Every December there are the countless articles from publications
reviewing the past year’s food trends and trying to predict the food trends for
the coming year. They should be waiting until January as this is the month that
the food industry descends on San Francisco for the annual Fancy Food Show at
Moscone Center.
The
Fancy Food Show is put on by the National Association for
the Specialty Food Trade (NASFT) and is only open to people directly involved with
the food industry. The show presents thousands of food and food related items
that are often the precursor to what will be seen in supermarkets or at
eateries in the near future. The exhibitors are generally food manufacturers or
new startup companies that are trying to get the attention of the attendees: retail
purchasers, restaurants and caterers, marketers and distributors, and the press.
$30,000 worth of saffron |
An example of the road
from concept to grocery shelf is a product spotted a few years ago at the show.
Many cooks are familiar with old school bouillon cubes used for recipes
requiring broth or stock. The next generation came in the form of jars of
concentrated stock pastes. The latest incarnation, seen at the Fancy Food Show
in 2011, was concentrated stock in small, pre-measured, liquid pouches. Now Campbell
Soups has taken the idea and you can find Swanson Flavor Boost pouches on your
grocer’s shelves.
edible sprays |
Not all of the items and
trends at the show will find their way to the average American home. Some items
are geared for the culinary professionals. Such is the case of one trend: packaged
molecular gastronomy. (Molecular gastronomy explores the transformation, either
physically or chemically, of ingredients.) There were many new products that
took ingredient flavors and packaged them into different mediums such as foams,
sprays, crystals, and pearls. Now you can sprinkle rose flavored crystals or
pearls over a fancy dessert or spray a mist of saffron flavoring as a garnish.
These concentrated flavors take the time out of performing the lab techniques
used to transform them. After all, they require a lot of equipment and time.
It is much easier to buy it pre-packaged in a can or jar.
Some other trends I noted: the rise of Fillipino food (yay!), lots of salts and salt blocks, an explosion in the non-alcoholic drink area, whether it be healthy, fizzy, or even both.
Halo halo ice cream bars! |
Each year the Top 5 Trends
of the show are selected by a panel of Trendspotters. The 2013 selections were:
Botanical Beverages, Oil Nouveau, So Many Seeds, Top Banana, and Blue Cheese
Redux. Not all of the predicted trends pan out during the year. Sometimes it
will be several years before the average consumer will see them. But for the
food industry, the Fancy Food Show is the place to spot and be spotted first.
the proper way to display gelato |
flavored syrups |
cheese and butter making kits |
flavor pearls |