Top Five Trends from Winter Fancy Food Show

With the Winter Fancy Food Show come and gone, let’s look back on the emerging trends seen at the show as pinpointed by Specialty Food Association’s Trendspotter Panel as well as some representative products.

Southeast Asian Influence:

Bak Kwa meat snacks by Little Red Dot:

Bak Kwa is Singapore style street food that is moist and not hard to chew like some jerkies. Bold in flavor, Little Red Dot offers their Bak Kwa in Pork, Chipotle Beef (spicy), Lemongrass Beef, Turkey and Candied Uncured Bacon (spicy).

Naan Chips by Maya Kaimal Fine Indian Foods:

Maya Kaimal brought flame-baked Naan Chips to the table in three flavors: Sea Salt, Rosemary and Almost Everything (onion, poppy and anise).

Tandoori Seasoned Chicken Nuggets by Saffron Road:

Indian twist on an American dish. Whole breast meat chicken basted in authentic Tandoori spices.

Ramen Noodles by Nona Lim:

Forget those soggy, stale packages of ramen noodles. Nona Lim showed off its restaurant-quality ramen noodles for home cooks. The firm suggests pairing its Nona Lim Thai Curry and Lime Broth or its Nona Lim Vietnamese Pho Bone Broth with Nona Lim Whole Wheat Ramen, for Southeast Asian food enthusiasts. Other ramen options include Nona Lim Tokyo Ramen and Nona Lim Hakata Ramen.

Organic Shallot Oil by Wei Kitchen:

Safflower oil infused with shallots that had been fried to a golden brown. Vietnamese staple inspired by the French and used often in Chinese, Vietnamese and Jewish kitchens.

Thai Iced Tea Coconut Caramels by Hey Boo:

Brand new from Hey Boo known for its coconut jams, their caramels are made with organic coconut oil and real cane sugar.

Curry Ketchup by Red Duck Foods:

Red Duck Foods showed off its line of ketchup, including one that is inspired by Indian food: a curry-flavored variety.

Grass-fed Dairy and Beef:

Vanilla Grassmilk Yogurt by Organic Valley:

Made from the milk of cows that have been grazing in pastures eating the grass that is natural to their diet. Research has shown that grass-fed cows produce milk with a more healthful balance of omega-3 to omega-6 fatty acids. Cultured in small batches with non-homogenized Grassmilk.

Grass-fed Beef Jerky by The New Primal:

Certified Gluten-Free, grass-fed beef jerky in Original and Spicy flavors, and in 2 ounce bags or stick form.

Organic Cucumber Mint Melon Lassi by Dahliscious, Inc.:

Indian style smoothie with organic grass-fed cultured whole milk. Rich in probiotics, containing over 15 billion live cultures.

Steve’s Icecream:

Unique flavors and combinations, made with grass-fed milk.

Protein:

Energy Legume Blend Pasta from TOLERANT Foods:

New Energy Legume Blend will include legume + pea varieties and are packed with plant-based protein.

Chiridos by Bitty Foods:

Mexican style snack made from cricket flour. Cricket flour is a highly sustainable form of protein, made from sustainably raised crickets which are slow roasted then milled into fine flour. Also free of grain, processed sugar and dairy, using coconut oil instead.

Clusters by IHeartKeenwah:

Protein-packed quinoa is the star ingredient in the new Quinoa Cluster recipe that includes nut butter as well as hemp seeds, pepitas, chia seeds and vanilla for a slightly softer texture and enhanced flavor profile.

Cinnamon Hemp Heart Bites by Manitoba Harvest:

Bite-size crunchy hemp snack with 10 g of protein and 10 g of omega-3 and -6 in a 45 g serving (8 pieces).

Fit Frozen Desserts from Arctic Zero:

These sugar-free frozen desserts are packed with whey protein and include several new flavors, such as Brownie Blast, Snickerdoodle Dandy and Banana Pudding Chunky Pints; Cake Batter and Poppin’ Pomegranate Creamy Pints; and Mint and Salted Caramel Chocolate-Dipped Bars.

Chickpea Snacks from Saffron Road:

New on the plant-based protein snack front from Saffron Road was a USDA Certified Organic Chickpea Snack product with six grams of protein.

Organic Edamame Spaghetti by Explore Cuisine:

Certified Gluten-Free, Organic, Non-GMO Project Verified and Certified Vegan with over 86 g of protein and 40 g of fiber per bag. Cooks to the same al dente texture of conventional pasta.

Chocolate Sea Salt Bar by RXBAR:

Contains only 7 ingredients included 3 egg whites which give the bar 12 g of protein.

WholeFoods also learned about the launches of several nut milks, which tend to be good sources of protein. These include four varieties of Royal Hawaiian Orchards Macadamia Milks and Califia’s Almondmilk Creamers and Better Half. Also serving the dairy-free community, Follow Your Heart sampled its first-to-market Vegan Egg made out of algae.

In Cups:

Acai & Chia Brown Rice Snack by Ricebliss:

Hybrid of rice porridge and rice pudding, the product is gluten and dairy-free as well as Non-GMO. Also packed with antioxidants.

Sweet Potato Kale Quinoa Salad by Dr. McDougall’s Right Foods:

Delicious to-go salad, with sustainable packaging that is paper-based BPA-free, using paper from FSC certified sustainably managed forests.

Modern Oats:

Packaged in portable, recyclable 2.6-ounce cups, Modern Oats' protein-rich, gluten-free oatmeal comes in several new flavors: Vermont Maple, Coconut Almond, 5 Berry (No Sugar Added) and Just Oats.

Cranberry Pecan Ancient Grain Granola + Puffs Cereal Cups by Purely Elizabeth:

Salty sweet blend of granola cluster, cranberries and roasted pecans with milk soaked puffs. Made with organic ingredients, certified gluten-free and vegan and Non-GMO Project Verified.

Chicken-bone Broth in K-Cups by Lonolife:

Boasting 8 g of protein, no MSG or preservatives, this is an on-the-go bone broth in a 100% recyclable K-Cup.

Also joining “mini-mania” were New England Style Pocket from Mamie’s Pies, Crispy Cookie Bites from Dancing Deer Baking Co., and single-serve packets of Viki’s Granola.

The Color Purple:

Organic Stone-Ground Purple Corn Flakes by Back to the Roots:

Corn flakes made from non-GMO purple corn, organic cane sugar from Florida and sea salt from the San Francisco Bay.

Smoky BBQ Shredded Beets by Love Beets:

Marinated baby beets.

Purple Potato and Brown Rice Ramen by Lotus Foods:

Gluten-free traditional Japanese-style noodles made from organic purple potatoes and brown rice instead of wheat. Vegan, low-fat and with 50% less sodium than traditional ramen.

Sonoma Cabernet Iced Tea by Republic of Tea: