By Vivian Jibrin
Compared to most teens (I’m 18) my diet is fairly nutritious, but I’m the first to admit that I could be eating more servings–and types–of fruits and vegetables. I also want to learn how to cook more dishes than just eggs, fried rice, pasta and brownies!

But how to get motivated to do this? The answer came to me when searching for a topic for my Gold Award–the highest award that can be attained by a Girl Scout. I found out that many U.S. teens aren’t even getting one fruit or vegetable daily! If I can help others
incorporate more vegetables and fruits into their daily meals, while learning why it is so important to do so, it would surely push me to do the same.
So, I started “Lettuce Eat” which has three basic approaches:

• A high school club that met once a month, focused around a different fruit or vegetable, such as berries or potatoes or dark-leafy greens. We ate the fruit or vegetable, talked about its nutrition qualities, and discussed recipes. When the coronavirus pandemic hit, I had to adjust rapidly to social-distancing conditions and held my club sessions over the web, after a slight tweaking of the approach.

• www.lettuceeat.club , a website with nutrition tips, “fun facts”, recipes and games.

• Video-conference meetings with Girl Scouts (ages 7-15), to teach them about fruits and vegetables in a fun, age-appropriate way. For example, I developed interactive activities such as the sorting game and a scavenger hunt; and I even made a few live-demos of simple snacks. When I started the project, I thought I knew the most important things about nutrition; after all, my aunt is a registered dietitian! But as the months went on, and I went deeper into the Gold Award project, I discovered lots of new aspects about nutrition, and a lot of cool tips.

For example:
Did you know that dandelions are wildflowers you can eat? They’ve been used in traditional herbal medicine for centuries to treat digestive disorders and more. The truth be told, the leaves can be a bit bitter, nevertheless, they can come handy in a survival situation.

A tip for the vegetable -hater: Sneak vegetables into meals without having to taste them. It got me to eat vegetables I don’t like, such as cauliflower or Brussels sprouts. I sautéed chopped vegetables with ground meat to use in lasagna and other dishes (recipe in www.lettuceeat.club).

I learned I could eat a lot more vegetables at one sitting by “shrinking” them. For instance, I sauté or steam spinach and other vegetables to just a fraction of their raw size, making it seem like I’m eating less.

My favorite part of cooking was adapting dessert recipes. I would reduce the amount of added sugar in the recipe and then incorporate more fruits and/or vegetables, making the desserts more flavorful.

Sometimes you don’t even need to make a complicated and elaborate dish, just adding something on the side adds tremendously to the nutrients you get out of the meal. For instance, tomatoes have a lot of vitamin C, and when added to rice and beans, you absorb more iron from both the beans and the rice.

Another discovery: Sprouting super healthy microgreens. I have to say that it has really become addictive in my household! Now there are sprouts for breakfast every day –they are great atop a toast with melted cheese, growing out of mason jars and flat (take-out) trays. Thus far we have sprouted sunflower seeds (which taste awesome), alfalfa seeds (delicious too), mustard seeds (a bit spicy), radish (very spicy but yummy), chia seeds (smokey and bitter–not likely to try those again), and now we are hoping to learn to sprout seeds from sunflowers in our own garden.

I think my most useful lesson was the importance of having “3 square meals” to minimize being tempted by unhealthy snacks. I used to snack A LOT on Cheerios and yogurt; so much that I would get into a vicious cycle of eating too much in-between meals, then not being hungry enough for a healthy meal, and then being hungry again for snacking… and this would go on and on. Now I know to have a meal complete with veggies, protein, and healthy grains and have eliminated most unhealthy snacking –except for a treat now and then.

Those are my discoveries, and I think my club members and video-conference audience also picked up some healthy tips. If nothing else, our sessions made everyone a little more aware of
what they are putting on their plates (as well as what they were missing before). I was surprised how much kids liked the live hands-on cooking sessions and activities such as the “ Sorting Game ”, where they ducked to the floor when an unhealthy food was called, or did jumping jacks and fancy twirls when fruits or vegetables were called.

You can visit the “Games” tab at www.lettuceeat.club for a full description of five different games.

There is so much to learn about nutrition, and so much people don’t know –even some of the parents and the Girl Scout troop-leaders were surprised by how much they learned during the sessions. And although I am no nutritionist and only spent about a year on my project, Lettuce-eat turned out to be a fun way to dish out useful and accessible information for teenagers, younger children and all.

