We visited the 2022 Fancy Food Show at the Javits Center in New York City. The show took place from June 12th to June 14th and hosted a wide variety of booths displaying their trendy food products ranging from local startups to global businesses. Here are the 12 trends we found at the show.
1. Chickpea Crosses Categories
We’ve seen chickpeas everywhere the last few years after hummus has grown rapidly in the U.S. In recent years we saw a rise in aquafaba. Now we’re seeing chickpeas in even more categories including yogurt and snacks.
Products spotted at the show:
- Just Chickpea Butter
- Plant Based Seafood from Good Catch featuring chickpeas with fava beans, peas, navy beans, lentils and soy
- Chickpea pancake and muffin mix
- CHKp Chickpea yogurt
- Talia Chickpea snacks
2. Ready to Drink Bubble Tea
Bubble tea has crossed the divide from a traditional food service product to a retail product. We saw a few examples of canned bubble teas at this year’s show.
Products spotted at the show:
- Daoher Beverage – Boba Milk Tea in flavors like matcha, brown sugar and non-dairy varieties
- Inotea Bubble tea in flavors like honeydew, matcha green tea latte, taro and more
- Inotea Bursting Bubble Tea in flavors like mixed berry hibiscus, mango + red dragon fruit, passion fruit + apple
3. Honey+
Honey has become popular as a versatile medium for flavor innovation. This natural sweetener took various forms at the show such as a dehydrated powder for seasoning, a medicinal ingredient in drinks, a mixer to flavor alcohol and in flavored raw formats. Many of these products align with our Symrise TrendScope Healthy Lifestyles trend.
Products spotted at the show:
- Cocktail and Sons Mixers in flavors like Ginger Honey
- Kitchen and Love Honey Infused in flavors such as Hot, Extra Hot, Ginger, Lemon and Ginger
- Beebad Energy Drink
- HoneyGramz Creamed Honey with flavors like Chocolate Pomegranate, Ginger, Turmeric, Lemon
- Bumbleberry Farms Honey Straws
- Soulbee Honey Powder, Honey Ginger and Honey Flakes
4. Spreadable Charcuterie & Spicy Jams
Bacon Jams have been around for a while, but now more flavors are entering the market and some are even vegan friendly. Savory spreads and jams are versatile and can be used as a sauce on burgers, a glaze to cook with or simply paired with cheese. This Symrise TrendScope Premium Indulgence trend aligns with some of these products.
Products spotted at the show:
- Totally Plant Based Kielbasa Charcuterie Butter
- Nutcase Vegan Meats Nutty Loaf
- TBJ Gourmet Uncured Bacon Jam flavored with sweet chili, black peppercorn or classic
- Fischer Wieser Bacon and Apple Jam
5. Booze Inspired Beyond Beverage
Booze flavors were very common at the show in snacks, pastries, coffee and potato chips. Big brands like Jelly Belly to nich local companies are using alcohol as a flavor to create more mature flavors in accessible formats that give customers a taste of happy hour at any time of the day and as non-alcoholic.
Products spotted at the show:
- Jack Daniel's Tennessee Honey Cake
- Guinness Chocolate Stout Cake
- Guinness Rich Chili Potato Chips
- Baileys Irish Cream Loaf Cake
- Pallini Limoncello Liqueur Cake
- Don Pablo Coffee with flavors such as Irish Whiskey and Vanilla, Canadian Whiskey and Maple, and Kentucky Bourbon
- Rocky Ridge Maple Farms Bourn Barrel Pure Organic Maple Syrup
- Spirit Legends Gourmet Fudge in flavors like Tennessee Whiskey, French Cognac, Caribbean Rum
- Baileys Toffee Temptations
- Jelly Belly Jelly Beans in flavors likeMoscow Mule, Gin and Tonic, Rose and Cocktail Classics
- Cleveland Ketchup Co. Bacon and Bourbon
6. Bakery Gets Bite Sized
Baked goods are getting shrunk down into snackable bite sized forms. These snacks were often health conscious while still being indulgent or nostalgic.
Products spotted at the show:
- The Greater Knead Soft Pretzel Nuggets in flavors such as Classic, Cinnamon sugar, Spicy Buffalo, Everything
- Cookie Bluff Nim Nums - a raw cookie dough style snack in flavors like Birthday Cake, Chocolate Chip or Double Vegan Chocolate
- Balkan Bites Burek Pies in flavors like Spinach and Cheese and Cheese Medley
7. Regional Indian Profiles and Fusion
Curry sauces, snacks and convenient crockpot ready Indian meal kits have now started expanding beyond American staples like butter chicken and chicken tikka masala into more traditional flavors and more fusion.
