifestyles and personal beliefs of a handful of influencers. Online, consumers are exposed to a bewildering array of messages, often contradictory and sometimes with little scientific basis. The fact that ‘Fake News’ was declared the Oxford English Dictionary’s word of the year for 2017, following a 365% spike in usage, speaks volumes.

This has particular significance for food and nutrition, as 30% of all ‘fake news’ relates to this sector.³ Even more alarming are forecasts for 2022, which suggest that people in the majority of Western countries will eventually consume more false information than genuine news.⁴

This is why the food sector must act, take the initiative and foster an honest, straightforward and evidence-based discussion, which healthcare professionals can share with nutrition influencers and consumers through multiple channels.

Thanks to more than 15 years of experience in the food sector and our work with food trade associations, businesses and institutions, we have produced a five-point guide that summarises our scientific approach:

1. Give experts access todigital tools relating to Nutrition and Communication, offering real-time access to the latest trends making an impact on the sector.
2. Carve out a new space for discussion and positioning, demonstrating the value of the sectorand its products in a credible, evidence-based and sustainable way and highlighting their benefits for Nutrition and Health.
3. Develop a multi-channel communication and prevention strategyfor issues relating to Nutrition and Health.
4. Mobilise our network of influencers and healthcare professionals.
5. Implement a positive, high-impact consumer communication plan, delivered through Healthcare Professionals, Influencers and Content Marketing.

1. Spanish National Observatory for Telecommunications and the Information Society – ONTSI, 2018
2. *Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Spain. ‘Buceando en las tendencias alimentarias de los españoles, 2018.
3. Aragón Food Industries Association (AIAA), 2019
4. Technological Forecasts Report. Gartner Consulting, 2018.