Study reveals desserts are increasingly considered as an anytime occasion

10 Oct 2017 --- Consumers are slowly shifting away from the traditional view of dessert as a post-meal occasion and are increasingly defining dessert as an anytime occasion, according to Technomic’s recently released 2017 Dessert Consumer Trend Report. Planned dessert occasions are also on the rise, and 18 to 34-year-olds are increasingly likely to visit specific restaurants for a meal because of a dessert they offer.

“Portable desserts like milkshakes, smoothies and fruit are increasingly popular for anytime occasions like snacking and replacing meals,” explains Kelly Weikel, director of consumer insights at Technomic. “Greater opportunity exists to drive off-peak traffic by positioning desserts as craveable, stand-alone occasions throughout the day or by emphasizing the snackable nature of top desserts like fruit, cookies, brownies and ice cream.”

Key takeaways from the report include:

• Thirty-two percent of consumers eat dessert after a meal at least twice a week.
• Forty-six percent of consumers’ dessert occasions are planned (rather than impulse).
• Forty-eight percent of consumers say they are willing to pay more for desserts that are made from scratch.