Insight for Product, Brand & Category Growth

Food and Beverage (F&B) Market Research Services

Brandspeak delivers end-to-end food and beverage research to support product and service development, testing, launch and long-term performance across B2C and B2B markets.
Food and Beverage Market Research?

What Is Food and Beverage Market Research?

Food and beverage market research refers to the qualitative, quantitative and sensory research activities required to develop and manage new and existing F&B products successfully.

It enables brands to understand consumers, competitors and category dynamics; refine existing propositions; validate new product and packaging ideas; optimise pricing; and improve the shopper experience across channels.

The role of food and beverage market research is to support evidence-based decision-making throughout the product lifecycle.

The Benefits of Food and Beverage Market Research

Food and Beverage research from Brandspeak enables clients to:

Maximise New Product Success

Maximise New Product Success

It highlights unmet needs and category opportunities early, enabling teams to focus development on the concepts with the strongest potential. Research pinpoints sensory, format and packaging refinements needed to improve competitiveness and strengthen readiness for launch.

Revitalise Existing Brands

Revitalise Existing Brands

It uncovers evolving expectations, taste shifts and emerging trends that signal where change is needed. Insight guides recipe development, packaging updates and communication refinement, helping established brands maintain relevance and compete effectively against both premium entrants and agile challengers.

Enter New Categories With Confidence

Enter New Categories With Confidence

It provides the strategic clarity required to understand feasibility, determine the most compelling proposition angles and align products with high-value consumer needs. Research informs which product attributes, claims and category positions carry most weight when expanding into adjacent segments.

Strengthen Brand, Shopper And Experience Performance

Strengthen Brand, Shopper And Experience Performance

It reveals how shoppers navigate categories, what shapes decisions and where frustration emerges across retail, hospitality and in-home environments. These insights inform pricing, merchandising, messaging and experience improvements that enhance standout, conversion and long-term brand preference.

Food and Beverage Research Methods

Brandspeak uses qualitative, quantitative, ethnographic, sensory and desk-based methods to explore behaviour, validate ideas and assess product performance. Together, these approaches uncover real-world usage, evolving consumer expectations and competitive dynamics across B2C and B2B food and drink markets.

Workshopping and Co-creation

Workshopping and Co-creation

A collaborative forum for exploring existing ideas and developing new concepts.

Focus Groups & Depth Interviews

Focus Groups & Depth Interviews

Explore audience needs, perceptions and behaviours in rich qualitative detail.

Ethnography & Observational Research

Ethnography & Observational Research

Observe real-life behaviour to understand authentic actions, needs and decision-making moments.

Secondary Research & Market Intelligence

Secondary Research & Market Intelligence

Identify market trends, competitor activity and category insights using desk research.

Implicit Testing

Implicit Testing

Measure instinctive attitudes and emotional reactions at scale for clear, reliable evidence.

Online Surveys

Online Surveys

Capture robust, statistically reliable feedback to quantify attitudes and behaviours at scale.

Food and Beverage Research Services

Brandspeak provides a comprehensive range of food and beverage research services.

We conduct controlled sensory testing to assess taste, aroma, texture, appearance and overall appeal.

Hall tests validate concepts, guide recipe refinement and benchmark products against competitors. This structured process delivers clear direction for flavour optimisation, product positioning and in-market readiness.

Consumers trial products in their own homes and share feedback through surveys, video diaries or online communities.

This reveals authentic reactions, preparation habits, usage occasions and emotional responses, identifying strengths, barriers and improvement opportunities often missed by lab or sensory-only approaches.

Ethnography captures behaviour in context across homes, retail, hospitality and on-the-go settings.

It uncovers unmet needs, consumption rituals, shopping triggers and category pain points. Combined with shopper and behavioural data, it creates a strong foundation for innovation, positioning and experience improvement.

How to Get Your Insights

As a full service market research agency we support research in 40+ global markets, working with native-speaking moderators and trusted in-market partners to ensure cultural accuracy and insight quality. Wherever your audience is, we can reach them and deliver insight that drives better decisions.

Step One

Fill in the form and click submit.

Step Two

Our team will contact you within 24 hours.

Step Three

We learn about your needs and goals and how to achieve them.

Upload a Briefing Document or RFP

Frequently Asked Questions

Find answers to common questions about our food and beverage research services.

