Each fall, Innova Market Insights releases a Top 10 Trends list. This is where we predict the coming year’s trends, technologies and tastes impacting food and beverage innovation and consumer behavior. Behind the scenes, we also use major surveys to directly press into consumer insights. Then we closely watch how these trends unfold as represented in new product launches and consumer feedback. This year, several top trends help explain the ongoing presence of foods and beverages with functional features.
Our top 2023 trend, “Redefining Value,” acknowledges the adverse impacts of COVID-19 and inflation on consumer perception of stability. Consumers want to know that the products they purchase will deliver the benefits they value. It’s clear that they look to functional ingredients that improve their health. Innova’s number two trend, “Affordable Nutrition,” goes hand-in-hand with the top trend. This relates to how new product innovation brings ingredients from lab to table in a cost-effective way. Innova’s fourth trend, “Plant-Based: Unlocking a New Narrative,” highlights underutilized plant foods and ingredients with new functionalities being discovered. And the number nine trend, “Unpuzzle Health,” acknowledges the importance of clear messaging that is validated by delivery of benefits to the consumer.