Food Trends Are Difficult to Predict, and 2022 Looks to Be No Exception. Food Trends of 2022 Appear to Point Towards a Better World for Our Bodies, Planet, and Wellness. So Which Food Trend Do You Think Will Be the Biggest in 2022? Which Do You Intend to Try First? Find Inspiration in the Following List!
Plant-Based Foods
Plant-based products will continue to be a trend into 2022. Year after year, consumers become more adventurous and curious about plant-based diets, and all through the rest of 2021 and into 2022 food manufacturers will be focused on plant-based innovation; from new ingredients brought to market, to plant-based convenience meals. The last will be more popular than ever, as many Americans will continue to work from home - at-home convenience meals will be offered at any average online grocery & gourmet departments like Amazon. Many of these are vegan, including plant-based meals like Chipotle Black Bean & Coconut Lime from Vana Life's Foods; Loma Linda’s Plant-Based Hawaiian Bowl; and Annie Chun's Korean-Style Sweet Chili Noodle Bowl with seitan.
Kombucha Drink
Kombucha tea, originally from China, is used as an alternative medicine worldwide because of its long history and tradition. The popularity of kombucha has steadily grown over the past few years, and it looks like this trend will only continue into 2022. In the U.S., this tea remains one of the most highly-rated drinks, claiming to improve digestion, sleep, and liver function. In addition to all the above, the overall rise of consumption of nutritional drinks and preferences for functional drinks over fruit juices and carbonated drinks in 2022 will lead to a rise in new kombucha brands and local suppliers.
More about the Kombucha market, here.
Mung Beans
Mung beans are edible seeds that belong to the legume plant family, a staple in Ayurvedic medicine for centuries. As a protein substitute, mung beans have become increasingly popular in Western cuisine. We are seeing increased popularity of this trend right now, and by 2022 we will see mung bean products ranging from noodles to burgers to snacks. Leading companies should embrace this adventure and appeal to more consumers who are willing to step out of their comfort zones and include mung beans in their diet. This shouldn't be so challenging, given that this bean has many benefits!
Extensive report about mung beans, health benefits and nutritional values, here.
African Food and Spices
In the food, drink, health and beauty sectors, African flavors and ingredients are gaining traction. More and more people are becoming interested in the cuisine of West African countries such as Ghana, Nigeria and Senegal. Searches for African recipes on Pinterest saw a 311% increase in 2019 - a large increase - and Whole Foods featured West African cuisine in its food trends report for 2021. The rise of some renowned kitchen superstars from West Africa also helped introduce West African cuisine to the international food community in the UK and other Western countries. Today this market remains largely untapped and unexplored, and this cuisine offers numerous possibilities for innovation: with the growing African food service scene in the UK, there is an opportunity for brands or private labels to partner with rising restaurants and chefs, and bring these flavors to the masses. Additionally, West African ingredients have many varied and unique properties that can be utilized to elevate products when they are sourced from the region, and it is safe to say that product innovation featuring vibrant African flavors coupled with well-known modern formats can become a successful story in the food aisles.
Packaged Foods Sweetened With Fruit
The consumer has a complicated relationship with sugar. The interest in reducing sugar content, especially in natural ways, is an ever-hot topic and will continue to be of interest to consumers and food and beverage manufacturers, especially due to the the Nutrition Facts panel requirements to include the amount of ‘added sugars,’ which raises consumer awareness even more. This interest will continue to grow during 2022. This need will lead to the rise of fruit as a natural sweetener becoming a real trend. You'll find dates in cereal, and fruits and spices as the only sweeteners in yogurt with no added sugar. In recipes, prunes act surprisingly similar to dates and can be used in everything from smoothies and brownies to DIY snack bars.
Plant-Based Cheese
Cheese is one of the most popular foods for all age groups, and has become a universal staple of the modern world. Much like seafood, it is difficult to find a comparable alternative to its animal counterpart when it comes to cheese. But as consumers continue to demand healthier and more environmentally sustainable alternatives to their favorite foods, the market for vegan cheese is becoming increasingly competitive and scalable. New innovative products have been hitting shelves since late 2019, including some private labels and conventional retailers offering shredded and sliced plant-based cheese options. If you want to innovate in your business, plant-based cheese looks to be the next booming category for plant-based nutrition.
Cooking Oils
Experimenting with new oils in cooking will be a major food trend in 2021, whether benefitting health or flavor. Consumers are becoming more knowledgeable regarding appropriate use of cooking oils, with increasing awareness of lifestyle diseases such as diabetes and high cholesterol. With this fact in mind, manufacturers have been creating cooking oils with high nutritional value and low fatty content. In 2022, cooking oil manufacturers will introduce new brands with nutritional value, thus promoting health, including the following: avocado oil, pumpkin seed oil, sunflower seed oil, and carrot oil.