The report also explores why consumers are turning away from the cereal bowl in favour of other breakfast options.
Rabobank has identified five trends – or ‘cereal killers’ – that are changing US consumers’ breakfast habits. They are:
In the report, titled Cereal Killers: Five Trends Revolutionising the American Breakfast, Nicholas Fereday, global senior analyst with Rabobank’s Food & Agribusiness Research and Advisory group, asks, “Is breakfast cereal, an American staple once characterised by strong innovation and competitive brand marketing, failing to meet the challenges of the 21st century consumer landscape?
“Flat sales and declining volumes over the past decade indicate consumers are tiring of boxed cereals, lured away by more contemporary, aspirational, and convenient morning eating options in other grocery aisles or restaurants.”
Rabobank says that, despite the trends reshaping the American breakfast meal, it sees continued strong potential in the US breakfast cereal market. Fereday offers several strategies for breakfast cereal companies to grow their US business and take advantage of trends currently undercutting their market.
“Despite the numerous health positives associated with breakfast cereal, some companies already appear to be exiting through the snack aisle,” said Fereday. “We are not predicting the end of this $10bn market, rather, we believe that breakfast cereals can aspire to more than single-digit growth and erosion of market share.
“To turn the tide, we suggest a renewed focus on innovation, a rebooting of the message to consumers, and, for children’s cereal, an embrace of what you are, even if that means new positioning in a different grocery aisle.”
Source: Rabobank
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