EMERGING INGREDIENTS, FLAVORS AND DISHES

November 2008

All-access Asian... New Asian ingredients and recipes continue to proliferate on campus and fine dining menus. Korean, Indian and new Japanese dishes attract diners, especially younger ones, with savory, sweet and hot flavors. Murray State University in Kentucky serves Korean beef bulgogi and seaweed soup; BanQ Restaurant in Boston marries seared scallops with Indian-accented lentils. Look for these flavors to gain traction: daikon, miso and sriracha (a Southeast Asian spicy garlic-chili sauce). (Restaurants & Institutions, 10/1)

• Menu focus: Sweet potatoes...Dishes with the fall favorite often tap into other culinary trends such as smoked flavors and high-end doughnuts. Some examples include Smoked Sweet Potato Bisque with apple, sausage and cinnamon at the Screen Door, Dallas and Sweet Potato Doughnuts with brown butter, cinnamon sabayon, apples and pepitas at Powerhouse Restaurant, Chicago. Jimmy’s on the Park in St. Louis offers Herb-seared Halibut over Sweet Potato Risotto with apple-ginger purée. (Restaurants & Institutions, 10/1)
• Au Bon Pain adds desserts to Portions Menu... Five new dessert options with 200 calories or less are the latest entry to the chain’s special Portions menu. Varieties include Chocolate Duo, Fruit Romanoff with Almonds, Mango Coconut Mousse, Raspberry Mousse and Tiramisu. (QSR, 10/3)
• From lemonade to lavish truffles, lavender’s profile keeps growing... As we predicted in our Indulgence Culinary Trend Mapping Report, lavender has become a trendy floral flavor, appearing in recipes for cakes and ice cream in a Penzey’s catalog, in custards and fish broths at Roots in Milwaukee, and in scones, lemonade, chocolate truffles and gourmet seasonings at Ali’I Kula Lavender Farm in Hawaii. (Clarion Ledger, Mississippi, 10/10)
• This little piggy: Street food done to a Tuscan turn... In the October Side Dish, we noted that a fine dining restaurant in Italy offered an updated porchetta sandwich, typically found as street food. Now New Yorkers can sample the popular snack at Porchetta in the East Village. Porchetta, the dish, is a spit-roasted seasoned whole hog, sliced and served on bread. Porchetta, the shop, serves roasted pork loins wrapped in pork belly, straight or on ciabatta. (New York, 10/13)
• Local is the name and the aim of this eatery... A new L.A. restaurant walks the talk: Local, owned by Jason Michaud, uses as many organic ingredients from a 300-mile radius as possible. This includes organic (non-beef) meat, cage-free eggs and free-range chicken. The restaurant has a walk-up counter, a salad and soup bar, and features comfort food with French or Spanish flavors. (Los Angeles Times, 10/13)
• With goat, a rancher breaks away from the herd…Will Bill Niman do for goat what he did for beef and pork? We hope so; we have been tracking low-fat, versatile, affordable goat meat since releasing our Meat Culinary Trend Mapping Report. Now we expect a surge of interest from chefs since Niman, who is the former owner of the Niman Ranch natural meat company, has gone off on his own to produce pastured goat. (New York Times, 10/15)
• Shochu breaks through... Around San Francisco, shochu is a new alcoholic drink option. It’s a distilled beverage made from a variety of starches and grains; in Japan, its consumption has exceeded that of sake. With a friendly alcohol level of between 19% and 25%, shochu goes well with food like that found in trendy Japanese izakayas. It’s Korean equivalent, soju, is often found mixed in trendy cocktails in restaurants without liquor licenses. (San Francisco Chronicle, 10/17)
• Yum’s Long John Silver to roll out healthy menu... The fish chain will introduce non-fried fish items on a new menu called Freshside Grille. Items are lower in fat and calories; entrées and sides include grilled Pacific salmon, shrimp scampi, mixed vegetables and seasoned rice. (Biz.Yahoo, 10/20)
• Put that in your cup and smoke it... Smoke isn’t only flavoring food these days but cocktails, too. Mixologists on both coasts are smoking liquor, mixers and glassware over aromatic woods such as cherry and apple to add deep flavors to fall drinks. At San Francisco’s Absinthe, bartenders smoke rum or brandy over cherrywood chips, mix the liquor into a cocktail and serve it in a glass that has been inverted over a lit wood chip. (USA Today, 10/20)

NEW PRODUCT LAUNCHES

November 2008

Kentucky bloodlines in a new soy sauce... Bluegrass Soy Sauce is a new small-batch soy sauce, inspired by small soy breweries of Japan. It’s made with non-GMO soybeans and soft red winter wheat, both from Kentucky, as well as limestone-filtered spring water; it’s aged in old whiskey barrels. The sauce is said to be “more pungent, more smoky, more flavorful” than commercial soy sauces. (New York Times, 10/22)

