Food Trends to Watch for 2020!

This story was provided by The Local Moms Network Contributor Shilpa Rosenberry of Scouted Food. 

2019 brought us a fair share of innovative food trends – we saw cauliflower chicken tenders, plant-based varieties of jerky and CBD infused food and drinks. So what can you expect to see next? Here are 6 trends you should expect to find in your grocery store in 2020.

1. Sweet Potatoes. Move over cauliflower. Sweet potatoes are taking over. These fiber rich root vegetables will be found in everything from mac and cheese to smoothies to puffed snacks.
2. Plant-based blends. Plant-based foods will continue to grow in 2020, but this time, manufacturers will find ways to blend plant-based ingredients into meat, for example blended beef patties or blended chicken nuggets. One example is Tyson Food’s Raised & Rooted beef and pea protein patties.
3. Food and beverages geared to kids. A new generation of foodies have emerged and manufacturers are taking notice. This year we will see even more food and beverage items catered specifically to kids, in both product and packaging.  Examples include Happy Fish non breaded salmon fish sticks and Zevia no sugar soda in flavors like Fizzy Apple and Orange Cream.
4. Alternative milks become mainstream. 2019 brought on the explosive growth of alternative milks like almond, walnut, coconut, hemp, oat and more. These alternative milks will now become officially mainstream as larger manufacturers add these offerings. One example is Chobani’s new line of oat drinks in Plain, Vanilla, Chocolate and Plain Extra Creamy as well as their line of spoonable yogurt cup lines Chobani Oat Blend and Oat Blend with Crunch.
5. Keto diets hold steady. The keto diet isn’t going anywhere in 2020 and in fact, there will be more options specifically marketed as “keto”. Keto will go far beyond single-serve eggs, jerky and cheese sticks. We will see new keto-friendly products such as cookies, ice cream and even cake mixes.
6. Blue Takes Over. Yellow was the “it” color in 2019 as we saw the growth of foods like turmeric chips, banana milk and mango sparkling waters. This year we will see a shift to deeper colors like blue and purple. Expect to see blue in unexpected places like Butterfly pea powder tea, ube snacks and more.

For even more of the latest trends in food and to discover new products on your grocery store shelves recommended by moms like you, check out scoutedfood.com. It’s FREE to subscribe. Add and review your favorite products and get the newest samples sent to your home monthly! Happy New Year!