Press: Healthy and Natural Show 2016

Being based in Boulder, we here at Interact have an advantageous and unique view of food and beverage trends. Our own Blake Mitchell travelled to Chicago to spread some knowledge on trends at this year's Healthy and Natural Show. If you missed the event, or simply want to relive the magic, here's a recap.

Blake's insights on trends are comparableto viewing the famousSeurat painting, "A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte". The tiny dots that comprise the overall imagecan be viewed as the many trends that make up the worldwidefood and beverage culture.

He went on to distinguish the difference betweentrends and fads, by stating that “Trends have the potential to be long term influencers on the market, while fads will often fade as quickly as they rise.” Certainflavor profiles (think red velvet and salted caramel) are examples of fleeting fads. When unregulated buzzwords like "Superfoods" crop up, it's inevitable that big food brands will jump on the bandwagon of labeling their products as such. This causes that terminology to lose a lot of its power and credibility.

Conversely, the Paleolithic and Plant-baseddiets have strong historical and cultural ties whichcement themas movements. It goes beyond being a simply passing fad when it becomes about a lifestyle change. “People are drawn to Paleo in search of a cleaner lifestyle.It’s driven by values. It’s about getting back to the roots, and eating real food.”

So how do these trends and movements arise? It's simply bycause and effect. Adesire for more "healthy" alternatives to soda increasedthe number of fruit juice options on the market. These drinkscontained more sugar and preservatives than preferred, leading to more natural cold-pressed options. Now, we're seeing see a demand for wholesome beverage options that havedecreased sugar, and higher fiber content. Thus, the rise of cold, drinkable soups! This is but one example of thecontinuous cycle that food trends move in.“With so much processed food out there, we’ve seen a desire for fresher, cleaner and healthier options. For a long time, ‘clean’ food did not taste good. We now see a resurgence in food that is healthy and tastes great.”[caption id="attachment_2841" align="aligncenter" width="608"]

Click the photo to watchthe Food Navigator following up with Blake after his talk![/caption]Wonderinghow can you stay one step ahead of rising trends? Blake gives two suggestionsfor how to gain valuable insights: Be curious, and be a little uncomfortable.