Chapter 1
Trends in Hispanic Foods 1
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Abraham Wall and Ana M. Calderón de la Barca 1
Kellogg Company México, S de RL de C V , C a r r . Campo M i l i t a r k m 1, Q u e r é t a r o , Qro., Mexico 76135 Centro de Investigación en Alimentación y Desarrollo, A C , C a r r . a la Victoria km 0.6, Hermosillo, Son., Mexico 83000
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Trends in Hispanic foods must be considered a bi-directional phenomenon. Hispanics within the U.S. are pushing for a spicier and fruity-flavored hybrid cuisine known as "Nuevo Latino." Many spices, herbs, flavors and homemade food ingredients from Latin American countries are increasingly being used by U.S. manufacturers. Conversely, i f a food producer wants to target the Hispanic market, the option must be a product with a good combination of emotions and flavors mixed in a convenient food format. Product innovation for Latin America shall be regionalized using food ingredients recognized and accepted by the target market. The food service industry must learn from the "adopt and adapt" Hispanic philosophy because, i f there is a multicultural factor that modifies America's food behavior, it is the Latino taste.
The "Hispanic" or "Nuevo Latino" cuisine represents an authentic culinary journey for Americans, while for Hispanics is a way to preserve their taste memory. Even in towns without a large Hispanic population, Americans are developing a taste for Hispanic food (I). With its excellent fruity-to-spicy flavor and many sensorial sensations conferred by their natural ingredients, Hispanic foods are nowadays one of the "big three" ethnic food trends in the U.S. (2).
© 2007 American Chemical Society
Tunick and González de Mejia; Hispanic Foods ACS Symposium Series; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 2006.
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Downloaded by 80.82.77.83 on December 31, 2017 | http://pubs.acs.org Publication Date: December 4, 2006 | doi: 10.1021/bk-2007-0946.ch001
2 A wide range of natural ingredients and dishes are gaining a place in supermarket shelves and restaurants: spices like oregano, pepper leaf and marjoram, teas like yerba mate and guarana, dairy-derived products like fresh cheese and the milk dessert "dulce de leche," and legumes and cereals like beans and amaranth, are just some examples. On the other hand, Latin Americans are changing their eating behavior due the nutritional transition that is affecting them (3, 4). However, introduction of new foods into their market should be carefully performed (5). Producers and restaurant owners must know that besides price, quality, and nutritional profile of the food offering, there are specific needs of the target consumer to be fulfilled, in order to design and launch successful products. This chapter is an attempt to contextualize the main drivers that make Hispanic foods so successful within the U.S. and across the whole American continent. Also, the basic rules that a food manufacturer must obey to launch a successful product targeted to the Hispanic market are discussed.
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"We the U.S. Hispanics' : Tracking Their Food Influence Hispanics is the U.S.'s fastest-growing minority group, and so is its food popularity. Conservative data from the U.S. Census Bureau (6) states that 41 million residents in 2004 (around 14% of total population) were Hispanic, mainly of Mexican, Central and South American, and Puerto Rican origin. Also, Hispanic purchasing power is growing at triple the rate of the overall U.S. population. The market share controlled by Hispanic households rose from 5.2% in 1990 to 8% in 2004 (around $686 billion), mainly spent in food and other groceries (7), and geographically concentrated in New Mexico, Texas, California, Arizona, Nevada, Florida, Colorado, New York, New Jersey, and Illinois. The escalating population of Hispanics within the U.S., combined with the unlimited economic market potential they represent, deserves continuous market research for foodstuffs for this segment of the U.S. population. "Hispanic" or "Latino" is not limited only to a country or primary language. It refers to all different cultures from Latin American countries, including the Caribbean ones. Although many other countries should be included (as the motherland Spain), the term is more a migration trend-derived word. Despite many differences in languages and culture habits, Hispanics share several characteristics to be used in marketing strategies. Hispanics are mostly young people of first (foreign-bom) or second (U.S.-born) generation, with a strong identity (
