Specialty Food Magazine is the leading publication for retailers, manufacturers and foodservice professionals in the specialty food trade. It provides news, trends and business-building insights that help readers keep their businesses competitive.
Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/68592
food trends This month we look at produce-shopping trends, the CIA's new line of wines, the meat that's making a comeback and other trends. BY DENISE SHOUKAS Produce Power H ere's a piece of news that may surprise some: In the produce sec- tion, local trumps organic. According to recent Mintel research, more than half of consumers say buying local produce is more important than buy- ing organic. This doesn't mean that organic isn't important, but the trend toward local is strong. Interestingly, senior citizens are even more likely to believe that buying local produce is more important than choosing organic. That said, Americans still aren't eating the recommended daily amounts, with 69 percent agreeing that they should be eating more fruits and vegetables than they currently consume. Give customers some help by offering veg- etable preparation ideas. They'll use them, especially the 37 percent that say the fresh vegetables they buy often go bad before they have a chance to eat them, and the 27 percent that say they would eat more vegetables if they knew how to prepare them. Black Tea Gets a Boost F L unctional beverages aren't all new: So proves a study in the Archives of Internal Medicine that found long-term consumption of black tea has been shown to lower blood pressure in people with normal to high levels. People who drank three cups a day lowered their levels by an average of two to three points. The properties in black tea are thought to help keep endothelial cells, which line the blood vessels, healthy. Meanwhile, flavonoids in tea are thought to improve the blood vessels' tone and reduce body weight and abdominal fat. Lamb Goes to Town amb is poised to give the ever-popular pig some competition, as the American Lamb Board is pairing up suppliers and restaurants in its Shepherd to Chef program. The effort has made such matches across the country as chef Matt Accarrino of SPQR in San Francisco with shepherd Don Watson of Wooley Weeders & Napa Valley Lamb Co., and chef Michael Scelfo of Russell House Tavern, Boston, with shepherd Lisa Dachinger of River Valley Farm in Lenox, Mass. According to the American Lamb Board, lamb and mutton consumption in the United States has dropped for the past four years and is expected to be flat, at best, in 2012. Experts blame a sluggish economy and lamb's high price relative to other meats. With nearly 40 percent of Americans having never eaten lamb, the program hopes to open up a great opportunity for chefs and retailers to introduce consumers to an American classic. Airline Food Goes for the Gold I n the spirit of the Summer Olympics in London, British Airways is taking its food to Olympian heights. The upper classes will enjoy menus designed by British celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal and Michelin-starred chef Simon Hulstone of Elephant Restaurant in Torquay. Taking inspiration from the airline's menus the last time the Games were held in London in 1948, the chefs have given classic comfort foods a contemporary revival. Dishes include golden beetroot salad with goat cheese and elderflower dressing, fish pie using sustainably sourced hake with parmesan pomme puree, and chocolate fondant with a salted caramel liquid center, caramel sauce and spun sugar topped with hazel- nuts. It's not the first time airlines and top chefs have teamed up: Gordon Ramsay has served on Singapore Airlines' culinary panel, and Michelin-starred chef Joel Robuchon has contributed meals for Air France. MORE TRENDS: COOKIES AROUND THE WORLD, P. 92 20 ❘ SPECIALTY FOOD MAGAZINE ❘ specialtyfood.com PHOTOS: BIGSTOCK