[EN] Sugar Detox, Annelies Hermsen, CBD food, Sous-Vide, Sugar Detox...
In the spotlight
🍭 Sugar Detox.
An ageing population, rising diabetes and the prevalence of obesity... Many consumers are paying attention to sugar as healthier lifestyles develop, as illustrated by the Google searches "no sugar snacks," "low sugar snacks," "healthy sugar free snacks" or "low sugar granola bars." These rising search terms accumulate more than 10,000 searches each month. The sugar purge is on.
Tazzy, Behave, Gigantic, Rotten... There are countless DTC brands entering the low-sugar, no-sugar-added or even "healthy" sugar market. And the stakes are high, as shown by the acquisition of Lily's, a manufacturer of low-sugar chocolate products, by the giant Hershey Co. for $425 million.
But pay attention: behind the flashy marketing arguments, confusion still reigns in the minds of consumers. Which sugars are we talking about? Free sugars are those added to food — sugar, glucose syrup, honey... — as well as the sugars naturally present in fruit juices. The current recommendation in the USA is 50 grams per day — a figure that is pretty much the same as in France — while the WHO recommends 36 grams... well below the 77 grams consumed by the average American! And what does the "low sugar" label really mean? Low compared to the competition? The approach sometimes seems quite evasive... We must also be careful with the wording. In some cases, the statement, "without sugar" can sometimes mean "without added sugar." A nuance of size. And not all sugars are the same: there are low glycemic index sugars — acacia honey, coconut sugar... — and high glycemic index sugars that rapidly increase the blood glucose level.
Also noteworthy is the rise of Low-FODMAPS, a diet that recommends reducing or even eliminating certain fermentable sugars and has given rise to new DTC brands like BelliWelli, Fodilicious or Enjoy Life, as well as a Globally Registered Certification Trademark certifying low FODMAP food products that have been laboratory tested to be low in FODMAPs. This trend has the particular advantage of highlighting the issues surrounding intolerance and malabsorption.
The question of "good sugar" remains a real issue, and recipes that consider this question represent a real opportunity.
In this context, manufacturers continue to look for a perfect substitute for refined white sugar which, in addition to its aromatic side, plays a key role in the texture of the product. If there are "healthier" variants — honey, agave, coconut sugar, etc. — they are often expensive and not always adapted to industrial use. What's more, they don't allow you to lower the sugar content of the final product. As for the low-calorie variants such as stevia, splenda or erythritol, they too have not yet been fully assessed. Innovations on the market are therefore jostling each other, like Bonumose which offers tagatose. Its promise? A taste almost identical to sucrose but with a low glycemic index (3 versus 68) and apparently now compatible with low cost industrial yields.
What's the key takeaway? The fight to limit, reduce or rationalize sugar consumption continues. Coalitions are forming. like seven DTC brands — namely, Enlightened, HighKey, Koia, Lemon Perfect, Olipop, Super Coffee and Three Wishes — that have formed the Alliance to Control Excessive Sugar(ACES). Beyond brands that are reducing their sugar content or independent bakers who specialize in low-glycemic index creations, some surprising products are emerging. Sweet Victory, for example, is a line of chewing gum designed to stop cravings for sweets thanks to a patented technology that works in two minutes by blocking the sugar receptors on the tongue. Its effect can last up to two hours, making sweet products blander — even sour — and reducing the urge to eat them. In parallel, applications such as Lifesum — 800,000 downloads last month according to Sensor Tower — offer sugar detox programs. More than a trend, it’s a real movement.
🔮 Annelies Hermsen : food designer and trend hunter.
As you know, we like to highlight the food designers who reveal part of what will be on tomorrow's plates. After Chloé Rutzerveld and Marije Vogelzang, let's make way for Annelies Hermsen, a Dutch expert trained in design, nutrition and new food technologies.
Her aim is to stimulate the senses — and the mind — with creations that she puts to the service for companies related to the food industry. Here are two of her projects that caught our attention.