The post Lettuce Eat: A Veggie Journey We All Can Take appeared first on Nutrition Unplugged.

If you’re new to butterfly pea flower, hope you’ll check out my most recent article for U.S. News & World Report What’s Up With Butterfly Pea Flower?

Photo courtesy of Sara Stierch on flickr

The post Butterfly Pea Flower Trend: Are You Up on This Latest Craze on Instagram and in Cocktail Bars? appeared first on Nutrition Unplugged.

Once again, the exhibit floor was full of new products from a range of exhibitors, including large CPG companies and smaller brands in the natural/organic arena.  Here are seven of the top food trends I spotted:

Digestive Wellness and Gut-Friendly Foods

Gut health was a mega trend at FNCE, as evidenced by the Healthy Gut Pavilion at the expo.  The exhibitors showcased an array of products — from probiotics in many forms (including beyond dairy), gluten-free items and foods low in FODMAPs, an acronym for Fermentable Oligoaccharides, Disaccharides, Monosaccarides and Polyols — short-chain carbohydrates and sugar alcohols that may be poorly absorbed and trigger IBS and other digestive discomforts for some people. Low-FODMAP foods have been trending for awhile, but expect this category to get even bigger.  Some of the brands included Fody, Fodmapped, Rachel Paul’s Foods, and Lo-Fo Pantry, the first line of low-FODMAP flours and baking mixes.  Even Prego has released a low-FODMAP pasta sauce.  Because this trend is getting so big, there are now programs that will certify low-FODMAP foods.  Two of these programs were at the expo:  Monash University and the FODMAP Friendly certification program.

Probiotics were popping up in a lot of foods — going beyond yogurt in products like Good Belly’s plant-based beverages and shots with live active cultures.  Kellogg’s debuted an interesting new whole grain cereal called Hi! Happy Inside that contains prebiotics, probiotics and fiber — which they described as the “power of 3 in 1” to support digestive wellness.

Not only were gut-friendly foods popular on the exhibit floor, one startup company called Day Two promoted a test that registered dietitians can use to evaluate a client’s gut microbiome for personalized nutrition counseling.

Instagram Trends Crash Freezer Case

I loved how Vegolutionary Foods jumped on two big Instagram food trends to make them conveniently available in your freezer. Their CAULIPOWER cauliflower pizzas and pizza crusts have been out for awhile — I especially liked the uncured turkey pepperoni pizza. Their latest product is Sweet PotaTOASTS, frozen slices of roasted sweet potatoes that you just pop in the oven or toaster and top with nut butters, avocado, nutella and more.  Maybe you’ve seen how #sweetpotatotoast has taken over Instagram — with more than 21,000 posts and counting.  How clever to make this picture-perfect trend available as a convenience item (only one ingredient:  roasted sweet potato).  This company is another example of a founder-led brand.  It was created by Gail Becker, who said CAULIPOWER was born out of a Pinterest fail.  She wanted to find a nutritious gluten-free pizza crust that actually tasted good for her two boys with celiac.

Vegetables and Fruits Transform

Vegetables were not only transformed into toasts and pizza crusts, they were showing up in unexpected places and in a variety of forms — from pasta and burgers to bars and beverages.  Fruits were often showcased as fresh, but they were also packaged up in various ways for convenient snacking, including dried and dehydrated.  I liked these carrot sticks from Rhythm Superfoods, which also sampled beet and kale chips. Seneca featured USA-grown apples that were dehydrated into chips.

Protein Get Portable

Now that snacks represent half of all eating occasions, companies are clamoring to offer new snack options.  Protein continues to be a top snack attribute — often with a front-of-the-pack call-out of grams per serving.  I really liked these hard-cooked egg snacks from Eggland’s Best. Pictured below is the egg, olives and feta variety, but there are three additional flavors:  egg, salame and provolone; egg, chocolate-covered almonds and cheddar; and egg, bacon and cheddar. 

Veggicopia sampled shelf-stable dip cups, including hummus and black bean dip.

A company called Vegetarian Traveler exhibited Protein Toppers — portable, shelf-stable packets of plant protein for adding to salads, vegetable side dishes, stir-fries, oatmeal and other dishes for a protein boost.  This was just one of the many examples of how beans/legumes were trending.  The toasted bean blends included garbanzo, soybean and peas.

