Developing comfort foods that are easy-to-prepare, taste great and convenient is not always simple. These are items people expect to have certain qualities, and standards may be higher compared to when consumers try a food that is new or less commonly consumed.

Nick Fallucca, Chief Product and Innovation Officer of Palermo Villa, Inc., brainstorms pizza with Prepared Foods’ Executive Editor-Technical David Feder.

When the pandemic emerged in early 2020, the entire foodservice industry faced fast and unexpected change. Across segments, operators were forced to rapidly adjust operations—initially to stay afloat and then ultimately succeed long term in this new industry environment. Some of those quick-adapts will continue to shape foodservice as we head into 2022.