Earlier this year, the Oregon cheesemakers at Tillamook released a comprehensive trend report on new ways consumers are finding to enjoy cheese. Two intriguing pairings revealed by the report included matching artisanal honeys with artisanal cheeses, and then what the trend-spotters called “the cheddar plunge”— soaking a sharp cheddar in wine, shrubs, or ale to completely change the cheese experience. David Feder, Executive Editor-Technical for Prepared Foods, discusses these and other cheesy trends with Jill Allen, Director of Product Excellence in R&D for Tillamook Creamery, makers of a full line of handcrafted, specialty cheeses and other dairy products.

Cell-based meat—real meat created without involving the animal—is closer to reality than you think. A food technology company in Israel, Ever After Foods, Ltd., has passed the tipping point in overcoming the barrier of scale-up in cell-based meat production. And they’ve done so by shifting the paradigm. Ever After CEO Eyal Rosenthal went into cell-based meat cultivation with recognition that “innovation is needed to drive a production of cultivated meat that is more similar to the traditional meat.” Ever After’s technology eschewed the industry standard and is able to produce a high volume, so-far comparatively low cost product. The company already has proven its methods to be able to drop the cost of production of meat significantly and expects to have the technology refined to market scale in as little as the next year or two.

Prepared Foods Chief Editor Bob Garrison talks food and beverage innovation strategy, topics and trends with Mario DiFalco and Kim Lopez-Walters, co-founders of Illuminate Growth Partners in the San Francisco Bay area.

Prepared Foods talks clean label snack trends and technology with Simon Sacal, CEO of Solely Inc. Since 2018-2019, this La Jolla, Calif., company has converted upcycled fruits and vegetables into a growing line of snacks (bars, jerky, dried fruit), confections (gummies) and even meal/side dish offerings (pastas). Along the way, it has earned numerous supplier awards and Prepared Foods gave it a 2022-2023 Spirit of Innovation award for its Solely Fusilli Pasta made from just one ingredient: organic green banana.

Prepared Foods chats with Fred Scarpulla, Chief Culinary Officer for Amy’s Kitchen, Inc., makers of healthful, organic prepared foods that include pastas in all shapes and formats.

The plant-based meat analog explosion started out as a disruptor in the prepared foods field and is currently going through some serious growing pains. But the idea of crafting meat, poultry, seafood, and dairy replacers derived from plants and other non-animal sources goes back centuries. Think: tofu. While there’s no argument that the main driver of the consumer love affair with meat-free options has been the technological boom that allowed for meat, poultry, and seafood mimics that have become increasingly close in flavor, texture, and other organoleptic aspects of their animal-based counterparts, the catalyst was also the demarcation between meat analogs and meat replacers.

Prepared Foods speaks with Susan Guerin, CEO of World Finer Foods, Inc. and Cutting Vedge, Inc., makers of burgers, meatballs, crumbles, and sausage replacers from artichokes.