The instant noodle market innovation has a new direction

According to the "2022 China Instant Noodle Food Innovation and Consumer Demand Special Research Report" (hereinafter referred to as the "Report") recently released by iMedia New Retail Industry Research Center, with the continuous upgrading of the consumer market, China's instant noodle market has continued to innovate in recent years, and the market as a whole has shown a growth trend
.
In 2021, the national market size will reach 133.
88 billion yuan
.
Among them, the flour and egg segment has performed well, with a national market size expected to reach 1.
4 billion yuan in 2022, and is expected to maintain an annual growth rate of more than 30% in the next three years, making it one of
the most growing segments.
The study found that as an innovative product in recent years, flour noodle vegetable eggs have been recognized by the market for their characteristics of sufficient consumption and balanced diet, and have formed differentiation from traditional instant noodle products, providing a new growth direction
for the innovation and exploration of the instant noodle market.

The market has great growth potential

With the advantages of speed, cheapness and deliciousness, instant noodles have become the favorite of consumer groups such as workers, passengers, and students, but in recent years, the safety and homogenization problems of some instant noodle companies have reduced consumer trust
.
The "Report" shows that most instant noodle consumers believe that instant noodle ingredients are single, the diet is unbalanced and the amount is small
.
The "soil pit sauerkraut" incident exposed by CCTV's 3.
15 evening this year has pushed a number of well-known instant noodle companies to the forefront, thereby reducing consumers' trust in the industry
.
In addition, for instant noodles on the market, consumers report more that the taste is too similar
.
Secondly, the composition of instant noodles is similar, mainly composed of dough cakes, seasoning powder packets, dehydrated vegetables or meat, and the consumption amount is also similar (the standard bag content is 100-120 grams, the large barrel content is 130-150 grams), lacking characteristics and innovation
.
In recent years, with the improvement of food production technology and the increasing number of instant consumer goods, some consumers have reduced their consumption of instant noodles and flowed to the takeaway industry
.
Data shows that from 2018 to 2021, the number of consumers in China's food delivery industry increased from 360 million to 540 million
.

In order to meet consumers' diversified needs for food, instant noodle companies have successively increased investment in innovation and research and development to cope with the changing market
.
Jinmai Lang launched the Lao Fanjia zero fried healthy noodle series, Yang Shopkeeper created the category of flour noodles and eggs, and unified launched the Tang Daren series, all of which were welcomed
by consumers.
Yang Shopkeeper has combined instant noodle ingredients and innovated
in the richness of raw material matching.
Data show that the size of China's instant noodle market was 133.
88 billion yuan in 2021 and is expected to reach 184.
99 billion yuan
in 2025.
Among them, the market size of instant noodle innovative products flour noodles and vegetable eggs will reach 1.
4 billion yuan in 2022, and will maintain an annual growth rate
of 30% in the future.

iMedia Consulting analysts believe that instant noodles, as a convenient fast food for the public, have always been poor in terms of consumption and matching, and cannot meet consumers' satiety and dietary needs
.
The takeaway industry and new consumer goods categories of fast food have squeezed the development space of the instant noodle industry to a certain extent, and the industry urgently needs innovation, and the flour and vegetable egg category provides a new development direction
for the industry.
There are many types of convenience foods in China, but there is a lack of product innovation, and bringing more food experience to consumers through product innovation is not only conducive to expanding market benefits, but also conducive to improving consumers' awareness and trust
in the brand.

Multi-brand entered the field of flour noodles and eggs

According to the report, saving meal time (65.
0%) is the main purpose of consumers to buy instant noodles, followed by liking instant noodles (50.
6%) and saving meal expenses (49.
5%)
.
Instant noodle consumers eat instant noodle products 1-3 times a week (64.
8%)
.
In terms of price, consumers accounted for the largest proportion of single consumption of 2.
6-5.
0 yuan, followed by 5.
1-7.
5 yuan
.
More consumers eat instant noodles at home (57.
3%) and during staying up late (52.
1%).
When buying instant noodles, the most important factor is taste (87.
4%), followed by price (63.
2%)
.
The time when consumers eat flour noodles and eggs for the first time is concentrated in 2020-2022, accounting for 50.
4%.

According to research, in the past two years, more and more companies have followed the layout of similar products, flour noodle egg vegetables have gradually been recognized by consumers, and consumer groups have gradually expanded
.
Consumers believe that the advantages of flour noodles and eggs are mainly due to the rich ingredients (82.
9%) and the innovation of staple food matching (69.
3%); The proportion of consumers willing to recommend flour noodle vegetables and eggs was 86.
4%.

Since 2016, a number of companies have followed the layout of the flour and vegetable egg market
.
At present, the brand positioning of flour noodles and vegetable eggs is divided into two directions: one is the main brand of flour and vegetable eggs, such as Yang Shopkeeper; The other is a comprehensive instant noodle brand, in addition to its traditional instant noodle business, it has launched a series of flour noodles and eggs, and now Mai Lang and so on
.
In 2022, the top ten brands of Chinese noodles and eggs include brands
such as Yang Shopkeeper, Jinmai Lang, White Elephant, and Gu's sister-in-law.

iMedia Consulting analysts believe that the normalization of epidemic prevention and control has made residents more cautious in consumption, and instant noodles have become a necessary product
for home isolation and reducing stockpiling when going out.
The consumption scene of instant noodles is diversified, and high-quality taste products may bring growth opportunities
to the industry.
The product form of flour noodles and eggs has been recognized by most consumers, and the category cultivation is expected to continue to expand
.

Nutrition and safety remain a key industry focus

The analysis of the "Report" believes that instant noodles enter consumers' daily life, and their nutritional balance requirements will be higher
.
Instant noodles are gradually penetrating into multiple consumption scenarios of consumers, and there is still room for
growth.
More than 60% of instant noodle consumers have the habit of eating instant noodles every week, with a frequency of 1-3 times
.
In the case of instant noodle consumers' daily demand for instant noodles, higher requirements will be put forward for balanced product nutrition, and as a flour noodle vegetable and egg product launched to seize the innovative point of balanced nutrition, the market scale is expected to expand
in the future.

The homogenization of instant noodle products is prominent, and flour noodles and eggs have great
market potential as an innovative category.
For instant noodles on the market, consumers more often reflect high homogeneity, and the taste, composition and content of the main products of many companies are similar
.
As an innovative type of instant noodles in recent years, flour noodles and vegetable eggs have the advantage of combining flour, noodles, vegetables and eggs with sufficient consumption, which is different from traditional instant noodle types and has great
market potential.

Food safety supervision in the instant noodle industry has become stricter
.
Food safety has always been the most concerned issue for consumers, and the "soil pit sauerkraut" incident exposed by CCTV this year has reduced consumers' willingness to choose sauerkraut-flavored instant noodles, and more than half of consumers in the survey said they would no longer buy such products
.
It shows that the quality assurance of instant noodles is the key point of the development of the industry, and enterprises will do a good job in food safety, which will become the basic requirement for the quality upgrading of
the instant noodle industry.

(Yuan Guofeng)

China Food News (November 04, 2022 Version 05)

(Editor: Yuan Guofeng)