A 100% trendy meal for the royal family. In 2021, Annelies Hermsen, in collaboration with the starred chef Dick Middelweerd, set out to create a completely vegan menu for Queen's Day in Eindhoven. Among the dishes: a hamburger with a steamed bun made of rice flour and hemp seeds and a veggie steak, topped with a herbal chimichurri and a roasted carrot and jalapeño mole. Through this meal, the researcher sought above all to introduce the crowned heads to the food trends of the moment. First of all, fusion, by mixing high-end products from the Netherlands with Latin-inspired recipes. Then there's 3D printing, using byFlow’s technology to design cookies. The use of water lentils in chimichurri is also a strong signal. Produced here by Rubisco Foods, this aquatic plant has long been eaten in Southeast Asia and Africa. It is only recently that Western researchers have become interested in its environmental and nutritional value thanks to its fiber and protein content. At the table, Annelies Hermsen also highlighted the message embodied by Signify and its vertically grown lettuce. This process, which does not rely on sunlight but rather on artificial lighting based on LEDs, aims to optimize unconventional cultivation areas in order to reintegrate agriculture into the heart of cities, reduce the environmental impact of transportation and promote traceability.
A sustainable, upcycled and recyclable lunch. Commissioned by Van Happen to organize a lunch celebrating the company’s 80th anniversary, Annelies Hermsen relied on the circular economy, pushing the concept to the smallest details. The carrots were used to make a fresh juice, while the pulp was reused in a cake. The same dynamic applies to the cucumbers: while most of the product was used to make a cold soup, the peelings were used to flavor the water served at the table. As for the meat — in this case deer — it was strictly weighed to use only the eight kilos necessary to feed the 50 guests. Served in recyclable dishes, the leftovers were distributed to small birds or transformed into compost.
Strong Signals
🍲 The sous-vide takes over.
250,000 — the number of subscribers to r/sousvide, a subreddit dedicated to this low-temperature cooking technique. In concrete terms, the food is placed in a vacuum-sealed bag from which the air has been removed. It is then immersed in a precisely temperature-controlled water bath to obtain near-perfect cooking, preserving the organoleptic qualities of the product. Historically reserved for professionals, sous-vide preparation has made a remarkable entry into the kitchens in the middle of the COVID crisis. Far from being an epiphenomenon, the process has become a habit and has even trended on TikTok with nearly one million views under its many semantic variations. On Google, the same effervescence: there are more than 400,000 monthly searches containing the keyword "sous-vide." The same dynamics are seen on Amazon in the United States.
This trend highlights great opportunities around equipment and products associated with this practice. Anova's sous-vide cooker seems to be the most popular because of its ease of use and its affordable price. It is not the only one in this market, where we also find Vonshef, Nomiku, Oliso and Gourmia. In addition to this, there are many other products used for this cooking operation, such as vacuum bags, providing an opportunity to develop green alternatives.
With 49,500 queries on Google in December 2021 for "sous-vide recipes," there is still room for content offers, recipes, books and other tips. For the time being, Karsten Tanggaard and his book "Sous-Vide Cooking" provide a reference for both enthusiasts and novices.
🐟 Alternative fish in the nets.
As early as 2006, a study drew an alarming conclusion: the degradation of ocean biodiversity is accelerating and, to date, 29 percent of seafood species consumed by humans had already collapsed. According to this report, without concrete measures, seafood products could disappear by 2048. The Good Food Institute has also sounded the alarm, indicating that 90 percent of wild fisheries are classified as overfished or exploited to their maximum capacity, while 170 countries should find themselves with "significant unmet demand" in the near future.
Faced with this situation, several alternatives are developing. First, the global plant-based fish market is expected to grow at a CAGR of about 28 percent between 2021 and 2031, reaching a value of $1.3 billion. Better Fish, Current Foods, Sophie’s Kitchen, Good Catch… the players are multiplying. Currently, sales are primarily dominated by plant-based patties and fillets, with each category accounting for more than a third of market share respectively. Israeli startup Plantish, for example, has developed a 100 percent plant-based salmon fillet that replicates all aspects of conventional fish using proprietary patent-pending manufacturing technology.
