Symrise study: Nostalgia and comfort are key drivers in premium soup

The principal objectives of the Understanding Super Premium Soups study were to explore what defines super premium soups for the Millennial consumer; to identify the drivers, understand the relevance and perceptions of premium across key soup categories; and, to uncover opportunities for innovation in the category.

Symrise’s consumer research team used a versatile online and mobile platform to assist in engaging consumers in creative ways to capture meaningful and relevant data. Blogs, forums and picture books were among the research tools that were employed. Subjects were targeted Millennial consumers in various US locations from New York on the East Coast to Seattle on the West Coast. The targeted subjects were creative and articulate Millennial consumers, ages 18-34, who regularly shop and consume a combination of fresh and ambient soup products. The group also comprised of a mix of ethnicities and backgrounds.

When asked to define, participants cited super premium soups, functional and emotional dimensions. Functionality was associated with positive product attributes such as quality ingredients, authentic recipes and see-through packaging. Emotional aspects were identified by the comfort that soups provide, satisfaction that leads to joy and the feeling of caring for oneself and others.

Respondents told Symrise that super premium soups triggered familiarity and good memories, as well as impressions of heritage and nostalgia. Novelty was also linked to these premium soup products, too. The feeling that something is new and different was being brought to the table was highly valued. It was uniformly agreed that super premium soups should look and feel as though they were hand-made locally in small batches rather than mass produced in a large factory. They were perceived as being fresh, holistically healthy, and full of flavor, with beautiful looking ingredients packaged in clear containers. Most concurred that super premium soups should be filling – delivering an entire meal with surprisingly great taste and texture.

Respondents also saw soup as cozy, warm food, delivering comfort, satisfaction, relaxation, joy and the feeling of a human touch – the impression that someone who cares about you has put it all together for your well-being. In general, super premium soups accentuate high levels of positive emotion.

Using the research from the study, Symrise was able to create fully developed super premium soup concepts that they can now present to their customers. The Symrise culinary team and flavorists worked with a wide variety of tools to create the ideas, including the Symrise Discover Beef and Discover Chicken flavor collections, a wide array of vegetable flavors, including expertise in onion and clean label culinary bases. Soups have been created to cater to multiple target Millennial consumers, varying from upgrading “nostalgic” classic soups to expanding into global flavors and authentic ethnic concepts. The Symrise culinary team is ready to work side by side with customers to create breakthrough products that meet the demand for appealing and nutritious soup innovations.

FoodIngredientsFirst has reached out to Symrise for further details.