• Keep brain health top of mind with new Live Bright brain-health bars... Kellogg’s introduces new snack bars with 100mg of DHA Omega-3 fatty acids, a building block for nerve cells. The DHA is vegetarian in source. Flavors are Double Chocolate and Dark Chocolate Vanilla. We profiled brain food trends in our Emerging Health and Wellness Culinary Trend Mapping Report in early 2008. (PR Newswire, 10/1)
• Gatorade gets functional... PepsiCo unveiled plans for new functional versions of the popular sports beverage. Upcoming “Focus” will enhance mental acuity; “Be-Strong” offers protein and Gatorade AM will become a non-caffeinated energy drink renamed “Shine.” (BevNET.com, 10/8)
• Gum category embraces germ warfare... New chewing gums on the horizon will offer functional benefits. Mentos Pure Fresh gum will include green tea extract that kills bad-breath causing bacteria. Eclipse already assassinates germs with magnolia bark extract. (Brandweek, 10/9)
• New beef brand for Hispanics launches in the L.A. area... Several Hereford beef associations have launched “Nuestro Rancho” brand beef available in the service case area at 31 Hispanic grocery stores in the L.A. region. Hispanics buy three to four times as much beef as other consumers and prefer to buy exactly the kind and quantity they need from a butcher, usually less expensive cuts from the chuck and the round. (MeatPoultry.com, 10/13)
• Warm, hearty family-style meal. No family required... New Stove Top Quick Cups deliver traditional Stove Top Stuffing in a quick, convenient microwave cup; just add water and heat for 60 seconds. Quick Cups come in two varieties, chicken and cornbread, to complement the meal-for-one experience. (Biz.Yahoo.com, 10/14)
• Snacking better just got a little sweeter! Sahale Snacks introduces a new line of glazed nuts... The new chef-inspired line of glazed nuts are coated with organic evaporated cane juice and natural fruits, like strawberry juice concentrate for Almond PB&J with Peanuts + Berries and pomegranate juice concentrate for Cashews with Pomegranate + Vanilla. (PR Newswire, 10/14)
• Reed’s Inc. announces plans to launch revolutionary all-natural energy drink elixir... Reed’s Natural Energy Elixir is a next generation energy drink infused with ginger, green tea, goji, gynostemma (an herb used in Eastern medicine known for its ability to restore balance to body and mind), camu camu (a rainforest superfruit with high vitamin C), ginsing, L-Theanaine and B vitamins. (Biz.Yahoo.com, 10/15)
• Easy hot cereal: You don’t even have to pour the milk... The pudding company Kozy Shack has launched Ready Grains, a prepared refrigerated cereal in its own bowl ready for the microwave. The cereal is made with oats, brown rice and barley; it has seven grams of fiber, eight grams of protein and between 180 and 210 calories. Flavors are plain, maple-brown sugar, apple-cinnamon and strawberry. (New York Times, 10/15)
• Deluxe Honeydrop launches new honey-infused organic beverage in four flavors... The new line of organic beverages contain a drop of honey and premium juices. The 80-calorie drinks come in four flavors: Bee Good (apple), Bee Alive (blood orange), Bee Calm (chamomile) and Bee Strong (blueberry). (Business Wire, 10/16)
• Getting sage in the kitchen: The makers of TSP Spices introduce Smart Spice... Smart Spice features four one-teaspoon packets of organic spices in one carton. The flavor-saving packets protect spices from air, light and moisture for fresher taste and longer shelf life. (PR Newswire, 10/1)

FOOD AND BEVERAGE INDUSTRY HEADLINES

November 2008

An urban farmer is rewarded for his dream... Will Allen and his Growing Power organization in Milwaukee have just won a MacArthur “genius grant.” The organization produces vegetables, meat and fish inside one of the nation’s “food deserts,” where the only access to food is corner grocery stores. Growing Power sells food at its “farm” as well as food co-ops, retail stores and local restaurants. (New York Times, 10/1)

• Feast fabulously and affordably... Whole Foods Market introduces “The Whole Deal” value guide with cooking tips from Martha Stewart, “Sure Deals” (high quality pantry items like soups, instant oatmeal, organic teas and hot cocoa mix) and budget-saving recipes for entertaining. The store also offers value tours with “Value Gurus,” promotional deals on family packs and an online message board with shopper tips. (Whole Foods press release, 10/2)
• General Mills, Kraft launch word of mouth networks... In an effort to build stronger relationships with consumers, General Mills and Kraft have set up new networks giving members early knowledge about new products, coupons, samples and a forum to provide feedback. Pssst from General Mills and Kraft’s First Taste follow in the path of Proctor and Gamble’s Tremor, launched in 2001. (Brandweek, 10/5)
• You’re not hallucinating – hemp is a prime ingredient... Hemp has increasingly become a key ingredient for French Meadow Bakery. The organic bread, roll, bagel and tortilla maker touts hemp as packed with protein, fiber and amino acids; industrial hemp is also abundant and environmentally sustainable. (Brandweek, 10/6)
• Judge me by my colour, says foods…Following the trend CCD labeled as Huetrition^smin our Emerging Health and Wellness Culinary Trend Mapping Report, foods are increasingly being marketed for their color and associated health benefits in Europe, according to an analyst at Euromonitor. This has become possible because consumers are more aware of the link between color-giving components of foods to health benefits. (Nutraingredients.com, 10/9)
• Snacks are fourth meal of the day... According to a new report on snacking from NPD, most snacking still occurs in the evening at home but this is declining. Morning snacking has shown the strongest growth and snack foods replace more breakfasts than other meals. (Food Navigator-USA, 10/10)
• Columbian coffee icon defies Starbucks doldrums... A Columbian café chain is determined to continue its worldwide expansion despite the slowing economy. Juan Valdez Cafés (101 units across Columbia as well as in New York, Seattle, and Philadelphia in the U.S.) plan to add 500 more shops by 2010. The unique chain is owned by 22,600 coffee-growing shareholders who opened the cafés to advertise the beans they sell, not to make a profit. (Biz.Yahoo.com, 10/16)
• More young people choosing vegetarian and fish diets... More and more adolescents are becoming full or partial vegetarians, giving parents challenges for family dinners. These young people are choosing to forego meat for either ethical or health reasons. Families often end up eating more fish to please the whole family. (Dallas News, 10/22)
• Voters decide whether animals need more space... California voters decided that the state’s farms must afford more living space to veal calves, egg-laying hens and pregnant sow under recently approved Proposition 2. The measure now sets a national precedent; while veal and sow gestation crates have been banned in other states, this law is the first to prohibit the small cages used in egg production. (Washington Post, 10/27)