The culmination of Kerry’s year-long research is a series of incisive, interactive charts created for 13 individual regional markets.
These charts track flavour adoption and evolution around the world and provide an in-depth analysis of the ingredients and trends that will shape innovation in the food and beverage sector during the year ahead.
The charts are an online resource that can be mined by product and menu developers worldwide.
To illustrate today’s incredible pace of innovation, Kerry researchers also conducted a deep dive into the lifecycles of two long-popular heritage flavours — orange and chocolate — and examined how these mainstream ingredients are now exploding into all manner of inventive product offerings around the world.
These two case studies illustrate clearly how many traditional tastes worldwide are now fusing into new, innovative applications as product creators around the globe source, combine and recombine flavours and spices from distant origins into exciting new taste experiences.
Soumya Nair, Global Consumer Research and Insights Director at Kerry, commented on the 2024 taste charts: “The global exchange and dissemination of tastes and flavours through social media and travel is still in its infancy, and globalisation in food, beverage and cuisine development make this a truly exciting time to be in the industry."
"Although rapidly changing times can present great challenges, they also provide an unparalleled opportunity for brands to catch an emerging trend on the rise."
"We are seeing many unique flavour intersections in foods and beverages, and Kerry is using technologies such as Natural Language Processing, AI, social media and traditional consumer observation tools to stay ahead of the adoption curve, and to help customers navigate the emerging taste environment for products being developed in 2024.”
Examples of some of the insights noted in this year’s charts include the following.
- Increasingly inventive crossovers of international cuisines are being seen, such as the innovative blends of Filipino and American dishes happening in the US, with Halo-Halo inspired cocktails, ube burgers, and adobo chicken sandwiches appearing on menus.
- Spice – literal and figurative – is being added to a wide range of more everyday foods, providing a dash of excitement and a new sensation. From the now common-place spicy cocktails, everything from spicy chocolate and spicy honey to spicy sparkling waters are also being seen; with products often utilising new and interesting spice ingredients, such as arbol peppers, gochugaru and tajin seasoning.
- Young consumers are craving bold and unusual flavour combinations, driven by social media's influence and a desire for novelty. This opens opportunities for sweet-savoury pairings such as bacon milkshakes, coffee infused with black garlic and chocolate bars with wasabi.
- Some very familiar flavours, such as orange, are getting a new look, with varietal and floral twists. Health considerations spurred by the pandemic also provided this source of vitamin C with a renewed wave of consumer appreciation.
And, as always, people remain open to new experiences. Fruits such as Yuzu are gaining popularity across multiple markets and applications, with recent launches including Yuzu Gose Beers in South Africa, Yuzu and Pepper Mayonnaise in China, and Yuzu Low ABV wines and alcoholic beverages in the USA and Australia.