The lemonade flight from The Original Lemonade House Grille in Poplar Bluff, Missouri.
We’ve been keeping our eye on the food industry for decades, so why stop now?
There’s a lot of attention turning to food manufacturers and the behind-the-scenes of food. There’s also interest in food as a travel incentive, particularly as the number of retiree’s grows, and—according to a Forrester report, travel is reportedly back to pre-pandemic levels.
In addition, while we’ve called out recalls before, the instances appear to be growing.
So, let’s explore what we see ahead. Here are the first five; the remainder will follow shortly.
- Recalls Upon Recalls. Is it just us, or are the recalls coming faster these days? You can check it out at the United States Food & Drug Administration’s site. Hamburger meat, carrots, and eggs have been a few of the products singled out recently. Some of this is a matter of statistics, and there is a thoughtful article on the subject found at Food Safety News. Given the increased reporting (for whatever reason), it’s worth digging into this for 2025 so we understand what’s happening in food safety.
- Transparent Ingredients. As the call goes out for healthier ingredients, even those manufacturers who haven’t gotten on the band wagon before will now be ready to innovate. This means several things, including increased openness with the public about ingredients, and possibly a new discourse about how to achieve health goals as a nation. Some of this is a response to the industry awareness of government health policy, of course, but some of this has been evolving over recent years and is coming to a head. To read more, we recommend this impact article from Bakery and Snacks.
- Kitchen Warehousing. A few years ago, there was a trend where people offered their garages and extra space as “warehouses” – sort of the Airbnb of storage, you might say. That has transitioned into people filling their own space and calling it “kitchen warehousing.” This new warehousing is in your own home, and it’s not for really for food but for decorating. Picture yourself pulling from your shelves like a tablescape designer. After all, the idea of storage now goes beyond your Rubbermaid or old Tupperware containers, and into shelving and moveable racks. Have a closet that used to be crammed full of unused coats? Donate them and use the space for appliances that aren’t in daily use. Your stand mixer, air fryer, blender, dehydrator, seasonal decorations, all qualify for self-warehousing. After all, simplifying your life comes down to living with the things you love, and clearing out the rest, right?
- Beverage Playground. You know mocktails have hit mainstream when a hotel happy hour offers them, like our recent experience at an Embassy Suites in Chicago. But even more interesting is the types of flavor combinations. Wine Enthusiast is calling out tropical flavors, while we’re watching soda companies experiment with seasonal and limited time offerings featuring unique taste combos, like Coke Spiced (we liked it, but they’ve already pulled it in favor of a new idea). The KerryDigest sees sensory pairing with flavor, as do we. And, Mintel says it well when it writes, “…the industry will need to encourage consumers to welcome and trust the new origins, ingredients and flavours that will emerge locally and globally.” So, watch for the unusual and try it before they change it again!
- Culinary Travel. You are going to think The Food Channel has a thing about this, because we’ve talked often about the influence of food on travel planning. Sur la Table must agree because they’ve come out with Culinary Journeys and they sound amazing. Right now, they are focusing on France, so if Bordeaux or Normandy are on your list, you might want to check them out. We already knew people booked travel around certain restaurants—look at the demand for Tracy’s King Crab Shack in Juneau, Alaska, or The Pancake Bakery in Amsterdam—but it’s now rising to a new level of commitment to the food and restaurants, not just this historic sites and museums. Hint: if you go on your own, make advance reservations!
That’s the top five, so go here for the remaining five of our Top Ten Food Trends for 2025!
Food trends by The Food Channel are not sponsored and any mention of restaurants, products or companies is meant to provide appropriate credit to them for part of our research. They do not pay for the mention.