Breakfast is a beloved meal, infused with childhood memories and nostalgia. The secret to expanding on this favored meal is to tap into breakfast’s beloved qualities—the warming comfort, the ease of eating, the familiar flavors—and make them accessible in new ways that appeal to today’s consumers. Better-for-you formulations, portable formats, new flavors and higher-quality ingredients are being used by creative chefs, restaurateurs and home cooks to bring new dynamism to morning foods.
Fact is, breakfast isn’t just hot: it’s cold, eaten in the form of whole grain cereal and customized granola; it’s gourmet, made into elaborate artisan breakfast sandwiches; it’s a beverage, served all day in the guise of salad with poached eggs and bacon or dessert waffles. Breakfast is so much more than it used to be—and it’s more popular than ever in foodservice, despite the economic downturn.
Fierce competition in every sector for the breakfast dollar is pushing innovation in today’s breakfast foods, along with a number of key drivers exemplified in the report’s trend profiles:
The Culinary Trend Mapping Report is an indispensable tool for those whose job it is to stay abreast of what's hot - and what will be - in the food world.
The reports leverage the Center for Culinary Development’s (CCD) signature Trend Mapping technique, a validated method for identifying which culinary trends are gaining traction and which are simply flashes in the pan.
Each 65+ page journal is packed with trends, data, strategies and insights on the food industry that simply aren't available anywhere else.
Each Issue of the Culinary Trends Mapping Report
Trend Mapping is guided by the premise that major food trends pass through five distinct stages on their way to the mainstream:
Published bimonthly, the Culinary Trend Mapping Report is available for purchase as a single issue or a six-issue subscription.
Market Insights: A Selection From The Report
Stage 2: Third Wave Coffee
“Third Wave” coffee practitioners (First Wave = rise of commodity and instant coffee post WWII; Second Wave = espresso and espresso drinks along with Starbucks and Peet’s specialty brews) fixate on coffee with an unwavering devotion, treating the every day brewing of coffee like a sacred ritual. The coffee itself redefines quality: It comes from beans that are meticulously sourced for flavor and then painstakingly roasted in “micro” batches. As for brewing, there are all sorts of elaborate techniques and equipment that enable coffee
geeks to brew the ultimate cup. This bean-to-cup quality and care translate into a superior tasting cup of coffee, aromatic in intricate ways and easy on the palate and stomach, available at small independent coffee shops everywhere.
Stage 2: New Whole Grains
Generation Yers are accepting whole grains, and the increased availability of whole grain products in grocery stores means people of all ages are eating more of them—a 38% increase over the last three years. Whole grain examples abound at Stage 2, including new glutenfree cereals and pastries that don’t skimp on taste, perfect for a truly satisfying and healthful breakfast. These products are sending the message that healthful breakfast eating does not have to be boring, and this flourishing natural cereal market is literally exploding with flavor, providing consumers with countless options.
Stage 3: Waffles Gone Wild
Something fascinating is going on with this tried-andtrue breakfast staple. Like so many breakfast foods, waffles are finding their way into other dayparts, from savory lunch and dinner forms, to starchy carriers for sandwiches and dessert. The flexibility of waffles makes them endlessly adaptable, and they are being re-imagined everywhere from fine dining to chain restaurants and Williams-Sonoma, making for an exciting Stage 3 trend.
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