Hot Beverages like Coffee, Specialty Coffees, and Tea

• The percentage of consumers drinking coffee is stable despite the recession
• 84% of consumers indicate that their coffee behavior has not changed in the past six months in response to the economy; this is unchanged from 2009*
• The importance of breakfast consumption increases as consumers age, with 96% of adults over 60 years old drinking coffee during breakfast.  This is a key trend as more QSR’s are focusing on breakfast menus*
• Gourmet Coffee beverages account for 40% of all coffee cups*
• The hot cup category is predicted to grow 3.5% from 2010-2012**
• In a time of economic volatility, the overall beverage market is stable. This indicates that at a macro level, beverages are recession resistant*

Sources:
NCA of USA National Coffee Drinking Trends 2010*
Technomic Disposables Packaging Assessment 2010 **

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Cold Beverages like Soda, Smoothies, and Frozen Yogurt

• Iced coffee, smoothies and ice tea/lemonade are growing rapidly in the QSR segment
• 2010-2012 plastic cold cup volume is expected to grow 4.5%
• 2010-2012 cold cups using environmentally friendly materials are expected to grow by 2%

Sources:
NPD Crest
Technomic
Freedonia

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Dinners and Take Home Meals

• Consumers are trending more towards off-premise/takeout dining
• Foam is widely used in dinnerware but many institutions are moving away from it due to perceived environmental concerns
• Attractiveness, strength and food visibility are key benefits of plastic
• Plastic made with molded Fiber is perceived to be more environmentally friendly and is growing in popularity

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