Tracking our evolving eating habits

**The food industry has formulated fortified foods for key eating occasions**. [iStockphoto]

As such, micronutrient deficiencies are a scourge in the region, and this is certainly not limited to east Africa, it is an issue across the entire continent. It is exacerbated by the fact that adults generally don't have a fruit-eating culture, nor do we actively consume dairy.

The food industry has responded by formulating fortified foods for key eating occasions such as breakfasts - cereals and porridges, and suppers - traditional starches.

The centrality of cost goes beyond choice of meal to also impact quantities purchased. We are driven by affordability, with the aim of spending as little as possible out of incredibly constrained family budgets.

Most families are looking to buy the most affordable packs, and these are those that meet the need for a single occasion of consumption.

The way the food industry has responded to this is by providing single-use packs of different products through traditional trade, such as tuck shops and neighbourhood stores in low-income settings. Pricing of these packs has been an interesting negotiation too.

We find the industry balancing a culture that does not have midpoints in price setting. For instance, a product that is Sh10, when its price increases, will generally move to Sh20, not Sh13 or Sh16 or any of the middle numbers. This trend generally means that food price increases have a shock factor, and increases move from affordable to expensive quite quickly.

Rampant upward mobility in emerging consumer segments tends to dominate the conversation in east Africa.