We cover all categories including packaged food, beverages, snacks, health products and foodservice.
Yes — we design and deliver hall tests, CLTs and home placement studies for sensory evaluation.
Yes — we research ingredient suppliers, foodservice operators and trade buyers as well as end consumers.

Brandspeak in Numbers

As one of the UK's most experienced market research agencies, Brandspeak brings scale, consistency, and depth to every project.

3,000+

Focus Groups

25

Years

750+

Quantitative Studies

40

International Markets

1 Million+

Survey Participants

45

Languages Covered in Global Research

5,000+

Depth Interviews

Association for Qualitative Research (AQR)MRS Evidence Matters

Brandspeak is proud to be a member of both The Association for Qualitative Research (AQR) and The Market Research Society (MRS) — demonstrating our commitment to quality, ethical practice and industry-leading research standards.

Brandspeak Blogs

Read the latest trends, insights and best practices from the world of Market Research. Choose a topic below to read more.

Client Feedback

Lauren Williams

We worked with Brandspeak on a brand awareness project and we were extremely pleased with the quality of service and the process. They understood the complexity of the briefs and asked plenty of questions to make sure they fully understand the objectives. They interacted with all levels of people in our business and understood the differences within the market and suggested ways to tie the research together so it was still comparable. The results were delivered with easy to digest summaries that could be used across the business. We would highly recommend using them.

Lauren Williams

Sarah Twist – Marketing Manager

Very informative, easy to work with and a really friendly team. I would recommend Brandspeak to help any business grow. They are great quality for money, help niche sectors and present their findings in an understanding manner. They have provided a brand review, market review post-covid to ensure we are still up to date, along with two very valuable website reviews. Working with them for qualitative and quantities research has a been fantastic for us. Thank you for all your help!

Sarah Twist – Marketing Manager

Zanya Fahy

It's been an absolute pleasure to work with Brandspeak on our qualitative assessment of different ads across 5 EU markets. Throughout this project, Brandspeak have been expert, professional and so flexible with our requirements and timings. The research analysis that they provided us with was extremely valuable and insightful. I look forward to working with them again – highly recommend!

Zanya Fahy

Georgie Burks, Brand Marketing Lead

Great service from Brandspeak – highly recommend for thoughtful and detailed brand measurement and tracking.

Georgie Burks, Brand Marketing Lead

Brandspeak have been fantastic to work with. They are a very professional agency who really understand the importance of quality research. Their team were very responsive, knowledgeable and easy to work with and provided us with excellent insights.

Mark Wilson

Animal Friends Insurance

We wanted to understand how elements of our brand were perceived by consumers and identify opportunities where we could make improvements. Brandspeak clearly understood the brief and worked closely with us to develop a research approach that would answer our questions. The insight has been used to inform the development of our creative and also applied to other areas of our marketing communications. It was a pleasure to work with Brandspeak.

Strategy & Insight Manager | Animal Friends Insurance

Tönnjes

Brandspeak helped us with getting invaluable market insights! They showed great flexibility and professionalism throughout the entire process and provided us exactly with the results we needed. I would recommend working with Brandspeak to anyone and anytime.

Tom Suberg

From the moment I contacted Brandspeak I can't thank Jeremy and his team enough. Offering a professional approach they took the time and effort to make the whole process easy and effortless. I highly recommend Brandspeak and look forward to working with them again in the future.

Verity Kimber

From their initial proposal they displayed an understanding of financial services and a clarity of thinking that made them stand out. Since then they have consistently delivered to demanding timescales. But what really sets them apart are their actionable and business focused recommendations which give them the credibility to influence senior internal stakeholders. I have really enjoyed working with them and look forward to doing so again.

Leading life and pensions provider

It is always a pleasure – and a relief! – to work with researchers who get the whole thing – effortlessly... a heartfelt thanks.

DLKW

Work with Brandspeak

With offices in London, Bristol, and Birmingham – and partners across the world – we provide global reach with local expertise. Our team is ready to discuss your business challenge and show you what's possible with the right insights.

Get in Touch

London

+44 (0) 203 858 0052

1st Floor, 239 Kensington High St, London W8 6SN

Bristol

+44 (0) 1174 07 0187

2430 / 2440 The Quadrant, Aztec W, Bristol BS32 4AQ

Birmingham

+44 (0) 121 314 4647

The Lewis Building, Bull St, Birmingham B4 6AF