Meals 2026: Occasions, Needs and Constraints
Traditional meal structures are under pressure. As consumers balance time, cost and competing needs, they’re assembling foods and beverages from a portfolio of solutions—including whole ingredients, center-store shortcuts, frozen and fresh prepared foods and foodservice. But amidst this cultural reframing, food and beverage companies have the opportunity to serve as solutions to daily constraints rather than simply providers of products.
Meals 2026 will provide a systematic view of evolving mealtime habits and motivations, uncovering the full ecosystem of planning, sourcing, preparation and eating. Actionable insights will help CPG brands, food retailers and foodservice providers identify growth opportunities by need state, optimize positioning and align innovation with real-world aspirations and constraints consumers face.
A streamlined Executive Brief is also included with your purchase of the full report, highlighting the most critical insights for your C-suite.
Publishing September 2026 | | U.S. market coverage
- Executive Brief with key insights (PDF)
- Detailed report (PowerPoint and PDF)
- Demographic data tables (Excel)
Quantitative research: Nationally representative online survey of U.S. food shoppers aged 18-80, with a minimum total sample of n=2,000 and readable samples of demographic audiences such as generational cohorts, race/ethnicity and income tiers. Insights from Hartman Group's proprietary Compass Eating & Drinking Occasions Database will provide additional nuance.
Qualitative research: Multi-day engagement (journaling, prompts, photos and videos) with demographically and regionally diverse consumers. Research will involve a dynamic online qualitative research platform paired with in-depth, virtual interviews with a subset of participants.
- Methodology
- Executive summary
- Primary report content, including charts, graphs and in-depth analysis of key findings
- Implications and recommendations
What drives meal decisions today?
- The role of scratch cooking, assembly and shortcuts
- How consumers are navigating trade-offs around time, effort and cost
What needs are meals fulfilling?
- The core emotional, functional and situational drivers shaping modern meals, explored through a proprietary needs-based framework
- How and why specific needs align with specific solutions (CPG, retail, foodservice)
Where are consumers sourcing their meals?
- Retail vs. foodservice vs. hybrid solutions
- How in-store offerings shape meals: perimeter, center store, frozen, ready-to-eat, fresh-prepared
What does “value” mean at mealtime?
- How consumers evaluate value beyond price: quality, relevance, quantity, convenience, experience
- How to communicate value on meal occasions
How are meals competing with snacks?
- When and why meals are replaced by snacks
- Where snacks are gaining share—and where meals maintain relevance
- Opportunities to defend, reclaim or expand occasions