Products spotted at the show:
- Karma Bites Popped Lotus Seeds Coconut and Vanilla
- Aara Pilao and Papadum, Vegetable Bryani and Chana Masala
- Brooklyn Delhi Hot Sauce, Coconut Cashew Korma, Mango Chutney
- Khazana Kerala Coconut Curry, Chicken Korma, Rogan Josh and Madras Curry
- Heritage Kulfi in flavors like Saffron, and Rosé
- Indialicious Mexican Style Rice
- Khala Salsa’s Mango Habanero
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8. Veggies Get Snackable
As an alternative to potato chips, dried or air fried veggies have become a healthy alternative snack. In addition, these snacks typically cater to allergy restricted diets as well as vegans and vegetarians. This follows our Symrise TrendScope Touching Nature trend.
Products spotted at the show:
- Popadelica Crunchy Mushroom Crisps with flavors like Trippin’ Truffle Parm, Rad Rosemary + Salt and Twisted Thai Chili
- Mark’s Mindful Munchies Pop Bitties in flavors such as Vegan Sour Cream and Onion
- Paradise Green Himalayan Pink Salt Organic Crispy Asparagus, Crispy Sugar Snap Peas, Shiitake Mushrooms
- Vegan Rob's Sorghum Brussel Sprout Puffs, Beet Puffs,
- Vintage Italia Plant Based Penne Straws in flavors like Mac ‘N Cheese, Marinara
- Friendly Grains Ancient Grain Crisps
- Mozaic Real Veggie Chips in flavor like bbq, sea salt, and salsa
- Elephant Baked Squeezed Pretzel Chips Tomatoes and Herbs
- Pans Mushroom Jerky with flavors like Zesty Thai, Teriyaki, Applewood BBQ, Salt and Pepper and Curry
9. Shrubs Get Some Love
Shrubs are starting to see a revival. At the show, it was either for drinking or to be an ingredient in a mixed drink.
Products spotted at the show:
- Vermont Village Shrubs in flavors of Strawberry & Mint, and Blueberry & Lemon
- Shrubbly Bubbly Super flavored with Drink Lemon + Ginger + Aronia Berry and Pomegranate + Aronia Berry
- Blake Hill Botanical Syrup and Shrubs Basil and Blueberry, Wild Mint, Rhubarb & Honey, Ginger & Turmeric, and Spicy Jalapeno
- Tait Farm Foods The Original Shrub Lime Mint
10. Africa on the Map
African snacks and rice dishes highlighted bold aromatic African flavors which are becoming more popular in U.S. packaged foods.
Products spotted at the show:
- Green Sahara African Style Potato Chips with flavors such as Sahara, Savana and Victoria
- Turbana Cassava Chips
- Yolélé African Rub and Dip Mixes with flavors like Scotch Bonnet, Onion + Thyme, Dawadawa Garlic + Mushroom, and Parsley, Chili + Scallion
- Yolélé Fonio Pilaf with flavors like Jollof and Dakar Curry
11. Beverages With a Purpose
There were many examples at the show of beverages that not only tasted good, but had health benefits.
Products spotted at the show:
- Savia SmartHydration with flavors like Blueberry Pomegranate, Peach Mango, or Strawberry Banana
- Aqua Nobel Vitamin Infused Water Flavored with Lemon Ginger, Blood Orange + Grapefruit or Watermelon + Raspberry- All flavors are infused with nutrients for improved health
- Reveal Avocado Seed Brew flavored with Mango Ginger Flavor, Rose Mint Flavor, or Grapefruit Lavender Flavor - Contain probiotics, prebiotics, and antioxidants, which prevents bloating, Aids in digestion, Fights free radicals, Promotes clear skin, Promotes gut health, Boosts Immunity
- Spare Tonic Blueberry & Ginger - Probiotic Sparkling Tonic
- Bee’s Water Organic Honey Water - Contains honey, which offers immunity boosting properties
- Wildwonder Prebiotic + Probiotic Sparkling Drink flavored with Strawberry Passion, Guava Rose, Peach Ginger and Mango Turmeric- 6g sugar per can, organic and supports gut health
- Waku Prebiotic Herbal Tea flavored with Lemon, Ginger Lemon, Raspberry Rose, Passionfruit and Blueberry- Contains botanicals and prebiotics to “make your gut happy”
12. Japanese Influence
Japanese flavors already are common as mainstream flavors, but now more exotic Japanese fruits are being used to flavor drinks, spreads and snacks. These are good examples of our Symrise North America Modern Asian trend.
Products spotted at the show:
- Kuze Fuku & Sons Latte Mixer in Matcha or Strawberry
- Kuze Fuku & Sons Yuzu Premium Fruit Spread
- Kuze Fuku & Sons Curd in Matcha Lemon, or Yuzu
- Kankitsu Labo Dry Candied Citrus Peels made with fruits like Amanatsu, Iyokan, or Kawachi Bankan
- Moshi Sparkling Uji Matcha flavoring in Original, White Strawberry, Coconut or Ginger
