Food Focus: August Trends

Consumers Shop and Cook for Both Back to School and the Upcoming Autumn Season

August is a unique month for CPG brands and grocery retailers in the food industry because it marks two things: the start of back to school season for parents and the changing of the seasons for overall consumers. 

As a result, food trends often play double duty and serve dual purposes during this time of the year. In August, we predict that casseroles will make a huge comeback as inspiration for cozy meals dominate in autumn, but they’ll also play a role for busy parents, particularly as schools reopen across the country. In line with this, frozen and microwaved meals will be a big hit among parents of young children.

And following annual trends, grilling will continue throughout August this year, with continued interest and engagement with meat ingredients, new meat alternatives and all the fixings that accompany grilled mains.

Versatile Casseroles Are a 2-in-1

For parents who anticipate shortened meal prep timeframes as the morning and evening rush approaches, as well as people searching for cozy meals as warm, sunny days depart, casseroles are the answer for both. 

Around this time, as summer turns into autumn, casseroles experience one of their largest surges in our recipe network. In 2019, engagement with casserole recipes increased by 36% from July 1 to August 31 and the trendline shows an obvious upward increase.

This marks a valuable moment for shortcut ingredients like premixed seasoning packets, canned vegetables and jarred sauces to influence shoppers through recipes, and make it onto shopping lists and into shopping carts. 

It’s also an important moment for brands that can offer classic casserole fixings like ground meat, vegan and vegetarian meat alternatives and cheese. Here, it’s vital for food brands to reach families early while they’re preparing for a busy upcoming season.

+98% increase in engagement with meat alternatives over the past quarter

The Rush of Back to School Season

In August, parents prepare for back to school and return to more rigorous meal planning in anticipation of rushed weekdays and weekends filled with activities. As a result, “quick and easy” is the food theme of the month within our recipe network of +5.4 million recipes. 

Brands that offer easy alternatives to home cooked meals, frozen shortcut ingredients or simple snacks need to make sure that they’re specifically engaging with parents, who are making their purchasing decisions when they’re looking at digital recipes in preparation for busy weeks. 

In that same vein, microwavable meals and recipes are popular categories in August during back to school season. 

In fact, we saw a 44% increase in engagement with microwaved meals and recipes from July to August 2019, with a sharp increase at the end of July to the beginning of August. Instant ramen, popcorn and frozen prepared foods are some of the most popular categories within microwaved foods during this time. 

Grilling Season Continues

While the changing of the seasons may mark a return to indoor cooking for some families, others are still enjoying the warm weather outdoors with a continuation of summer grilling. While there’s some natural decline to outdoor grilling, engagement with grilling recipes is only down by 6% from the beginning of July to the end of August in 2019.

The top meats in our network in August are:

But fall grilling isn’t all about meats. Vegetarian recipes saw a gradual 9% increase during this month, making this time a great opportunity for brands that offer meat alternatives and vegetarian or vegan sides to influence plant-based or health-conscious consumers.

And as grilling season continues, so does consumption of grilling necessities like buns (1,990,346 recipe views in August 2020), rolls (247,036 views), seasonings and condiments. 

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