Supplied by Unilever Food Solutions

Unilever Food Solutions (UFS) has released its first Future Menu Trends report developed with a team of industry partners and chefs from all around the world. UFS anchored the trends report around eight core themes based on global data, extensive inputs from more than 1600 chefs, global social media analytics and the expertise of hundreds of chefs who offer practical, real-world applications.

The report covered the major trends and demonstrated how these trends can be brought to life with recipes. The top eight trends identified in the report are:

1. Modern comfort food puts a new spin on timeless dishes, while keeping that sense of connection to one’s culture.
2. Irresistible vegetables take centre stage as decadent and indulgent plant-based dishes.
3. Wild and pure use foraged ingredients create tasty and sustainable dishes.
4. Flavour contrasts burst with unexpected multisensory dining experiences.
5. Feel-good food is about vitality, and the key to this is diversity and balance in the food we eat.
6. The new sharing is about bonding around generous dishes that are food for the soul.
7. Mindful proteins are about diversifying to include different sources of protein.
8. Low-waste menus aim for minimum waste and maximum flavour in dishes.

Four of the eight big megatrends that Unilever has identified are linked to the food service industry and come from 178 trend report sources, analysing 44000 food occasions from more than 15 countries. The megatrends are conscious choices, healthier living, cooking renaissance and indulgent experiences that represent big shifts in the world and that will stay with us for a few years. The trends are being brought to life with recipes, created with inspiration from a variety of different food cultures, and are well tested recipes for professional kitchens and possible home use.

“Identifying the hottest global trends is critical in our quest to provide solutions for chefs, who are contending with challenges ranging from labour shortages to tackling sustainability issues like food waste,” said Hanneke Faber, President of Nutrition Unilever. “With the release of the Future Menus Trend report, Unilever Food Solutions is not just sharing future trends but also offering solutions-based insights and adaptable recipes to inspire chefs and help them feel prepared for the future.”

With the launch of the Future Menus Report, UFS is setting trends and helping chefs to bring them into action on their menus through recipes, techniques and training. As an integral part of Unilever’s Nutrition Business, UFS is contributing to the ambition to be a ‘World-class Force for Good in Food’. This means delivering top financial performance while helping people transition to healthier diets to help reduce the environmental impact of the global food chain. This includes reaching our net zero target across our value chain – by 2039 ‘Future Menus’ will provide an additional space to build towards greater sustainability in food service, empowering culinary professionals and inspiring the dishes of today and tomorrow.

To download the report, click here.

About Unilever Food Solutions:

Unilever Food Solutions (UFS) is proud to be part of Unilever, one of the world’s leading suppliers of fast-moving consumer goods. As the dedicated professional foodservice business of Unilever operating in 76 countries around the world, UFS leads the industry in providing innovative and high-quality professional food ingredients and value-adding services. Created by 250 professional chefs and covering 50 cuisines, in 200 million dishes a day, UFS features strong brands, such as Knorr Professional, Hellmann’s, The Vegetarian Butcher and Carte d’Or, and talented entrepreneurial people who work closely with chefs and distributive partners every day. UFS is an inspiring global company, providing products and services created by chefs for chefs, aiming to do this in a sustainable way. For more information, please visit http://www.ufs.com/.