"Looking at consumer trends helps companies to think ahead, which is important as innovation is not based on a short time frame. It takes at least 18 months to bring a new product to the market, " said Fran Walton of Henly Centre Headlight Vision (HCHLV).

HCHLV is a marketing consultancy that specialises in helping multinationals such as Unilever, Wrigleys and Motorola to grow their businesses using consumer trend data.

However, the firm is now working with Bord Bia on its consumer lifestyle trends programme, which aims to give Irish firms . . . which tend to be smaller than their global competitors . . . access to similar information.

"A large section of the companies we deal with are small to medium enterprises, which focus more on the production or supply side of their operations because they don't have the resources to look at consumer trends and strategic issues, " said Helen King, a business analyst with Bord Bia, who has worked with HCHLV on the programme.

The programme identifies six trends that Irish food and drink firms should monitor and base their planning around.

"These range from the really obvious ones such as the fact that the pace of life is speeding up, which means companies have to adapt to a situation where people are at home less, to ones they might not necessarily have considered, " said Walton.

Walton said calculated innovation based on consumer trends was one of the few areas where companies could gain a competitive advantage over their rivals and resist pressure on their margins from supermarkets.

"The role of the trends is that they help companies to be successful through innovation, but they also help companies to ensure that their current products and brands remain relevant, " he said.

One of the more unusual trends identified by Bord Bia is termed "making a difference", which refers to the fact that ethical considerations are increasingly underpinning consumers' choices about which brands they buy.

"I think we will see a lot more developments in this area in future years with things such personal carbon quotas that may come in, " said Walton.

"The issue of the availability of clean water is also a hidden factor in all that too. As things get hotter, we will draw more on our water resources and that will have an impact on consumers and businesses."

Walton said the trends had been compiled based on sociological analyses and observations of consumer behaviour and brand performance by independent individuals spread across 40 cities throughout the world.

According to King, Bord Bia's programme will also aim to inform companies as to how best they can use these trends to their advantage when launching new products and new packaging.

"The programme will include things such as immersion workshops for companies which will make them more aware of the trends, and structured idea-generation workshops which will help them to come up with ideas using these trends, " she said.

King said a surprisingly high number of large Irish food companies had shown an interest in the scheme. This was particularly apparent at the launch of the programme at a meeting of Bord Bia's brand forum, which aims to help Irish food companies to promote their brands, last Wednesday, which was attended by representatives from major players such as Glanbia and C&C.

"I think it's because although they are larger companies with dedicated marketing staff, they tend to focus on their core products rather than strategic trends, " she said.

Walton agreed with her assessment.

"I think that a lot of people don't have the luxury of looking outside their category. In my experience, people in the food industry spend up to 90% of their time aiming to meet their targets for the year, which leaves little time for anything else, " he said.