Trends in Prepared Foods for Foodservice
The second annual Prepared Foods' "Foodservice Product Development Trends Survey" finds several issues and developments of concern to food manufacturers geared toward restaurants and institutions. This cross-functional range of respondents offers hints and possibilities that can provide a road map to the best chance at success in this growing industry.

2006 Foodservice Annual: Beverages
Soft drinks may not be compared to fine wine very often, but there is a move to offer soft drink suggestions for specific menu items. Soft drink manufacturers should hope the move is a success, since their offerings are now out of most school systems and boast a variety of beverages aimed at improving the health of young people. Those consumers, however, seem more motivated by the modern coffee shop, and that may well bode ill for this portion of the segment.

2006 Foodservice Annual: Desserts
America's dessert landscape is blooming with ethnic additions, grilled fruits and portioned parcels of pastry delight. Desserts today are not the final destination. Instead, the desires to plant regional and international seeds have placed foodservice establishments on a path of discovery--one that will require suppliers to dig past the standard sweet ingredients and cultivate spice, fire and ice.

2006 Foodservice Annual: Entrees
In a world where entrées are becoming appetizers, appetizers turn into entrées, and burgers upgrade to upscale, one must ask, “If you take dinner apart and put it back together again, will satisfaction remain the same?” Due to increased interest in gastronomy (the study of relationship between culture and food), manufacturers will need to manipulate the parts (gourmet, organic and premiumization) in an effort to multiply the sum (flavor, nutrition and economy).

2006 Foodservice Annual: Salads
Perhaps nowhere on the menu is the dichotomy of consumer desires and wants as evident as it is among salads. While the main ingredients change, so does the importance of the right dressing. Growing concerns about obesity and healthful eating have consumers turning to salads, and foodservice operators find they are easy items to change for excitement and novelty.