Mushrooms: More Than Just For Dinner

CHATSWORTH, CA, July 18, 2012 (Press-News.org) Scrambled in omelets and sandwiched between buns, the new "superfood" is finding its way to the breakfast table and landing on lunch menus, according to a recent consumption report published by the Mushroom Council.

A staple at the dinner table and holidays such as Thanksgiving and Christmas, mushrooms are becoming popular fare for breakfast and lunch meals. In fact, mushrooms are a leading ingredient in omelets, pizza, sandwiches and salads.

"The Council has made a big push into the foodservice market," explains Bart Minor, president of the Mushroom Council. "Trends in retail markets are closely tied to foodservice trends. Promoting to the foodservice sector is vital because retail sales result when people try a dish made with mushrooms at restaurants and want to duplicate it at home. The increase in mushroom usage for breakfast and lunch could be a derivative from the foodservice industry."

This trend supports the consumption report as over 16% of households have fresh mushrooms on hand and consider themselves to be excellent cooks and capable of replicating and creating recipes. Moreover, about 10% of the population will eat fresh mushrooms at least once during a two-week period. Mushrooms are consumed during 1.3 billion occasions each year, providing ample opportunity for retailers to reach their consumer base.

Retailers can capitalize on the popularity of mushrooms by promoting them in a Best Food Day ad, in-store magazine and point of sale material. Research indicates that nearly 43% of grocery purchases are sold on promotion, and a shopping basket containing mushrooms is more than double the basket ring without mushrooms.

"Because mushrooms are a visual buy, they should be displayed attractively at point of sale if retailers expect consumers to reach for them," states Minor. "Retailers need to remind shoppers that mushrooms go well with many types of food. Cross promoting items helps drive sales."

Retailers should offer secondary displays of fresh mushrooms near complementary food items to help lift sale. Examples include placing mushrooms near bagged salads or placing signage in the dairy section near the eggs to generate awareness of mushrooms as in ingredient to use in omelets. Retailers can also provide in-store recipe cards and cooking demonstrations to reinforce the messaging.

Engaging in-store shoppers to increase their knowledge of mushrooms is key to maximizing sales. Retailers can highlight the nutritional and versatile benefits of mushrooms in their consumer marketing materials, in-store signage and displays for every season, especially summer. Mushrooms are perfect for grilling, which makes them a great item to promote. Retailers interested in nutritional information, seasonal recipes and materials can visit the Mushroom Council's website at www.MushroomsAtRetail.com.

The information in this release referenced reports provided by the Mushroom Council developed to better understand the shifts and changes in the marketplace as well as the seasonality of fresh mushrooms. The reports were developed by Fusion Marketing in conjunction with the NPD Group.

About The Mushroom Council:
The Mushroom Council is composed of fresh market producers or importers who average more than 500,000 pounds of mushrooms produced or imported annually. The mushroom program is authorized by the Mushroom Promotion, Research and Consumer Information Act of 1990 and is administered by the Mushroom Council under the supervision of the Agricultural Marketing Service. Research and promotion programs help to expand, maintain and develop markets for individual agricultural commodities in the United States and abroad. These industry self-help programs are requested and funded by the industry groups that they serve. For more information on the Mushroom Council, visit mushroomcouncil.org