Kerry released its 2018 Flavor Charts as part of the company’s future-focused review of today’s trending flavors and the most anticipated flavors of the future. The predictions for 2018 characterize the large movements and subtle trends shaping America’s food and beverage flavor landscape.

Kerry’s predictions forecast that the coming year will bring further specificity to the origin of flavors as consumers seek truly authentic flavor experiences. Consumer thirst for authentic experiences has generated a surge of unique flavors and blends that are true to the ethnic cuisine. 

Simmering over the last few years, Asian cuisines are primed to take America by storm—along with the flavor blends unique to these cuisines such as Korean Gochujang, Indian Tandoori, Moroccan Za’atar, and Ethiopian Berbere.

“We conduct an annual review of the food and beverage flavor landscape utilizing sales performance, consumer trends, foodservice influences and endorsements from our internal culinary experts; to predict flavors for the coming year,” says Soumya Nair, director of market insights for Kerry North America. “The flavor chart program has a rich heritage, spanning over a decade of providing the industry and our customers a proprietary view into our predictions for sweet, beverage, savory and salty snacks.”

Nair adds, “You can expect to see continued growth of hot and spicy flavors since the sriracha craze has paved the way for new and exotic spices such as Filipino Adobo or Piri Piri. Additionally, as consumers seek natural and new methods to achieve nutritional and emotional balance through food and beverages, we predict that super herbs and functional ingredients are an answer to this need. We expect turmeric, ginger, ashwagandha and maca, among others, to experience continued growth in popularity and awareness in both food and beverages.”

Kerry’s Flavor Chart predictions identify growing and emerging flavors in the beverage, salty snack, sweet and savory.

The full flavor charts are available for download HERE.

About Kerry 

As consumers demand a return to real food and beverage products, Kerry is responding with better, more authentic and nutritious taste experiences. We bring to the table our strong food heritage with 40 years of experience, global insights, marketplace knowledge, culinary and applications expertise and unique solutions