Two other niches are emerging gradually: fermented fish (Quorn, Aqua Cultured Food) and cultured fish with brands such as Blue Nalu, Wild Type or Cell Ag Tech. Among the curiosities in development, special mention goes to Pearlita Foods, which is embarking on the cell culture of mollusks. The world is your oyster ;)
Weak signals.
🚜 Will we all be urban farmers tomorrow?
The vertical farming market is a strong trend, as we told you in the introduction. It was valued at $3.24 billion in 2020 and is expected to reach $24.11 billion by 2030 with a CAGR of 22.9%.
Among this booming segment is home devices. While we have gotten used to compact models such as the Lilo connected garden or the Bosch smart grow, L and XL sizes have since emerged. A use that could become mainstream? This is the opinion of Diego Blondet, Head of Product and Strategy at Rise Gardens, which manufactures furniture specifically designed to grow salads and herbs in a more consistent way. He predicts a "slow but sure" progression of this type of product in kitchens, comparing it to the rise of the dishwasher. And the acquisition of the German company Agrilution — specializing in indoor vertical farms — by the Miele household appliances group will not prove him wrong.
Whether it's a connected refrigerator or an imitation wine cellar, whether it's a built-in cabinet or something like a western palm tree, there's something for everyone's taste. If the concept allows for an optimization of space, a traceable culture and energy control thanks to LEDs, it also has the advantage of not requiring any particular gardening skills. Not quite DIY but rather FIY (finish it yourself). We get the joy of seeing the plants grow, guided by an application. And if for the moment, the models seem to focus on the cultivation of salads and aromatic herbs, more and more devices allowing the harvesting of vegetables are emerging. We are also witnessing the rise of in-between models such as Willo, for instance, that enable customers to acquire their own personal farm share in their vertical farm. Launched in 2020, but still in stealth mode, customers can reserve a membership with a $100 initiation fee and receive a Welcome Harvest Box to experience a taste of what’s to come. In essence, the company plans on offering a bespoke experience that allows their customers to design their crop selection, monitor its growth, and access nutritional data, recipes, personalized recommendations and more.
It is worth noting that this trend goes hand in hand with several related dynamics:
First, there is a proliferation of DTC brands that intend to address the "I don't have a green thumb" pain point. One example is Pot Gang. Launched in 2020 in the UK, the company offers a subscription model for growing vegetables and herbs with all the necessary equipment and instructions for new gardeners. With its bold branding, Pot Gang has already built a community and created a little media buzz. Personal Plants, on the other hand, opts for the same approach but with a vision more focused on wellness since it wants to promote the cultivation of therapeutic and medicinal plants at home.
More globally, there is a growing interest in biophilic design, a concept that consists of integrating nature into one's interior to reap the benefits of healthy and regenerating spaces. With the health crisis and the boom in mental health issues, the phenomenon has been extended with "salutogenic design," which aims to create an environment capable of stimulating the mind in the name of pleasure and creativity. One can then imagine coupling these trends via, for example, the cultivation of aromatic plants with soothing or stimulating odors. Mens sana in corpore sano... so many reasons to cook more at home.
🍃 CBD food: the next boom?
In France, the subject of CBD remains a real legal soap opera. If a ministerial decree dated December 31, 2021 prohibited the sale of hemp flower and leaf loaded with CBD — the non-psychotropic molecule of cannabis —, there was a big surprise on January 24! The ruling was suspended by the Council of State, which indicated that the flowers and leaves of certain varieties were "devoid of narcotic properties" and could therefore be marketed in France ... Until the next development?
The situation is quite different from that of the United States where CBD from hemp is authorized at the federal level. Also, if we have witnessed an explosion of pharmaceutical offers around CBD, here it is gradually infiltrating the food of everyday life. Naka, Trip, Recess, Calm, Cakespace... CBD infused drinks are multiplying under the promise of good "vibes" and serenity. We are also witnessing the rise of snacks such as Good Bites CBD and TSUMo Snacks — which recently raised four million dollars —, as well as cereals and chips. A phenomenon that should become more and more widespread in the coming months and gradually integrate everyday products, between infused butter, pizza dough and other feel good pastries.