Nuts and Seeds Were Soaring

Nuts and seeds were featured throughout the exhibit floor — as nut and seed butters, nut powders and oils, nut and seed milks, and a variety of snacks.  Sunflower seed butter was featured in multiple booths and promoted ‘nut free’ to appeal to those with tree nut allergies.  New products included Sesame Milk and Barukas, a previously unknown nut in the U.S. that comes from the Amazonian savanna.

Old School Brands Are Reinventing

While there were lots of small niche brands at the expo touting innovative new products, many of the large CPG companies who have exhibited at FNCE for many years were upping their game.  Quaker Oats gave us a sneak peek of a new Oat Beverage that will be out in January.  This is a dairy alternative that is formulated with oat bran so it qualifies for the FDA heart health claim (setting it apart from competitor’s oat milks).  The new drink is a good source of fiber and an excellent source of calcium and vitamin D.  I really like Campbell’s new Well Yes! sipping soup — in trendy flavors like Harvest Carrot & Ginger and Butternut Squash & Sweet Potato.  It’s a great way to eat more vegetables as a snack.  Starkist featured ready-to-eat pouches of tuna and salmon, along with their latest line of Chicken Creations:  Bold Buffalo Style, Ginger Soy, Zesty Lemon Pepper and Chicken Salad.  Minute sampled really tasty whole grain cups that are ready in 1 minute in the microwave.

Purpose-Driven Brands

Many brands were elevating a mission and showing how they give back, including The SoulFull Project. These makers of innovative oatmeal and other hot cereals contribute to a local food bank for each product sold. The company is a Certified B Corporation that is committed to using business as a force of good.

A Few Additional Trends

Bean cuisine. Healthy indulgence (chocolate). Fiber. Free-From. Allergy-Friendly. Turmeric. Paleo/Keto/Whole30.  E-commerce (sold only on Amazon). Food-tech (DNA testing for personalized nutrition from Nutrigenomix; gut microbiome testing, and stem cell-based  rejuvenation from Prolon).

Here’s what others are writing about FNCE 2018 trends.  I’ll report back and link to additional posts I find, or let me know your thoughts.

Food & Health Communications:  FNCE 2018 – 5 Essential Trends and Takeaways

Food Navigator:  Trendspotting at FNCE  

Chew the Facts: Food Trends: Is the Future of Food Drinkable Nutrients?

The post 7 Food Trends Spotted at the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics’ 2018 Food & Nutrition Conference & Expo #FNCE appeared first on Nutrition Unplugged.

Body positivity.  Anti-diet.  No doubt, there’s a ditch-the-diet movement going on. Heck, even Weight Watchers ditched “weight,” opting for the name WW instead.

Cries of “diets don’t work” are getting louder, and increasing numbers of registered dietitians  are embracing a “nondiet” philosophy — which was recently highlighted by dietitian Cara Rosenbloom in the Washington Post  A new trend in health care: the “nondiet” dietitian. 

I liked many parts of the article, but it begs the question:  What’s the opposite of a “nondiet” dietitian, a “diet” dietitian?  So everyone else is about rules and restrictions?  Are we separating dietitians by who supports weight loss vs. those who reject it?

It seems to me there’s a growing divide among dietitians.

Even though many dietitians have built their careers on “intuitive eating” and warn about today’s “diet culture,” other dietitians are pointing out that the “anti-diet movement” may have some problems.  Or maybe there’s not even agreement on what “anti-diet” really means.

One recent rant has been widely discussed among dietitians.  Emily Kyle wrote a provocative post I am Not an Anti-Diet Dietitian — and let’s just say, it got a lot of attention.

I don’t feel that the term anti-diet dietitian aligns with my core audience with what I want to help them with. I don’t think that my core audience knows what an anti-diet dietitian is.  I feel like writing anti-diet dietitian in my Instagram bio is just what all the cool kids are doing these days.

She made some good points.

The one thing that has freaked me out the most about the Intuitive Eating community is the complete black and white way of looking at things.  I don’t know how to explain it, but in so many conversations that I have secretly read from the comfort of my Facebook screen, I have been turned off by the black and white thinking of this movement.

In contrast, Emily wrote about her approach with clients.

