Eating habits are shifting from fixed meal times to a more flexible, personalized approach shaped by hunger, mood, and convenience. As traditional meal structures fade and people eat on the go, the line between meals and snacks is blurring, creating new challenges and opportunities for brands to stay relevant in a fast-moving culture.
Worldpanel by Numerator experts analyzed over 3 million eating occasions across nine global markets, revealing how food habits are evolving worldwide. With insights from six continents, early trends in markets like China and Brazil help predict shifts elsewhere.
This report shows exclusive insights that can help position your brand. Central to these are Demand Moments, real-life eating and drinking occasions shaped by people’s energy, emotions, pace of life, and social context rather than traditional meal times or product categories. By mapping 14 distinct moments across four core territories, Demand Moments reveal when and why people truly consume, from a fast weekday lunch to an indulgent weekend treat. This framework helps brands understand not just what is eaten, but the emotional and functional role food and drink play, enabling them to stretch with integrity and stay relevant in a fragmented, on-the-go consumption landscape.
Another exclusive tool is the new Demand Spread Score, which translates this understanding into strategy, showing how broadly and meaningfully a brand is used across moments. This behavioural KPI captures a brand’s versatility by measuring its coverage across different occasions and how evenly its presence is distributed. Brands with high Demand Spread Scores flex across multiple needs, adapt to new behaviours, and drive sustainable growth.
This report shows how brands can drive growth by focusing on flexible eating moments, and how tools like the Demand Spread Score turn these insights into strategy.
- The real-life moments driving consumption today
- How Spread Score measures behavioural stretch — and why it matters
- Lessons from brands that have redefined their role in people’s lives
During this session, our team highlights the major takeaways from this year’s report, such as:
- Why (and where) traditional mealtime marketing is losing ground
- What our “Demand Moments” model reveals about real-life consumption
- How to measure a brand’s behavioural stretch with Spread Score — and why versatile brands grow faster
Appetite for growth 2024
Curious about not just what people eat, but where and why? Ready to connect consumption habits to broader contexts and uncover trends that will shape future strategies?
Read the report
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