Focus on: UK food trends – part 4

I’m recently working with a variety of companies in the food & drink sector creating international brands based on in-depth analysis of their markets and accurate business plans. Here is a gift, some more interesting data regarding the UK food trends.

EXOTICISM & POPULAR DISHES

Always seeking new experiences, consumers love exoticism linked to food and drink. One of the food trends resulting from the worldwide rising immigration of Muslim populations is the impact on cooking ingredients and meals. This trend focuses on Halal food and Middle-Eastern flavours – such as za’atar, harissa and cardamom – or dishes, primarily shakshuka defined as “a spicy, tomatoey, eggy breakfast”.

Japanese cuisine is continuing to star thanks to its healthy recipes and ingredients. Particular emphasis is put on yakitori style of cooking and the food found in the izakayas across Japan. Other popular elements of this food trend are citric yuzu, spicy wasabi, earthy matcha tea, savoury umami, fishy seaweed, and okonomiyaki – a Japanese savoury pancake (the name roughly translates as “what you like, grilled”) made with seasoned batter and shredded cabbage, then topped with pork, squid or octopus.

FLAVOURS

Flavours are important elements of the new food and drink consumer experience.
The most trendy are expected to be the floral flavours that have increased in use by 132% between 2015 and 2017: rose, lavender, hibiscus and elderflower are the floral flavours expected to gain traction during 2019, together with the return of the edible flowers trend.

Another “resurrection” is the one starring smoked flavours. Smoking is one of the most ancient ways for preserving food, however smoked flavours are perceived as innovative because used with a variety of original associations, from dessert to butter, from beverage to marinades and sauces creating profiles like smoky vanilla, smoky apple, smoky caramel, smoky paprika or smoky cheese.

The third return from the past is the hot and spicy flavour with African [i.e. Berbere, such as coriander, paprika, allspice, cardamom, ginger, cinnamon and red pepper] and Mexican seasonings expected to increase in popularity. Other than that, coffee and tea flavours are on trend: after the rise of innovative drinks in coffee houses, this innovation is expected to spread over other sectors such as snacks, bakery or dairy creating more coffee flavoured chocolate bars, tea flavoured biscuits and coffee flavoured milkshakes using all coffee and tea varieties [green tea, rooibos, mocha, cappuccino, latte].

Finally, a new entry, the flavour of cocktails and alcoholic drinks that is emerging in a multitude of applications including snacks, bakery, sports nutrition and dairy categories. gin, bourbon, prosecco, champagne, pina colada, margarita and mojito being the most promising.

[via: Mintel, Euromonitor, Innova Market Insights, Attest, Opentable and Deliveroo reports]

Could you imagine all this?
If you’ve got a business idea and you’d like to support it with a market analysis, I would love to hear from you.