What you need to know
It’s no surprise that the overwhelming share of Canadians say they eat internationally inspired foods in one form or another. What drives Canadians to do so is a yearning for culinary exploration and adventurous eating experiences. With most Canadians agreeing that they’re “more open to eating international foods now than (they were) a few years ago”, it’s becoming increasingly incumbent for grocers and food manufacturers to offer a credible selection of ethnic foods in order to “keep up with the times”. This Report delves into what internationally inspired foods Canadians claim to be eating, what they are less likely to eat but are interested in trying and the motivations for why they turn to these foods in general. When appropriate, this Report also provides a breakdown of behaviour and views of those from different backgrounds (eg South Asians, Chinese Canadians) towards internationally inspired foods in order to provide greater perspective on the opportunities and prospective challenges in the space moving forward.
Definition
For the purposes of this Report, Mintel has used the following definitions of ethnic/international/internationally inspired foods in which Canadians were asked what international foods they ate in the past six months and what they would like to try:
African (eg Moroccan, Ethiopian)
Caribbean (eg jerk chicken, roti)
Chinese (eg fried rice, dim sum)
Eastern European/Russian (eg borscht, pierogi)
Greek (eg moussaka, souvlaki)
Indian/South Asian (eg Pakistani, Sri Lankan)
Italian (eg chicken parmigiana, cannoli)
Japanese (eg sushi, bento box)
Korean (eg bulgogi, kimchi)
Latin American/Mexican (eg tacos, fajitas)
Middle Eastern (eg Egyptian, Lebanese)
Southeast Asian (eg Filipino, Thai).