I will never weigh you or ask you to lose weight.  I will hear you, and I will sympathize with you when you say you want to lose weight.  I won’t tell you that you are wrong for wanting that.

Registered dietitian Jessie Shafer addressed the topic in Delicious Living Has the Anti-Diet Movement Gone Too Far?

A downside of the anti-diet movement is the rejection of any conversation about diets or weight loss for proven healing or the pursuit of wellness through food.  Those can be — and largely are — very positive messages and stories to tell.  And even if dieting or watching your weight are not parts of your path to personal wellness and markers of your own health (it’s not a main focus for me), that doesn’t mean it’s not a meaningful tool or pursuit for others.

Another RD Samantha Cassetty recently wrote about the topic for NBC News.com Is the Anti-Diet Movement Leading us Astray?

I don’t agree that the desire to lose weight is always a sign of self-loathing as some anti-diet experts would have you believe.  Perhaps for some, but for others the desire to shed some weight is an act of self-care and can be a positive experience.

This was the theme of an opinion piece in the New York Times by Kelly deVos, author of Fat Girl on a Plane, who wrote about her daughter’s desire to lose weight,  The Problem with Body Positivity

Many people in the body positivity movement — which I’d like to count myself a member of — believe that the desire to lose weight is never legitimate, because it is an expression of the psychological toll of fat shaming. So any public discussion of personal health or body size constitutes fat shaming.

In my case, I’m still trying to get it right.  But I’ve come to feel that loving yourself and desiring to change yourself are two sentiments that should be able to peacefully coexist.

Amen.  I totally agree with that.

Similarly, Amber Petty, a writer and blogger in LA, addressed the topic in Greatist, Is the Body Positivity Movement Going Too Far?

So although it sounds extreme to say that dieting and weight loss are not part of body positivity, I think there’s some truth to that statement.  That doesn’t mean you can’t lose weight or want to lose weight and still think positively of yourself.  Individuals should do whatever they want.

I’ve had mixed feelings about the body positivity movement, but I’ve become more positive for body positivity than I would have thought. To me, they’re asking that we end the cycle of obsessing over our bodies.  Sure, some proponents of this movement go too far and claim that people who lose weight are traitors.  But most advocate just appreciating yourself as you are, and than means being OK with wanting to lose weight or being OK with staying heavy.

Even the founder and CEO of Greatist weighed in on the issue (sorry, no pun intended).  Derek Flanzraich declared It’s Ok to Want to Lose Weight

…somehow saying you want to lose 10 pounds (OK, really 15) still seems like such as shameful admission.  That’s silly — most of us want that.  Most of the country probably wants to lose more weight than that.

So we should be talking about it.  Otherwise, how can we find a healthier way to succeed at it?  I also worry the body-positive movement is holding us back, not pushing us forward.

She concludes:

To tackle weight loss the right way, we need to destigmatize it.

It’s OK to want to lose weight.

And it’s important we talk about it so we can work together to accomplish it in a way that sticks.

Yes, it’s OK to want to lose weight.  Yes, you can feel good about yourself and still want to achieve a healthier weight — and there’s more than one way to do that.  I don’t believe that dietitians should be divided into “nondiet” and “diet” dietitians.  But I do think that sometimes we don’t understand — or appreciate —  another way of thinking.  I certainly don’t like it when we attack each other, which happens all too often.  Maybe there are misconceptions on both sides.

I really liked this article by registered dietitian Kara Lydon in Shape, who tried to clarify what the anti-diet movement is, and what it isn’t:  The Anti-Diet Movement is Not an Anti-Health Campaign

Some say that the anti-diet movement has been misconstrued with countless Instagram posts of burgers, pizza, and ice cream, but what about all of the accounts that post nothing but smoothie bowls and salads? Burgers and pizza aren’t any more “extreme” than a massive acai bowl or kale salad after all. My hope is that the anti-diet movement helps to normalize some of the foods that have been demonized by diet culture so that eventually, we’ll stop calling food “good” or “bad” and start looking at food as just, food.

I wholeheartedly agree. Foods should not be demonized — and we shouldn’t attach fear, guilt, regret or morality to food.  We also shouldn’t have a narrow view of what’s “good” food — from smoothie bowls and kale salads to green smoothies and keto dairy-free, gluten-free chia pudding.  Sure, there are lots of problems with today’s diet culture.  But I think we shouldn’t appear to be so anti-diet that we send the message that we’re against weight loss. 

