It is often difficult to know and spot which food trends and tendencies that will dominate in the future. Especially after the whole Corona- the situation has left its mark on the food industry and the European food scene.
We have tried to navigate through the many predictions of new trends and tendencies, where we have selected 5 solid food trends that we believe could be dominating the coming future (to 2050)!
TREND 1 - CLIMATE FRIENDLINESS & HEALTHY FOOD
Go climate-friendly
Fortunately, it i to improve the climate situation and the climate in the world. There is no doubt that themes such as climate friendliness, environmental friendliness and sustainability will continue to have a significant impact on the food industry, and how businesses, consumers and restaurants will act in 2022. COVID-19 in particular in 2020-2021 has changed food conditions and consumer thinking.
It has become more popular for companies, restaurants and cafes to take the lead in climate campaigns and climate policy. Of course, as more and more consumers prefer restaurants and dining places that think and act climate-friendly.
Among consumers in the private sector, it has also become a trend to be gentle with the climate through environmentally friendly products, food waste minimization, recycled plastics, sustainable building materials and recyclable packaging. We see that in the professional kitchens too now.
Transparency, origin and originality
These three topics and a strong consumer confidence are predicted to continue to fill more in business strategies and be particularly important topics in 2022. Guests will not only have good food anymore, but also 'proper' food from original places and well produced - with the right approaches and methods.
The consumer's growing interest in transparency requires restaurants and businesses to use storytelling about their products through positive and accurate descriptions about the products, suppliers and origin. This has become particularly important to point out clearly to consumers these days.
Get a climate-friendly guide here!
A combination of sustainability and health
Confidence in products and food has become very important in relation to consumers' food decisions, especially in line with the growing trend towards a healthier lifestyle. Which is why we believe the sustainable concept will be more combined with healthy food in the future. It also seems to go very well hand in hand.
COVID-19 has particularly limited the investment opportunities of the food industry, which has been hit hard during this crisis. Fortunately, this has not ruled out opportunities for new, exciting and low-cost concepts and climate-friendly solutions.
In addition to treat the environment in the right way, animal welfare also plays a special role, which also seems to be particularly important for a large part of your guests. It is therefore an extra bonus for your kitchen if your 'ingredients' have been treated well and have the best conditions in its lifetime. And are being told and explained clearly to your guests.
We have no doubt at all whether we will definitely see more of climate friendliness - especially combined with healthy food and we believe this is only the beginning for these two companions!
Read also Euro Poultry's rules & standards here
TREND 2 - TAKE AWAY
From a primitive to a digital order
Take away and food delivery have changed a lot in the last few years. It is not so long ago, you just had only pizza, Chinese or burger menus. You had to call and talk to someone to order food before having it delivered to your door, where you also had to explain your order and delivery details. In general, it was more confusing to order take away and you had fewer choices.
The rapid development of technology have totally turned this upside down.
Take away, a new time
Now you can practically order online in just under 1 minute and then the food is ready to be either picked up or delivered within very short time. Could it be more simple? Dominos actually tried already in 2015 that you could order a pizza just by sending a pizza emoji! Maybe a little too easy and tempting… fingers crossed they not only make the ham and pineapple pizza!
And McDonalds has even replaced a large part of its staff with electronic order boards, which make the ordering system much more efficient, error-free and less costly.
And the amount of take away apps are still increasing and it has become a big trend to order food online through apps. Not only because it is easy, but there have also been countless food options in a delicious and manageable food universe, where you can shop around and find exactly what you want to eat and have it delivered.
Covid-19: An unexpectedly massive challenge
Coronavirus turned the food industry to a bleeding industry and uncertainty about how the situation will unfold in the future. It is still going on and nobody can predict this crisis.
Especially during this Corona situation, we have seen many restaurants been saved on the bottom line by putting extra focus and introducing takeaway concepts. They have been forced to arrange whole food concepts on a weekly basis to use all products at storage.
A busier everyday life and the focus of minimizing the risk of infection by covid-19 has made the importance clearly of being able to deliver take away and have an accessible online order system. We believe it can be necessary to survive in the food industry by 2022.
Put take away on the menu... now!
If you don't have take away integrated in your food concept, we recommend and encourage you and your dining place to start up a take away concept - especially digital on your website or a collaboration with some of the fast food and take away apps. Maybe contact a digital developer to set up your own webshop and take away system on your website.
TREND 3 - SPICY FOOD
Dare to challenge a strong player in 2022?
Spicy food is here to stay and has always been popular in most of the world and is especially beginning to trend a lot around the world right now. Several hot sauces almost gain a cult status and spicy food has now also got it's own international day "Hot and Spicy food day", which is held every year on 16th of January.
But what is the main key to spicy food? Chili! We all know the red, long and strong fruit, and yes it is a fruit. But not everyone knows about the chili universe and its many possibilities. Recent studies also show that the chili goes hand in hand with the health wave and e.g. can reduce the risk of dying from a blood clot or cardiac arrest!
