Some work now unthinkable.

One of the mothers talked about fresh-cut broccoli slaw as an important product that the supermarkets in her area don't seem to understand. This is a salad that her family likes (and some of her friends do too). "Supermarkets don't seem to recognize that the fact that broccoli slaw is a lot of work to make from scratch. It's not a big deal if they don't have chopped iceberg lettuce because lettuce is easy to cut up. It is important to be in-stock on pre-cut versions of products like slaw that are a lot of work to fix at home."

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This is a new kind of thinking that deserves food marketers' attention. It suggests expectations that differ from and go beyond basics such as bread, cereal, soup, ground beef, eggs, pet-food, and milk. It also helps to explain why so many consumers are willing to pay a significant premium for pre-cuts as thoughts of fixing some salads from scratch become unthinkable. (Work that becomes unthinkable is like some of the perceptions of reality described in Malcolm Gladwell's bestselling new book which is entitled Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking.)