Snaxshot #28: NSFW, Got Your Noods?
slurp happens! 😈
A newsletter on upcoming food and beverage trends that offers a curation of brands and aesthetics written by Andrea Hernández.
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🔮 Peek into the future:
History of instant noodles + snaxshot of market
Introducing Noodie as a challenger brand
Who else is slurping around?
What’s new you ask?!
Spoonful of News + upcoming events
Ramen To Revenue 🍜
Even though the history of noodles dates back to China many centuries ago, there is evidence of a noodle that was boiled and then fried and served in a soup, similar to Yi noodle, the modern instant noodles made its debut back in 1958 created by Momofuku Ando, based in Japan. He enabled mass-production of instant noodles by establishing the entire process of industrial method of manufacturing:
noodle-making
steaming
seasoning
dehydrating in oil heat
This product was ready to eat just in 2 minutes by adding boiling water and was originally dubbed "magic ramen”—becoming instant popular sensation. So much that by 70s, “CUP OF NOODLES” was introduced and proved a taste of fresh slurp amongst saturation of market. The innovative cup combined three different functions
Packaging material while on store shelves
Cooker when boiling water is poured in
Bowl when eating noodles
Apart from its convenience and versatility the rapid growth in popularity of instant noodles can be attributed to these principles Momofuku Ando instilled when developing food:
affordability
convenience
safety
hygiene
long shelf life
palatability
The concept of instant noodles, also enabled each region to fuse with ingredients in local cooking and traditional flavors. As decades have passed and as we continue to cross the better-for-you chasm, there’s been a rise in health-conscious noodles, it’s not something that’s novel to upcoming brands, legacy brands like Nissin picked up on this and started offering a more “nutritious” instant noodle since 2019, by 2021 you now have noodles that offer “functionality” from fiber, collagen, lower sodium, lower calories and …even adaptogens.
At this point, it would be convenient for you to have already demystified the stereotype that was the starving college student heating up ramen noodles in their microwave and understood that our obsession with noodles also stems from us having more access to different types of cuisine, and how this was the perfect combination of convenience, price affordability and diversity of flavors.
Should Legacy Brands Ramen Calm? 🥵
—Back in 2018, the instant noodles market was valued at $41.38 Billion and in 2021 it’s grown to $52 Billion.
—Global instant noodles market is expected to post a CAGR close to 5% during the period 2019-2023, according to the latest market research report by Technavio.
—US accounts for over 27.1% of global market size in 2020, US market is estimated at $7.7 Billion atm
—While China market is forecasted to grow at 3.5% CAGR ; 77% of growth in this category will come from APAC region.
—Sudden surge in better-for-you instant noodles amongst Millennials is the convenience and snackification trend alongisde demand for diverse flavors
—The pandemic SPIKED demand for instant noodles in Japan, these were the top contenders
—Market is semi-fragmented with majority of it dominated with OG players like Nissin. In 2019, Nissin launched a healthier alternative to their instant noodle.
—Nissin recently announched a Pumpkin Spiced Cup of Noodles, to the detriment of society. They also recently released a Cup of Noodle flavored ice cream.