The inevitable rise of healthy dining?

A recent survey by Unilever Food Services found that 93% of catering college lecturers believe that, going forward, we will come to have a greater focus on health and nutrition when eating out. In addition, 95% of lecturers agreed that chefs have a role to play in helping us make healthy eating choices.

When asked about current consumer attitudes to healthy dining, the perception is that consumers often pass over healthier menu options as they believe that they will be more expensive or in some way less enjoyable than higher calorie or ‘junk’ food.

Changing attitudes

Overturning this negative view of healthy options will take time, but it is clear to see that there are many factors already influencing a change in attitudes. There has been a range of healthy eating campaigns that have been well covered by media, as well as any number of food-related TV programmes that offer twists on traditional dishes to make healthier options appear more exciting.

In addition, the 2013 horsemeat scandal has led to terms such as food provenance and traceability becoming common topics for debate in the media, leading to an increased understanding among consumers of what actually constitutes the final dish they see in front of them.

Technology solutions

Another factor may be to more clearly illustrate the nutritional benefits as healthy lifestyles and ethical considerations become more appealing to the modern consumer. Technology can be used to provide far greater access to information on things like allergens, ingredient provenance and traceability than can feasibly be printed on a menu or food package, empowering the consumer to make more informed choices.

Technology can only be effectively used where it is supported however, and free customer access to wifi systems is now regarded by many to be a standard service expectation when in a store or restaurant. Consideration also has to be given toward how that information can be presented in a standardised and highly accurate way.

An inevitable rise of healthy dining?

All the above would seem to indicate an inevitable move toward demands for healthier dining options, with many foodservice providers already heavily promoting the health benefits of the ranges on offer.

As technology continues to provide the customer with easy means for accessing far greater depths of information, the expectation of it being available will also become more pronounced. Enabling this access in a way that provides the customer with a high quality experience may prove to become a key differentiator for foodservice businesses.

GS1 UK’s role in information-sharing

GS1 UK operates two key initiatives to support the sharing of product information for the foodservice industry:

• TrueSource – this online service is used for storing and managing product information, enabling businesses to keep track of all key product attributes in one place through an easy-to-use web portal. Data can be shared with trading partners via Global Data Synchronisation (GDS), ensuring that there is only one single version of product information and that it is presented in a consistent, industry-standard format. Find out more here.
• Food Information Challenge – launched in 2012, this initiative focused on the information flow within the supply chain to determine its accuracy and identify the opportunities for improving it. The associated report concluded that the industry should collaborate to make it easier to do business and embrace a global industry supply chain standard and (the technology) to meet the growing requirements placed on it.