Making Use of SFA’s State of the Specialty Food Industry Report Data
The Specialty Food Association recently released its State of the Specialty Food Industry report 2024-25 Edition giving insight into the fastest-growing specialty food categories and forecasting trends across key segments.
During an SFA webinar titled “The Future of Specialty Food: Insights from the NEW State of the Industry Report 2024-25” David Lockwood, the report's author, and Nona Lim, SFA Board Chair and founder of Nona Lim Foods, discussed how specialty food makers can leverage the report to drive informed business strategies.
“This is highly reliable data from a reliable source,” said Lockwood. When you include data from the report in a slide deck, it will impress potential investors and grocery buyers “because it shows them you did your homework.”
Quick Bites—Report Highlights
Specialty food sales are growing: The specialty food industry has exceeded sales of $206 billion dollars, bolstered by an acceleration of growth in the foodservice channel and dozens of specialty categories that have outgrown their conventional equivalents, such as jerky, milk, seasonings, and sauces, according to the report.
Ecommerce is up: Lockwood noted that ecommerce is a less mature market, but that consumers are spending more money and buying more categories through the channel. “Younger consumers are coming more online—Gen Z is still making their way into adulthood—that’s going to account for a lot more online category purchases in the future, guaranteed.”
Snacking, indulgence, cooking at home reign supreme: Research shows that snacking alone grew 21 percent in 2021-23 compared to the 13 percent average. When it comes to home cooking, he explained that consumers are engaging in the behavior in order to save money and because they enjoy creating restaurant-quality food with specialty ingredients.
Leveraging the Report
“When I look at this data myself as a maker, I see that it can help with sales presentations or an investment deck, and can provide a reality check,” said Lim. “As makers, we are very optimistic, saying ‘we’re going to sustain triple digit growth over the next period’ but this report is a reality check,” said Lim. Brands can compare their projections with actionable information to get a better idea of the specialty food landscape and where their offerings fit into it.
A “reality check” is paramount for specialty food businesses because, as Lockwood explained, funding is becoming increasingly difficult for makers to secure.
When considering the challenges that emerging makers may face in the coming years, Lim also encouraged makers who have never previously considered foodservice to think about its many channels, including convenience.
“As a maker, we think of foodservice as needing larger pack formats. But there are so many places where foodservice will want the exact same product format and pack sizes as retail. I find that really interesting,” said Lim. For example, delis and cafes, as well as alternative channels like airport lounges and university cafeterias can all provide opportunities for specialty brands to excel.
Lockwood agreed, adding that universities and colleges are often havens for cutting-edge products.
If you’re interested in browsing The State of the Specialty Food Industry and 10-Year Category Tracking and Forecasts, 2024-2025 Edition, you can download it here. For the first time, the resource is free for SFA members, who must be logged into their member account to access.
To learn more about the report and how your specialty food business can benefit from the data, watch the free webinar on demand in the SFA Learning Center. Watch now.