“Plant-Based" exposure (STKL)
It may seem like the plant-based food trend has jumped the shark when Chipotle is marketing its cauliflower rice as a plant-based, as seen in the post below. The plant-based trend is receiving so much interest lately that companies are reviewing their product offering to see what can be marketed as plant-based. Chipotle is just confusing the term plant-based with other dietary terms like “low carbs” or “keto-friendly.” The plant-based trend is still in the early innings and is less than 1% of grocery sales. The largest category of plant-based foods is milk. The market share gainer in milk is oat milk. The best way to invest in that growth is SunOpta or Oatly (if you can get shares before the upcoming IPO). We presented our SunOpta Black Book yesterday.
CLICK HERE for a video replay or to download the materials.
Super Bowl plans (AVO)
The Super Bowl is less than three weeks away. According to a consumer survey by Numerator.com, 72% of respondents plan to watch the game at home or with members of their household compared with 53% in previous years. 14% of respondents plan to watch the event in someone’s home other than a member of their household compared with 39% in previous years. 3% plan to watch at a bar or restaurant compared with 6% in previous years. 47% of consumers still intend to purchase food and drinks for the game despite more home viewing. 15% plan on purchasing more while 29% plan on spending less and another 9% buying nothing, as seen in the charts below. Mission Produce earlier in the week said it had seen greater volumes of avocadoes purchased for the biggest event of its year (but market prices are lower). At-home consumption of alcohol could also see a benefit as it was for New Year’s.
The Super Advertising event still has openings (BUD)
The Super Bowl is also the biggest event of the year for many companies that advertise around and during the game. Viewership for most sporting events has been lower during the pandemic, but the Super Bowl's spectacle is still expected to draw the largest audience of the year. Advertisers for this year’s game include several snack brands, including Frito-Lay, Cheetos, Doritos (PEP), and M&Ms. Beverage brands are expected to continue to invest in Super Bowl ads, including Mountain Dew (PEP) and Budweiser (BUD). Several past advertisers have chosen not to buy ads for this year, including SodaStream, Sabra, Little Caesars, Facebook, Olay, and Avocadoes From Mexico. One industry that appears to be spending much less on ads is the movie industry. Compared to this time last year, fewer brands have committed to advertising during the game. Last year all of the national ad slots were sold out by Thanksgiving, while there are still openings this year.
