Takeaways From IGD's Food-to-Go Conference

IGD held their annual Food-to-Go conference in London on November 8, attracting a range of high level industry leaders to speak.

Despite Brexit headwinds, participants remained upbeat on the prospects for the UK food to go market, noting that is was still the world's most expensive food market, with consumers willing to pay a premium for quality.

Key takeaways from the conference included:

1. The estimates that growth in food will be twice the growth in general retail.

2. The five megatrends that will shape the food to go market will be:

• Time optimisation - consumers are looking to streamline certain aspects of their food-to-go mission such as the way in which they pay. 31% of those aged up to 34 want self-service checkout;
• Health consciousness - consumers are becoming increasingly focussed on their health, with 31% saying they'd eat out more frequently if healthier options were available;
• Personalisation - diners want personalised offers, and are happy to part with their personal data if they feel that it is rewarded in this way;
• Experimentation - diners are particularly interested in wider hot food to go ranges, with 43% saying that this is something that would be appealing to them. This is backed up by further research which showed that more than half of those getting breakfast on the go travel to 2 or more establishments to get what they're after;
• Social Consciousness - with more than 74% of consumers more aware of the environmental impact of their plastic packaging, a focus on environmental sustainability will be important for brands. Respondents specifically pointed to reusable packaging and cups as driving their choice of venues.