Future Category Skills – Understanding Energy

What we want when we want.

President Marcon was recently quoted as saying that we were in the end of abundance. The global north has lived through a period of being able to get what we want when we want it. Be it food delivered to your house ordered from your phone, a new outfit for everyday of the week and light or heat at the flick of a switch. Ultimate convenience.

The energy crisis in the last 12 months has pushed energy usage and efficiency into focus for millions of households. Beyond cost we need to have this focus if we’re going to reach Net Zero. To reach Net Zero a reduction of energy generated from fossil fuels and the move to renewables will require efficiencies and mindful energy usage (IPCC WG3 Climate Mitigation).

Why is this important for Category and Food Marketing Professionals?

Most goods sold in a supermarket require some sort of energy to consume them. Heating, frying, chilling, boiling all takes energy. Category professionals have focused on the consumer need but how often does energy consumption come into that thought process? As a category professional can you calculate and cost the kWh required to consume your products? And mostly importantly can you advise how to reduce or minimise the energy needed to consume it?

Convenience food lines sold where some level of energy has been used to create it through cooking in manufacturing may be offering an energy efficiency. Even more so if the manufacturing facility has its own renewables at site such as solar panels or wind turbines. Manufacturing at scale offers efficiencies, these need to be considered and measured long term to aid energy reduction.

What the future of energy looks like

Longer term energy generation needs to and will become more localised. The benefits of this being security of supply, lower cost and the need to reach Net Zero. Since the energy crisis in the UK there has been a surge of people adding solar panels to their homes. Localised renewables such as solar panels and wind are able to power individual homes and small communities. But these can drive changes in energy consumption as this model moves away from having energy as and when you want it, to needing to use it when you have it. Batteries to store energy from solar and wind are more common, but once full, households will want to use the energy they continue to generate. Those with access to historical feed in tariffs may be able to benefit in selling their energy back to the grid, but these options are less cost effective now if available at all. Being mindful of the energy you have and when you have it will lead to changes in behaviour. Using the oven might be more common in the day when there is more power. Trying to conserve the power you have in your batteries could lead to putting left over hot water from the kettle in a Thermos or opting for a microwave or air fryer meal becoming the preference. All changes in how and when food and drink items are consumed.

Energy usage in your Category Strategy

Do you consider energy usage of your products? Would their usage change if there was limited availability of energy? What does your category look like from an energy consumption perspective? How could you help reduce and change that?

If you would like to embed this thinking in your teams and strategies please get in touch.

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