Survey: Food e-Vangelists Looking to Impact Global Food System

A shift in power is taking place in the food industry led by a group of increasingly influential consumers who want to impact the way food is raised, grown, packaged and sold. 

Global public relations agency Ketchum released results from its third global Food 2020 survey, which sheds light on this vocal subset of food influencers – dubbed Food e-Vangelists – who are making an impact on the hottest food issues today.

“In our third year of fielding this survey, we are seeing consistent and important trends about consumers’ interest in the food system and what they have come to expect and demand from food marketers, buyers and sellers,” said Linda Eatherton, partner and director of Ketchum’s Global Food & Nutrition Practice. “What’s distinct about this year’s study is that we have identified a group of Food e-Vangelists as a small but mighty segment of agents of change who are prepared and motivated to take action and convert others to adopt their opinions about foods, brands and companies in the food and agricultural sector.”

Food e-Vangelists are typically young females who are active online, financially secure and have families – a group that also is commonly targeted in food marketing. However, what is unique is that this group is not defined by its demographic profile but by its like-mindedness, and typical marketing practices aren’t effective with Food e-Vangelists.

“The Food e-Vangelists are the single most important group in the food industry today, but they don’t fit typical marketing demographics,” Eatherton said. “They are hiding in plain sight – yet food companies are allocating budgets on marketing programs that don’t reach them. This group will change the food industry forever, but at the moment, they represent a hugely missed opportunity.”

Eatherton continued, “In our research, we looked at consumers whom we identified as Food Involved – a psychographic profile of consumers that care deeply about food, where it comes from and the processes used in production and manufacturing. However, we uncovered a consumer segment inside this group that was somewhat different, a uniquely powerful subset with very different drivers and expectations from the Food Involved.”

According to the survey findings, Food e-Vangelists are action-oriented; they take it upon themselves to learn about the issues and to influence others by sharing their findings. In fact, more than two-thirds of Food e-Vangelists say they would conduct online research to better inform their opinions if they saw a news story about a banned food item.

More than one-third of Food e-Vangelists regularly take the time to recommend and critique food brands and products, and share their opinions with others – both online and offline. Two-thirds of Food e-Vangelists say they have increased fresh food purchases compared to the previous year. And nearly as many (59 percent) are also consciously purchasing less packaged and prepared foods.

In addition to utilizing blogs and social media to share their opinions about food issues, Food e-Vangelists expect companies to engage with consumers via social media as a tool for direct and open communication. Across the globe, Food e-Vangelists generate up to 1.7 billion conversations about food every week. And in some regions of the world, the Food e-Vangelist represents a significant segment of the population. In Italy, for example, Food e-Vangelists represent more than one-third of the population. In Argentina and China, they represent about one-quarter. Eleven percent of people in the United States are identified as Food e-Vangelists.

Ketchum’s Global Food & Nutrition Practice conducted its third Food 2020 survey (also conducted in 2008 and 2011) in six markets worldwide – the United States, United Kingdom, China, Italy, Germany and Argentina. The online survey was conducted among 1,800 respondents (300 per market) between Feb. 14 and March 5. This most recent Food 2020 study gives food executives a window into a power shift taking place in the food industry and what it means for the world’s food makers and marketers.