Food trends come and go, particularly when it comes to colours. In recent times we’ve seen all the colours of the rainbow trending (and full-rainbow coloured food too). From layers of sparkles and pastels to vibrant purple being the current colour of the season.
It’s a colourful world out there. For anyone working in the foodservice, restaurant or hospitality sector it can difficult to decide which trends to adopt for the long-term versus the ones that are a passing trend. Incorrect predictions can be costly in development time and committing to large amounts of passing fad produce can be an expensive mistake.
As producers of dishes for the foodservice sector, a large amount of our time is spent to closely watching which food trends are emerging and using our experience to predict which ones will stick. Our customers depend on us to make the right recommendations on what their customers will want to eat and which dishes will sell.
Here are our predictions for food colour trends that have true sticking power.
Think pink – ruby chocolate
Developed by the worlds largest chocolate processor, Barry Callebaut, ruby chocolate has spent thirteen years in development. It’s said to be the first major innovation in chocolate in eighty years, adding something new to the traditional – milk, dark and white varieties.
The pink hue is derived from natural ingredients, with no extra colours or flavours being added to create the colour. The flavour has been described as a fusion between berry and smoothness that isn’t as sweet as milk chocolate. Nestles’s KitKat has been the first major U.K brand to feature the ruby chocolate, following a successful launch in Japan and Korea. Given this, it looks like ruby chocolate is here to stay. It also offers a more sophisticated spin on the rainbow and unicorn trends, suggesting a strong potential to become a firm favourite of the future.
The dark side – black food
Around two years ago glossy black ice cream became a social media craze. It had all the hallmarks of a food fad and we expected that to be the end of it. On the contrary, it appears that black food is here to stay and shows no signs of disappearing into the shadows from where it emerged. As well as being highly aesthetic, the demand for foods with a more bitter taste has also increased. Squid ink and charcoal are both used to achieve the bold look that black foods deliver. But they act as more than just a way of adding colour, charcoal delivers bitterness whilst squid ink is commonly used in dishes to create a sea-like flavour.
An acceptance of activated charcoal in health and beauty products has also bolstered the popularity of black food. It looks like it’s here to stay.
All that glitters – A gold Christmas
Multicoloured moves aside as the rise in the popularity of edible gold continues to rocket. Dustings of 24 karat, indulgence and glittering condiments have paved the way for more sophistication. For diners, being able to consume gold offers a unique and new experience and also indulges those who have a taste for the finer things in life. We’re expecting gold desserts to be huge for Christmas 2018.
We would love to hear your thoughts on the food trends that you think have staying power. Drop us a line here or connect with us on Instagram or Twitter.
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