Food and Beverage Top Stories

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Prepared Foods discusses plant protein ingredients and formulation strategies with Charlie Baggs, president, founder and executive chef at Charlie Baggs Culinary Innovations, Chicago.

Prepared Foods has selected six new food and beverage products introduced in April 2024. Vote to let us know which new product is your favorite!

The beauty of Innova’s annual Top 10 Trends of the food and beverage industry is that the trends apply across all market categories—including dairy products and dairy alternatives. Dairy and dairy alternatives overlap in many ways, differ in others, and our Top 10 Trends can be interpreted across both.

Traditionally, proteins such as glutenin and gliadin have been favored in baking for their role in dough texture and structure. However, as consumer awareness of health, nutrition, and sustainability has grown, the focus has shifted to incorporating a broader range of protein sources into baking.

Globally, food and drink launches containing microalgae experienced average annual growth of more than 40% during a recent three-year period. Trends in plant-based proteins from the sea—as well as new technologies to produce seafood without the sea—also overlap with our second 2024 trend, “Nurturing Nature.” Indeed, both seafood companies and technology innovators can be ocean guardians.

While natural and botanical methods of preservation have been in use for centuries, the modern food processing system has relied heavily on synthetic food preservatives, such as nitrates, benzoates, sulfites, sorbates, and others. 

Watch or listen to a Prepared Foods interview with ethnobotanist and contributing editor Kerry Hughes discussing the trending foods, beverages, and ingredients using botanicals featured at 2024 Natural Products Expo West.

“Our fans have always relied on our products for energy, but we knew there was also an opportunity to create a product that could give a mental boost and support focus," said Fabiola Torres, PepsiCo general manager and chief marketing officer, Energy Category. 

In this episode of Reasoned Opinion, David Feder, Executive Editor–Technical, presents the more interesting ingredients, foods, and beverages that caught his eye at the 2024 Natural Products Expo West in Anaheim, California.

“We’ve kicked things up a notch with this flavor exploration inspired by the flavor lab at Truly L.A. and can’t wait for fans to try this fun and playful combination that’s sure to score,” said Matt Withington, Truly Hard Seltzer's senior director of marketing.