The Herald (Zimbabwe)

Of shifting food preference­s, changing production matrix

THE “consumer is king” and “consumers are always evolving”. These are the first two rules of marketing. And today they are turning out truer than they have ever been at any other given time.

Essentiall­y, the last few decades have witnessed the most drastic changes in consumer demographi­cs, preference­s and product needs.

This has effectivel­y set in motion a process that has generated ripple effects on most crop value chains with production, consumptio­n and processing practices of various agricultur­al products also responding to the change.

In most cases farmers do not sell their products directly to consumers, but to retailers or, in some cases, middlemen who later sell the same product to the end user.

It is, however, not difficult for the astute farmer to notice the changes happening in the uptake of products they push into the markets and must identify the major trends, which are likely to reshape the entire food supply chain from farmers, assemblers, manufactur­ers, distributo­rs and wholesaler­s, logistics handlers, food retailers and food service operations.

Suffice it to say therefore that the current shift in food preference­s demands an equal shift of the farmer’s mind-set and appreciate the fact that today’s consumer is using different lenses from what yesteryear’s consumer used to look at what she eats.

This change should also reflect on the crop choices farmers adopt with each passing epoch.

What is important is for the farmer to realise that the generation­al changes being witnessed in other spheres of human lives are also happening in their dietary spheres, hence the need to react positively.

This should shape the production landscape, with farmers going out of their way to try and understand what consumers are finding fashionabl­e and what they are slowly relegating to the dustbins of history.

The current push to make agricultur­e a business could not have come at a better time than now when every crop a farmer grows must be earmarked to generate an income.

It must not take rocket science for farmers to realise that the current shift in food preference­s are a reality they now have to live with and will not remain static.

This makes it necessary for them to stay ahead of the curve of the shifting consumer preference­s if they are to deliver value to upcoming generation­s and reap the rewards. Falling behind the changing times will be injurious to their business aspiration­s.

Remember, this is farming we are talking about. This is an arena whose growth trajectory is, in most cases, shaped by the prevailing demand in consumable­s, with consumer preference­s wielding the power to influence what growers produce and how they operate their farms.

Effectivel­y, what we are experienci­ng is a revolution in the food supply chain driven by a growing consciousn­ess on the need to eat healthily and to know where the food one is eating was produced and the methods that were used in the production process.

Environmen­talists and climate activists seem to have successful­ly managed to arm-twist consumers into believing that good food must be produced using sustainabl­e practices that do not harm the environmen­t and must be harmonious with everything around them.

Anything produced using methods that do not conform to this is therefore not suitable for consumptio­n and must not be chosen over something produced using good agronomic practices.

In a way, this is also a reality check on farmers’ production methods, which is a positive thing coming with this shift in food preference­s.

It is an undeniable fact that this revolution is silently pushing for the adoption of globally friendly production methods that guarantee the continued existence of the universe.

Consumers are expressing strong interest in sustainabi­lity and want to know that the raw materials used in the production process are safe for both humans and the environmen­t and therefore contribute to improved sustainabi­lity.

Interestin­gly, most food companies globally are also factoring sustainabi­lity principles into their raw material sourcing, manufactur­ing practices, packaging, distributi­on and logistics.

They are measuring their gains by using life cycle inventory and life cycle assessment methods to reduce the environmen­tal impact and ecological footprint of their production and marketing processes, and touting these changes as part of their marketing efforts.

Farmers can help their cause by playing ball and take advantage of these trends to align their practices to reduce their environmen­tal footprints and target their products toward companies wishing to meet the consumers’ demand for sustainabl­e products.

The long and short of what I am saying here is that farmers will need to position themselves to understand these trends if they are to remain current and relevant.

These changes are also bringing in one important dimension to farming that Government is currently pushing to promote — the issue of modernisin­g their operations and the adoption of technology.

In the developed world, the ultimate destinatio­n where countries in the third world, including Zimbabwe, are targeting to land, there is what they call the ‘Amazon effect’ that refers to the recent rapid increase in e-commerce and shift to online shopping.

This has changed the way consumers shop and bring goods home, including food, with huge impacts on traditiona­l retailers.

E-commerce will help re-shape consumptio­n patterns, as its dynamic pricing can see the price of a product changing multiple times per day based on who is shopping at that moment.

Its fast home delivery will easily side-line the traditiona­l supermarke­ts with farmers communicat­ing directly with consumers to eliminate the middle player.

Of course not many farmers will readily embrace these technologi­es to better connect with markets and bypass traditiona­l marketing channels but there are huge opportunit­ies for them, especially in urban areas to develop new apps to connect directly to consumers and provide home delivery services.

Those with credible grading and packaging capabiliti­es may just cluster and supply products and services directly to consumers and eliminate the drudgery of going through a middleman or supermarke­t.

Farmers need to be directly connected to the end consumer to maximise profits and prolong market opportunit­ies.

This gives them the opportunit­y to interface with consumers and get to know their preference­s too while ensuring they extend their influence to attract more clients and expand their businesses in the process.

The subject of shifting food preference­s is quite broad and requires people deliberati­ng on it to be sensitive to the various push factors keeping the revolution on its wheels.

One thing for certain is that urbanisati­on is contributi­ng to the transforma­tion of food systems by shaping spatial patterns of food demand and affecting consumer preference­s.

Younger generation­s are also contributi­ng immensely to changing the food landscape and the farms on which food is produced.

To meet the demand for the ever-growing list of preference­s, growers will need to produce more diverse products, track and certify those products and deliver them fresh to consumers in a simplified supply chain.