Out with the Old, In with the New www.foodproductdesign.com dec. 29, 2011 by Lynn kuntz welcome to 2012. one of the most interesting phenomena as the old year closes out and the new unfolds is the veritable flood of predictions of what’s the next big thing in foods and beverages. typically they range from the sublime to the prosaic to the ridiculous. For example: the James Beard Foundation bloggers have called canelés (a custardy French pastry) “the new, new cupcakes.” Andrew Freeman & Co. called 2012 “the year of the potato,” with the advent of french fry menus and other customizable potatoes. According to the Huffington Post, the new hot sandwich is…drum roll please…a French dip. seriously. or, in a somewhat perplexing food trends of 2011 retrospective, Huffpo claims insects as one of their top choices. i suppose that is good news for carmine and cochineal users. plus, it may explain the craving for a French dip. Epicurious says to keep an eye on high-end indian, but relegates korean bulgogito the has-been bin. Various other sources give the nod to norwegian/scandinavian, eastern European and “reinvented” thai. According to GrowBiz Media, look to Mediterranean food, particularly Greek, spanish and Middle Eastern. on their list of buzzwords for 2012, Baum+Whiteman has ingredients and dishes such as: fresh sardine, uni, yuzu, tamarind, ox tail, kalbi, bibimbap, bulgogi, huacatay, hibiscus, arepas, coconut oil, shiso, lamb ribs and belly, bao, ‘nduja, bacalao and green papaya. some of these have appeared on previous 2010 or 2011 lists, but in other cases, thank goodness we live in the age of Google and ethnic markets. The Food Channel's top 10 food trends says peruvian cuisine may be the next big thing on the ethnic culinary scene, although it’s also appeared in other lists in 2007 and 2009. while 2012 might well be peru’s year, despite our tendency to call our family guinea pig Meatloaf due to his appearance, we won’t be popping him in the oven anytime soon, despite the country's cuy-centric cuisine. Yes, that's guinea pig. it’s always interesting to decode these trend pieces for a wider audience. to a certain extent, history shows a good number of these specific items are just foodie fads vs. something the general public is embracing. still, it’s always good to look outside the norm to get inspiration. And there are always related possibilities—presumably icing demand has risen due to the cupcake craze. perhaps macro-trend lists like the one from Leatherhead Food Research—including health and wellness, sustainability, convenience, flavor solutions for healthier foods, natural, affordable luxuries, etc.—are of more use, although there’s little on the list that will shock anyone in the food business. those are certainly issues you’ve been grappling with, and we’ve been writing about for years. Because, while it’s good to address the trends, it’s even better to know how to execute a well-designed, safe, nutritious and delicious processed food or beverage.
Be sure to download sysco’s new chef ref app for your ipad or iphone, free from the itunes app store. (Android version coming soon!)
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