"Food is Eaten with the Eyes Too" - Targeting the MZ Generation in the Food Industry

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Hye-seon] "We eat with our eyes, too."

As the COVID-19 pandemic prolonged, increasing the proportion of home dining, products that can satisfy the visuals and atmosphere of eating at a high-end restaurant at home are gaining attention. Especially among the MZ generation in their 20s and 30s, meal kits that are easy to eat and visually outstanding are attracting interest.

According to the related industry on the 25th, Fresheasy's sales of steak, mille-feuille nabe, and rose pasta ranked within the top 1 to 5. The representative product, ‘Black Label Steak,’ was planned with visuals in mind. It allows you to enjoy steak at a professional level at home and provides pre-prepared garnishes for plating, making it possible to have a splendid meal.

The premium meal kit product ‘63 Dining Kit,’ launched in collaboration between Fresheasy and Hanwha Hotels & Resorts, contains high-quality ingredients used in actual restaurants.

A Fresheasy official said, “Since meal kits require cooking, compared to ready meals, various certification shots can come out from the cooking process to plating, so the visual element is also considered important. From menu planning to ingredient selection, we develop products with attention not only to taste but also to visuals, considering SNS posting.”

There are also ready meal products that provide unique fun by utilizing the colors of ingredients. CU released the ‘Spring Energy Ready Meal Series’ with visuals evoking the spring atmosphere on the 7th. Among them, the spring outing gimbap uses confit dyed pink with beet water instead of seaweed to wrap the rice, and the ingredients include green and red paprika, yellow egg garnish and pickled radish, and pink cabbage salad, creating a design like a blooming flower.

Starbucks’ ‘Forest Cold Brew,’ launched for the summer season, also attracts attention with its color visuals inspired by a summer forest. The rich cold brew, cream base with a sweet vanilla scent, and Jeju organic matcha form layers creating a unique visual, offering a sweet, slightly bitter, yet clean taste.

‘Bone-in’ steak with meat attached to a long bone shaped like a stone axe, and the so-called ‘height-increasing burger’ with extended patties to increase height, are also popular for their unusual visuals rarely seen before. Burger King’s ‘Stacker Whopper’ is a product where the number of patties can be increased from a minimum of two to a maximum of four.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.