Healthy Food Consumption Trends

From the study “Challenges and Opportunities for the Supply of Differentiated Food” of by Procomer of Costa Rica:

Executive Summary

The Costa Rican food industry has evolved in the last 10 years and is showing an average annual growth of 5%, but this dynamism has been mainly due to an increase in the amount exported and not so much because products have greater added value. Meanwhile, global trends in the food industry point to the development of differentiated, natural, autochthonous and sustainable food options.  By 2016, 34% of global packaged food sales fell into the category of health and wellness, with options such as fortified, organic, natural, free from [a particular ingredient] or those targeted at intolerant consumers.  

In the case of Costa Rica, factors such as: the high quality of agro, certifications, awareness on the part of the business sector in light of global trends, the country’s position on sustainability issues and an ecosystem supporting innovation have become opportunities that the country can take advantage of. To date, in Costa Rica, the development of differentiated packaged foods has been largely driven by some national SMEs and these have focused only on the local market.  

Read full report (in spanish).

Fuente: Central America Data Express