Specialty Food Association predicts next year’s top trends
As per the trendspotting panel of the Specialty Food Association (SFA), comfort and familiarity are crucial in the $170.4 billion specialty food business.
The panelists looked at thousands of unique food and drink products available all around the world. Based on those results, SFA vice president of content and education Denise Purcell identified five themes that would propel increase in the consumption of specialty foods in 2022.
“Comfort is an overarching theme as we head into a second year of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Ms. Purcell stated. “Consumers are looking for comforting, familiar foods and drinks, but often with a twist for excitement, or with specific diets and health concerns in mind, as a result of the events of the past 18 months.”
Pasta sales have decreased recently due to low-carb and keto diets, but the category has recovered thanks to a pandemic-related spike in comfort foods. The SFA anticipates that pasta will continue to make a splash in the next year, with the introduction of new shapes in addition to gluten-free and alternative-grain options.
According to Jonathan Deutsch, the founding director of the Drexel Food Core Lab and a member of the SFA’s trendspotting team, “new spins on traditional pasta in Instagram-friendly ways” are also being introduced by black rice, pumpkin, red lentils, and purple carrots.
In 2022, it’s expected that more vegetarian versions of classic favorites will appear on store shelves, increasing comfort food accessibility for customers on alternative diets. The SFA’s virtual Fancy Food 24/7 event, which took place from September 27 to October 8, included a number of hot inventions. These included plant-based burgers, crumbles created from pea protein that can be used in tacos, and nuggets made from Chilean seaweed.
During the pandemic, customers were able to have culinary experiences instead of traveling thanks to global tastes, and the SFA predicted that in the coming year, their increasing popularity would spur innovation in the snacks and treats sectors. Fancy Food 24/7 offers keto-friendly snack bars with Thai flavors, Spanish potato chips with foie gras flavor, and peanuts seasoned with chile and turmeric. Latin American-inspired ice cream flavors and white chocolate moringa-infused bars topped with pinipig—a traditional Filipino dish made of pounded and toasted young glutinous rice—were also on exhibit at the digital event.
Thanks to an increasing number of regional chili peppers, chili crisps, dried peppers, and pepper flakes entering the market, consumers are becoming more knowledgeable about the proper peppers for cooking, snacking, and sauces, according to the SFA. At Fancy Food 24/7, taste innovations included a cooking oil that combined coffee with hot chiles.
During the pandemic, consumers’ immune system health became a top focus. However, some functional foods’ antioxidant and anti-inflammatory qualities are also becoming more popular due to their suggested anti-aging advantages. At Fancy Food 24/7, there were drinks that included mango and collagen, as well as functional gummies and liquid beauty products.
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Upcycled ingredients and alcohol-free choices are two current trends that the SFA predicts will persist in 2022. According to the trendspotting panel, nonalcoholic wines, spirits, and mixers will continue to support nondrinkers in their quest for guilt-free drinking in the upcoming year.
“De-alcoholized wine is a new area within the low- and no-alcohol trend, which is booming,” stated Kara Nielsen, WGSN’s director of food and drink and an SFA trendspotting panelist.
Other trendy goods include pickle juice chasers, ice cubes with infusions of cocktail flavors, cocktail mixes that serve as runners’ recovery shots, and syrups with ginger and turmeric flavors.
The popularity of recycled ingredients will only grow as younger Gen Z consumers show a greater interest in supporting environmentally friendly companies. According to the SFA, some recent examples include ready-to-drink drinks made using avocado seeds, an upcycled vegetable broth concentrate, and a cacao tea prepared with leftover chocolate-making product.