Over 200 different chili varieties
There are over 200 different chilies in the world, where (if you ask the experts) each have their own difference, strength and taste. So it never gets completely boring to explore this universe. To name a few Habenero, California, Chipotle, Pasilla, New Mexico, Tien Tsin, Jalapeno, Poplano… and the world's strongest player: Carolina Reaper. You sometimes hear about people being hospitalized by having ingested this fellow, so be careful not to challenge your guests to go all-in on this one!
Chili-challenge: Dare you challenge me?
It has always been exciting to eat a chili and especially challenge others to eat a spicy chili! Chili challenges have been particularly popular in the last few years, where celebrities across the world have challenged each other to eat some of the world's hottest chilies on open screen eg. on YouTube and TV. And in Denmark Chili Klaus has in the recent years made the chili fruit particularly popular throughout Scandinavia.
The Megatrend, Hot & Spicy Chicken burger
In the United States, for example. Hot & Spicy chicken burger has been the fastest growing trend in 2020 with a 299% increase since 2019 and generally an increased focus on spicy food for guests. *
In general, there has been much more focus on the exciting ingredient in recent years and it can certainly do something. We believe the chili has more to offer and we will definitely look more at the previously (slightly underestimated) trend.
The many possibilities of the chili are starting to be unfolded and shown consumers that it has far more to offer than just adding spicy character to the dish. We believe there will be even more focus on spicy food and the many possibilities of chili in the coming time!
*Source: www.thedailymeal.com
TREND 4 - UNIQUE FOOD CONCEPTS
The competition among restaurants is intensifying, and the selection will certainly not be less in terms of exciting alternatives and endless possibilities eg. from the various take away apps. It obviously puts extra demands on your eatery.
Consider now how strong your current concept is now? If your dining place is similar to all the others in the industry, it might be a good idea to come up with a new unique, personal and powerful concept that your guests are willing to promote on to other potential guests.
Visual branding & SoMe
Visual presentation and branding of one's personal food concept has thus become more important than ever before, and we guess that this trend will (… and can do nothing but can) continue. It is also a free and very effective 'word of mouth' marketing. Others recommend and highlight your food on social media, which will most likely spread to many groups of friends, family, colleagues and SoMe followers.
Read also: 5 food concepts your guests will love
Is the food & place ”Instagramable”?
Thinking about the staging, branding and presentation of the food (and your dining place) is especially important when you come up with a new concept. For a long time now, it has been more important that the food and the place look good in pictures than the food itself taste good.
In recent years, just eating the food has not been enough. It must be shown in it's best way and shared to everyone else. The 'Instagram generation' is here to stay and therefore challenges restaurants in particular to create strong concepts, cool dining environments and dishes that are "instagram-friendly". Is it worth sharing a picture of the food on Instagram or facebook and Snapchat?
Guest-photos are gold-worthy
Several things come into play in relation to the consumer's decisions about where to go and eat. If you have seen pictures of others eating there and they have taken some amazing pictures of the food, then you are probably more likely to choose this particular place over another place where you have never seen the food been presentable.
Get your guests to promote and recommend the food (visually) to others, then there is a greater chance of your dining place being 'in' and the favorite place to be. Share the guests' photos too on your own instagram or other social media channels. Then you also save time on new SoMe initiatives.
Create your own, unique concept
In order to have a popular eatery that your guests are willing to promote via the social channels, we therefore consider it important that you consider a special and unique food concept or more.
It is always important to be part of the trend, but also to have your own unique character, which drives people (with your smartphone) to your place. Your guests' dining experience is essential for others to visit your eatery and whether it becomes popular.
TREND 5 - SNACKING
Our traditional way of eating is changing. We are busier than ever, so we often eat on the go and take our lives in chunks. It is therefore not surprising that one of the big food trends is snacking - and it may be worth thinking about in the professional kitchen in the near future.
Goodbye to the traditional meal
With our busy daily lives, we are slowly waving goodbye to the three classic main meals. Instead, we eat many small snacks throughout the day.
But snacking is about more than just satisfying your hunger quickly during the day. It's about short, much-needed breaks, which we fill out with small, fast dining experiences. And it must be healthy and nutritious snacks that our body can work with for the rest of the day.
Get more guests during the day
The growing snacking culture covers a huge target group - both children, young people and adults - and there can be many opportunities to snack during the day.
Thus, there are also many low-hanging fruits to pick if you manage to think the new meal into your menu. And that is whether you work in a café, canteen, sandwich bar or something completely different. The need for a quick snack experience can arise anywhere, anytime.
By thinking snacking into your kitchen, you can get a steady flow of guests throughout the day, ensuring you an even turnover spread throughout the day.
Make your kitchen the obvious snacking destination
There are many exciting options hidden if you are thinking of snacking into your menu. The need to eat small portions increases your guests' desire to try something new.
In other words, you can experiment with new and different snack solutions that can make your kitchen the obvious snacking destination. And it requires no major changes of either your kitchen or budget if you want to think snacking into your menu. Start with a few variations and see how it goes. Chicken is an obvious place to start, as it has both many serving options and health benefits.
Read also: 14 suggestions for easy snacking & tapas dishes
Do you want to join new trends?
Remember that a trend is only valuable if you understand how to use it strategically and can turn it into your own benefits for your kitchen and dining place.
Contact one of our consultants and get the right advice about products as well as help to join food trends and start new food concepts in 2022!