Healthy Sales Trends in Healthful Foods

As you recover from the traditional American Thanksgiving stuff-a-thon, you may find yourself vowing to eat nothing but salad and brown rice for the rest of the year.

Americans may have become more health-conscious in recent decades, embracing vitamin-enhanced water and declaring war on trans fats. But we still scarf down artery-busting amounts of cheeseburgers and deep-dish pizza. Anyone in the food-sales business these days can feel caught in the middle: should you appeal to consumers' better natures, or offer indulgent culinary escapism -- preferably chocolate-flavored?

A number of major food companies, including Kraft (KFT Quote) and General Mills (GIS Quote), have learned that it pays to position their products as healthful or natural. The key is to make claims you can back up.

SPINS, a market research and consulting firm for the natural-products industry, recently released a study that showed sales of natural and organic products in conventional retailers (i.e. not health-food stores) grew 12% over the past year.

What makes a product "natural"? SPINS CEO Tony Olson explains:

"Authenticity extends beyond whether a product is free of artificial flavors and ingredients and moves into the realm of overall health and wellness, social and environmental sustainability, nutritional benefits and other leading factors. A brand or retailer's ability to resonate with a consumer on this level is a strong indicator of success in the conventional food, drug and mass channels."

According to SPINS, organic products have seen steady growth, especially when priced competitively with conventional items. Safeway (SWY Quote), for example, originally developed its O Organics line as a store brand. But it was so successful that the company is now selling it in other grocery stores and overseas markets.

Even if your products aren't organic, they can still be marketed to nutrition-conscious shoppers, through specific labeling and consumer education.

Take Kraft. A few years ago, the company was in the front lines of the debate over childhood obesity, thanks to its lineup of sugar- and fat-laden treats. As part of an overall reassessment of its product mix, the company began a "Sensible Solution" labeling program, highlighting foods with lower calorie counts and higher fiber content. Sensible Solution products now account for about one-third of the company's total retail sales in the U.S., including a very successful line of 100-calorie packs of crackers and cookies.