The overwhelming theme of the "2005 Prepared Foods R&D Trends Survey: Culinary and Foodservice Product Development Trends" is that manufacturers should provide greater consistency in the products they offer foodservice operators, while helping these customers lower their overhead costs. When asked, "What were the top five most important product traits to your foodservice customers?" survey participants chose in this order: consistency, price per serving, convenience, labor savings and sensory quality. Those surveyed also found convenience (35%), offering better quality at the same prices (15%), and healthier foods (14%) to be the top-three most significant trends in the development of prepared foods for foodservice distribution.

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When asked, "How much does each of the following sources influence the initiation of new foodservice product development at your company?" survey participants placed "foodservice operator/customer request" ahead of other sources such as "internal market research" the company's own or consulting culinary staff, and the fact that competitors offered a new product.

The survey also asked, "Where does your company get ideas for new foodservice products?" and allowed multiple responses. Topping the list were "foodservice trade shows," which 61% of respondents checked, followed by "product development trade publications" (such as Prepared Foods, PF) at 59% and "foodservice operator/customer request" (56%). The responses "competitors offer it" "retail trade shows" and "trends noticed with grocery products" all checked in at 49%, although the latter dropped from 55% in 2004. Even still, chef Richard Cusick, a corporate executive chef at Sara Lee (Chicago), suggests that manufacturers with both foodservice and retail departments have more to offer foodservice operators. "At Sara Lee, there is no wall between retail and foodservice. We look at what they (retail) have done and try to find applicability, because the hard work has already been done"

"Internal market research" and their "own/consulting culinary staff" only checked in with 42% and 40%, respectively, of respondents saying they were a source of ideas, perhaps because not all companies have availed themselves of such talent.