As we approach summer in the United States, consumers are looking to fire up the grill. While we typically think of burgers, hot dogs and steak as the primary fare for home chefs, a recent survey by Idaho Falls, Idaho-based Category Partners says nearly 75% of consumers also grill vegetables.
The survey, which also breaks down grill preferences by region, also ranked consumers most preferred grilling vegetables, and sweet corn came out on top.
Consumers see grilling as a healthy way to add vegetables to their meals, says Cara Ammon, Category Partners' director of research, in a news release.
“Consumers, especially younger consumers, are moving beyond their favorites, adding more and more vegetables – such as sweet potatoes, romaine lettuce, artichokes and eggplant – to their grills,” she said.
Category Partners also offered toolkit to help retailers take advantage of this trend, with some of these suggestions:
Highlight color and increase display size, and ensure the top grilling vegetables are facing the traffic flow;
Consider grouping grilling vegetables together;
Promote within produce on a secondary display, or within meat, seafood or prepared food, especially when it comes to staples with a longer shelf life, like onions, potatoes, corn and sweet potatoes;
Merchandise with complementary items like marinades, dressings, spices, herbs, appetizers and side dishes;
Provide meal inspiration by bundling items into “grilling meal kits”;
Demo non-traditional recipes, like grilled asparagus and shiitake tacos, grilled chicken wings with shishito peppers and herbs and blackened Cajun-spiced grilled onions.
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