To Understand Your Next Consumers, Look Beyond Millennials

Smartphones may influence kids’ decisions about food

Smartphones may influence kids’ decisions about food

There seems to be a constant stream of content in the media about Millennials and their habits and characteristics, particularly as consumers. But, what if they’re not the ones to be focusing on?

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A recent article in Food Business News is saying that they’re not. Instead, it suggests shifting the focus to the next generation.

The article states that, according to bestselling author Matt Walsh, the most disruptive group of future food consumers was born in 2007.

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“If you understand how an 8-year-old thinks, you’re a long way toward really understanding a transformative change in consumer behavior,” says Walsh, CEO of innovation research lab Tomorrow, during a July 13 presentation at the Institute of Food Technologists’ annual meeting and food exposition in Chicago.

When an 8-year-old makes decisions about food, eating and dining, it’s likely to be connected to their experience with a smartphone, Walsh says.

2007 was the year Apple introduced the iPhone, and with it came dramatic changes to the experience of eating and dining. Walsh explained that Instagram has already helped transform the dining experience, and food packaging frequently contains scannable codes and interactive labels.

Population growth, urbanization and changing consumer tastes demand a new approach to food and agriculture, Walsh says.

The industry is now tasked with engaging the first fully digital generation as they become adults.

Read the full article here.

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