Personalized nutrition? Keto diets? Intermittent fasting? Cell-based meat? FoodNavigator-USA quizzed food & beverage entrepreneurs and CEOs to find out what trends they will be monitoring in 2019 …
Anshu Dua, The Chaat Company: After a trip to the UK, I'm really going to be tracking the emergence of fresh snacking at retail as a category in 2019 and 2020. US is far behind but the consumer wants this category to explode.
John Foraker, Once Upon a Farm: I am really looking hard at continued expansion of fresh across all retail and online formats, and its impact on so many traditional center store categories. I think grocery stores are going to look far different five years from now, and that demand for fresh & healthy will drive that.
Another thing I am watching closely is the exploding trend in grocery ecommerce with adoption of 'click and pick' where consumers order online and their groceries are delivered to the door of their car when they drive up. This has huge consumer benefits and as a business model for retail it can be very powerful as well. It is expanding geometrically right now across retail.
Aidan Altman, cofounder, Fora Foods (Faba Butter): Clean meat could be a game changing technology to finally modernize the supply chain and bring the animal ag industry into the 21st century.
Livio Bisterzo, CEO, Green Park Brands (Hippeas): CBD appears to be everywhere these days. Adaptogens are being used across so many product categories and nootropics seems to be really taking off. I’m particularly interested in personalized nutrition. I also think there’s still huge opportunity in kids snacking.
Bryan Crowley, Soylent: We keep a close eye on other plant-based protein alternatives ...We’re also very interested in cellular agriculture... so we’re learning more about this technology and its potential impact on the food sector. We’re plant-based because we know that a no-kill philosophy is better for sustainability and good for the world, but moving beyond no-kill to no-till is even better.
Lou Cooperhouse, BlueNalu: Consumers are increasingly seeing the foods they buy, and serve to others, as a message about their personal and social beliefs, and an attempt to make others aware and increasingly conscious about the challenges our planet faces. Accordingly, we will increasingly see products that communicate purpose, inclusivity, accessibility, respect for the environment, support global sustainability, and recognize animal suffering and welfare as well.
Consumers also seek products that are transparent – not just transparent in the ingredients that they contain, but also in how they are produced, where they are produced, the workforce that produced them, and increasingly how these products are beneficial to our world. Consumers want to find companies and brands that they can truly 'trust.'
The UN has also created Sustainable Development Goals, as a blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all. They address the global challenges we face, including those related to poverty, inequality, climate, environmental degradation, prosperity, and peace and justice. Increasingly, we will see food products and brands that align with many of these goals.
During my 35-year career, I've witnessed a number of food industry trends, including a focus on freshness, local, artisanal, organic, convenience, natural, culinary-inspired, and 'clean' labeled products. Primarily, these products were very 'experiential' and focused on attributes that were healthy or indulgent for consumers. However, during the past few years, I’ve seen a significant migration of interest towards attributes that are healthy for the planet instead.
This external vs. internal focus is very timely, as the UN has estimated that the world needs to produce at least 50% more food to feed 9-10bn people that are projected to be citizens on our planet in the year 2050.
David Benzaquen, Ocean Hugger Foods: Plant-based seafood really is on the rise. Other big trends I'm tracking are fermented foods, expansion of spoonables beyond yogurt (Good Culture cottage cheese, Mush overnight oats), and upcycled food wastes product (Renewal Mill's okara flour).
Katie Thomson, Square Baby: Introducing potentially allergenic food often and early (at 4-6 months) can be the key to reducing food allergy risk. We’re intrigued by how we can work with others to find new ways to introduce potential allergens in a way that helps build immunity, while educating the palate through a diverse, balanced diet.
Adam Zbar, Sun Basket: Sun Basket is leading the way in the important new movement called Food As Medicine, since the food we put in our bodies plays a critical role in helping us live healthy, happy, incredible lives). Another new trend is fast casual dining in-home.
Nik Ingersoll, Barnana: I was a very early adopter of the traditional ketogenic diet. I believe that fat based diets are a major trend that we will see increase in their popularity over the next several years.
Paul Shapiro, CEO, The Better Meat Co. I'm closely watching the explosion of interest in plant-based proteins.
Scott Fiesinger, Field Trip Jerky: I'm a huge fan of portable protein and excited to see how Sonoma Brands does with Peckish. I think it's a fantastic concept. I also think legumes are ripe for innovation. I'm not speaking to bean based chips and crackers or nut butters, but rather, ready-to-eat beans. I'll be following A Dozen Cousins and their line which is launching this coming year.
Certainly the use and applications for CBD has my interest. While I don't really see that fitting in with anything we have in our portfolio at the moment, I am curious to see how it will be integrated into CPG and also how state and federal regulatory efforts evolve as more studies are conducted.
I'm unsure how I feel about cell-cultured meat. The process of stem cell extraction and essentially building a protein framework and shape doesn't exactly sit well with me, so I think a lot more consumer education is needed. I'm sure there is data proving long-term benefits both from a health and also macro emissions and methanogens standpoint, but when it comes to food, I still gravitate towards minimally processed and whole foods.