Also to be followed closely: Copaiba oil. This oil contains the highest levels of the terpene beta-caryophyllene, which is a cannabinoid. Hence, copaiba is often compared to CBD oil as having similar anti-inflammatory properties. It can be used daily to support overall wellness and/or elevate mood. While there isn’t widespread use in packaged food, it could well make its way there to further enhance functional foods, a booming category.
Short stories from the bar counter.
Mondelez's 3rd annual "State of Snacking" is based on an online survey of 3,055 adults worldwide, ages 18 and older, conducted October 5-27, 2021. It found that 79% of respondents are rethinking their definition of what constitutes a snack. Consumers now seek snacks to improve their physical (80%), mental (75%) and even social (65%) health as they see these products as a way to connect with others. Their consumption is also more responsible since 85% say they buy or would like to buy snacks that try to offset their environmental impact. Finally, 84% of them imagine that the offerings will be more varied in the next three years. In short, we're not done with healthy snacking.
Reddit's Food trends in the run-up to the Super Bowl. Paulita David, Senior Managing Director at Reddit, posted on Linkedin to provide a breakdown of the trends emerging from social listening on the platform. What should we learn from them? Unexpected mixes and experimental recipes. For example, pizzas are now enhanced with pumpkin spice, Za'atar or Daikon (a white radish native to Japan), while nacho lovers love a recipe made with Korean beef and kimchi. Reddit users clearly like to spice up their dishes with +206% mentions of "spicy recipes". And they want it to pulse: the r/foodhacks community, growing by 47% each month, is exploring all the ways to create a meal that's both quick and good.
Be my (food) Valentine. In this season of love, brands are ramping up their creativity to appeal to their consumers. Baskin-Robbins' Secret Admirer ice cream is a kitschy take on high-end products, featuring rose extract. A special mention for the iconic American macaroni & cheese, which got a makeover for Valentine's Day. As part of a Valentine’s Day themed campaign, Kraft Heinz distributed 1,000 boxes of pink "Candy Kraft" macaroni and cheese.
Reimagining sushi. If we've already told you about the beauty food trend for DTC brands, the trend seems to be seeping into restaurant kitchens. In Tokyo, Black Shari Sushi, with its Kuro-Shari concept, called on an R&D lab to help it rethink its sushi based on the premise that a healthy microbiota is the key to inner glow. Here, sugar is replaced by agave syrup and a fermented concentrate of 113 plant-based ingredients, including silicon microgranules. Refined white rice is replaced by brown rice, and activated charcoal powder — derived from coconut shells — not only gives the sushi its characteristic black color, but also intends to absorb harmful substances such as mercury found in tuna and other large migratory fish. The same logic applies to all the restaurant's dishes. In another register, in Abu Dhabi, the design studio Bompas & Parr has created a pop-up bar serving phosphorescent sushi and cocktails by combining ultraviolet light with bioluminescent ingredients.
The Bompas & Parr trend report (again) or its live keynote version. In this intriguing report, we discover hypnotic dinners that are supposed to heighten the senses, new food experiences in metaverses and geophagy for health. In Japan, restaurants such as Ne Quittez Pas serve soil bowls at £120, while others imitate this material using a combination of dehydrated beets and mushrooms. Note that the British firm cites tea and dates as the new champions of "it" food while predicting an era of culinary excess. You have been warned.
Did you say weird? The good thing about being a DTC brand is that there are no limits to the field of possibilities. After the launch of this surprising burrito-holder, it's time for Disco Inferno. Windy hair, glamorous poses, a precious bottle... An unbridled sensuality for this spicy sauce for cocktails. If the product can surprise, it is not the first brand to position itself in this niche, like Ujjo and its spicy sauce for coffees. In a soft version, the extract of butterfly pea flowers B’lure will color all your drinks with an azure blue.
How much does a cookie really cost? The Boston Consulting Group calculated the value of a cookie made with ingredients from several countries and sold in the UK. Place your bets...
The answer: the real cost of the cookie is $0.89, 63 percent of which are hidden costs. This may explain the huge increase in DTC brands in the industry, from Home Dough to Blondery to Last Crumb, just to name a few.