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Nation's Restaurant News
17 trend-forward items from the Fancy Food Show
Bret Thorn Jun 26, 2019

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Gut Health
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The “second brain” refers to the stomach as well as to these toasted barley snacks in three flavors: salt-and-olive oil, cheese and spicy.

Seeds
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Gut health and seeds were two trendy concepts at the Fancy Food Show, and Seedly combines the two with snacks made from a combination of four seeds — hemp, pumpkin, sunflower and chia — for food the company claims is good for the heart, gut and mind as well as appearance. 

Jerky
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Think Jerky featuring dried, spiced snacks made from beef and turkey. Beef jerky marinated in beer and wine were also on display. So was biltong, a more refined version of jerky from South Africa. Meatless jerky varieties made out of banana, mushrooms and seaweed also were exhibited.

“Tea”
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If you could pour hot water over it, it was probably on display at the Fancy Food Show, including antioxidant-rich Avocado Leaf Tea, and a drink made from the Yaupon holly by Yaupon Brothers Tea. The latter is the only native North American plant species to contain caffeine, according to the exhibitor, and was widely used in the Southeast before the territory was colonized by Europeans.

Shrubs
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Shrubs, the category of sweetened vinegar-based liquids that are traditionally used in cocktails, are being used in other drinks, too, like the sparkling shrubs of Fizzy Fox. Of the company’s three flavors — berry cinnamon, pineapple mint and carrot ginger turmeric — the last is the most popular. 

Keto-friendly
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The show offered many solutions for people on the fat-focused, low-carbohydrate ketogenic diet, including the pork rind crumb from Pork King Good, meant as a one-to-one replacement for breadcrumbs.

Seed butters
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The nut butter trend, for which peanut butter is replaced with almond butter and cashew butter, has expanded to feature seeds at 88 Acres. The company displayed butter made from the seeds of sunflowers, watermelons and pumpkin.

Clean labels
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Clean, easy-to-read labels meet global flavors at the show with items such as these “platanicious” plantain chips from Turbana, made out of plantains, oil and salt.  

African products
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African companies, from South African Biltong merchandizer Ayoba-Yo to Senegalese tropical fruit specialist Zena Exoticfruits, showed their wares. Pictured here are Zena jams made with ingredients including guava, soursop and baobab.

The latest sweeteners
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Next-gen zero-calorie sweeteners such as Stevia and monk fruit were used in many products on display at the Fancy Food Show, including Rufus Teague barbecue Sauce.

Dairy-free “milk”
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Joining the ever-expanding variety of non-dairy milk substitutes is a variety made from sesame seeds.

Ugly produce
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The “ugly food” movement encourages consumers to accept imperfect produce that these days is mostly used to make sauces, soups and other prepared items. This brand of chips uses imperfect potatoes, including those with higher sugar content that result in chips that are darker than expected.

Tinned fish
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Upscale tinned fish is a small but growing trend in restaurants. Here Freshé features full meals in a can centered around Portuguese skipjack tuna.

Fonio
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Yolélé is based in Brooklyn, N.Y., but its focus is the West African grain fonio, a grain that resembles couscous both in cooking method and texture.

Plant-based protein
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Plant-based proteins are spreading across the country these days, but they’re nothing new, as Taiwan Tenin Vegetarian Food showed. The company has been offering soy-based meat cognates since 1979. Varieties on display at the Fancy Food Show included substitutes for oyster, chicken, sausage, hot dogs and fish balls.

High-end ham
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A wide variety of premium European hams were on display at the show, including different brands of Spanish jamón Ibérico and this French jambon de Bayonne.

Premium soda
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Premium sodas have been trending for years, and this latest German entry, Bionade, features three flavors of lightly fermented, but alcohol-free carbonated drinks in three flavors: lemon-bergamot, orange-ginger and elderflower.

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