Joel Warady, Enjoy Life Foods: As we look at the future of snacking, adaptogens are definitely on our radar screen. We have seen what some emerging brands are doing and are impressed with the claims that are being made, and the taste of the product.
That said, we think the consumer demand and awareness are in the very early stages in this area. We are also looking at alternative plant-based proteins, Keto solutions and FODMAP as well.
Finally, like most companies, we can’t ignore where cannabis fits it, but being a family-based company, we struggle whether or not this should be a part of our product offering. It has nothing to do with being legal or not; liquor is legal, and we would never make a liquor-based snack. Sometimes doing right is more than just what the law states. We are taking a 'wait and see' attitude and letting others go after the market
Neil Grimmer, CEO, Habit: Personalized nutrition continues to be a hot trend with the ability to disrupt the ‘one size fits all’ approach to three multi-billion dollar markets: food & beverage, nutrition products and supplements, and weight management services.
Nick Desai, Snack it Forward: Plant based protein is on fire in multiple categories (meat, dairy, snacks). I only see this trend as accelerating in the years ahead, especially with the introduction of high quality premium products that emphasize taste and innovation.
I also see the local and farm direct trend gaining steam, but it bothers me to see it mis-used in categories like snacking where it is generally more marketing ploy than a real benefit.
Raymond Chung, Greenwave Foods: The most important and meaningful trend for me is the surge in customer demand for plant-protein sources. The coming Beyond Meat IPO demonstrates that the trend is solidifying and is being taken seriously as the next ‘big thing.’
Billie Thein, New Barn: Among many things, we are tracking: 1) consumer understanding of and affinity for Regenerative food and agriculture—both as a broad idea, and as an emerging certification of specific items and categories, and 2) the debate and dialogue around Statements of Identity for plant-based foods.
Scott Norton, Sir Kensington’s: There continues to be a strong trend in 'noble fats' and returning respect to this macronutrient, albeit with more nuance and specificity than in generations past. 'Good fat' is a megatrend we see continuing to accelerate as both a driver of flavor and people's understanding of the connection between food and wellness.
Interestingly, parallel to the rising interest in animal fats, we also see a megatrend in 'plant forward' eating. The notion that meat and animal products are what deliver complete nutrition or satisfaction in a meal is diminishing and driving a sea-change in how people consider both cooking at home and eating out.
Finally, we see Americans embracing more and more the flavors and foods of global cultures, with cuisine that was once called 'ethnic' now paired with both healthy and premium food experiences.
Daniel Nicholson, Nadamoo: We have our eyes on all things plant-based. We believe it is the long term play for optimal health for the human and for the planet.
Jarrod Goldin, Entomo Farms: We are tracking the uptake of insect meal in the human food, lap pet and livestock feed industries. We are looking at how businesses can introduce the category to their cafeterias and the like.
Viraj Puri, Gotham Greens: With climate change, labor issues, food safety scares, rising transportation costs, and growing consumer interest in locally grown food, I believe we’ll continue to see a growing demand from consumers for greater traceability and sustainability along the supply chain.
There have been multiple food safety incidents this year involving leafy greens and lettuce coming out of CA and AZ, which can cause concern, confusion and distrust amongst customers. During the most recent romaine related illness outbreak, the CDC issued a blanket warning on ALL romaine lettuce because they weren’t able to trace the source of the issue. They did not distinguish lettuce in the market that had been grown and shipped from secure, controlled environment growing operations like those of Gotham Greens.
These incidents underscore the need for more transparency and traceability in our food systems. Most consumers don’t realize it but the majority of packaged salads coming from CA and AZ are contract farmed and co-packed. This means that one package of these salads, may contain leaves grown on multiple farms.
At Gotham Greens, we’re disrupting the traditional supply chain by building a network of regional urban greenhouses across the country. When customers buy a package of our salads or herbs, they know exactly where the produce is coming from and how it’s been grown.
Miyoko Schinner, Miyoko's Kitchen: The plant-based space is blowing up across all categories and channels. It's also grabbed the attention of investors and large corporates. There is a monumental shift happening -- it's such an exciting time!
Paul Lightfoot, BrightFarms: In the coming years, local will continue to be the number one driver for consumer demand in produce. Since 2016, sales of tenderleaf salad greens have been steadily declining, yet local salad greens are posting significant growth. According to SPINS, sales of local salads have grown 152% over the past three years and lift category sales for retailers by 36%.
Today, retailers are limited by access to local produce at scale. Local produce is most often found at farmer’s markets, but companies like BrightFarms are changing this, delivering fresh, local produce to retailers in markets around the country.
As consumer demand for local continues, indoor farming will also gain traction. Indoor farms make it possible for retailers to offer locally produced salad ingredients to consumers year-round, not just in the traditional summer growing months.
Jeff Richards, Mooala Brands: We are tracking to what extent the everyday consumer is, or isn’t, adopting certain plant-based trends. Having the right idea at the wrong time can turn a potential success into a failure, and so timing is everything with new product introductions. This is especially true in the ultra-competitive dairy/alt dariy set. So, we are trying to be disciplined about what we bring to market.