How can dietitians help people achieve weight loss in a healthy way — in a way that reinforces new habits and lifestyle changes. Yes, there’s more to being healthy than the number on the scale, but It’s OK if you want to see a lower number when you do step on it. No one should be ashamed of that.  It’s how you work on this goal that’s important.

Just hearing that “diets don’t work” may be discouraging and defeating. Let’s switch the focus to what DOES work — whether for wellness or weight loss.

This isn’t a new topic.  I wrote about a debate between Linda Bacon, author of Health at Every Size (HAES), and obesity researcher John Foreyt at our annual nutrition conference back in 2011, Is the War on Obesity a Battle Worth Fighting?

Now I’m about to attend the same conference in Washington, DC, and a similar debate is scheduled for our 2018 meeting.  I’ll be sure to report back.  But I bet I’ll come to the same conclusion as 2011.  Can’t we all get along?    Can’t intuitive eating and body positivity coexist with losing weight?  Why must we line up on two sides?  Why the conflict?

Tell me what you think.

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Maybe you saw the headlines declaring cockroach milk as the next big thing.  All of a sudden, this “big news” was just about everywhere, including here and here.  It was even touted in USA Today.

Or perhaps you saw a segment about cockroach milk on TV. Here’s one from CBS.

Before you start seeking out cockroach milk to pour on your cornflakes, there are a few things you should know.

For starters, this frenzy was based on an obscure 2016 study from India.  It made news back then and for some reason the coverage has started up again.

But this study was to benefit cockroaches, not humans.  The scientists even say they’re not sure cockroach milk is safe for human consumption.  That’s not what this study was even about.

Yet the news has gone viral.

Can we just cut it out.  Cockroach milk is not a new food trend.  The researchers did not intend to suggest this is the most nutritious beverage you can drink.  No, it’s not “gaining popularity” as the coverage has claimed.

No, it’s not the “new health obsession” as Marie Claire announced.

It was a study.  And once again, research results are being misinterpreted and used to create sensational headlines.   You can’t even buy this stuff yet the stories make it sound like cockroach milk is flying off the shelf.

That’s not the case.

It’s true that insects are increasingly being eyed as potential sustainable protein source, and new products are being introduced — primarily cricket flour nutrition bars.  Gourmet Grubb is frequently cited in the cockroach milk stories, but this South African company’s “entomilk” is made from farmed insects and it’s not cockroach milk.  The Cape Town company is making ice cream from this entomilk, and it’s gotten some food-tech attention, but the product is not even on the market yet. So the media coverage has even got that wrong.

So can we move on now, please?

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The Dutch don’t always get credit for their food, but their reputation is rapidly changing with 16 Michelin-starred restaurants in Amsterdam.  But that’s not what this food tour was really about.  We explored the historic Jordaan neighborhood that is full of old cafes and artisan food shops — visiting places that are not regular tourist stops. Originally a working class neighborhood, the Jordaan has become one of the most expensive and upscale areas in The Netherlands.

CAFE PAPENEILAND

We started our four-hour tour at Cafe Papeneiland, a traditional Dutch brown cafe – named for their dark, cozy wooden interiors and nicotine-stained walls and ceilings.  Luckily, smoking is no longer allowed in these cafes so we didn’t have to eat surrounded by cigarette smoke.  Brown cafes embody gezelligheid (coziness or feelings of friendly welcome) and are like the Dutch equivalent of an Irish pub where people gather to relax over beers and comfort food.  Cafe Papeneiland is one of the oldest cafes in Amsterdam and is loved by locals and tourists alike. The cafe became famous for their Dutch apple pie that is made from scratch using the same family recipe for over 100 years.

Instead of the crumble topping that we tend to think of for “Dutch Apple Pie,” this version had a sweet, cakey crust with thinly sliced apples piled high in a spring-form pan.  The pies are baked on site and brought out on the bar fresh from the oven to cool down.  Our tour group sat a sunny table while enjoying our pie with fresh whipped cream and listened to the lore of this famous pie.  For instance, President Bill Clinton once paid a visit for a slice and ordered an entire apple pie to go.  His visit is proudly displayed on the cafe’s website. The cafe was like a cross between a neighborhood coffee shop and a local pub.  And you could tell that beyond the tourists who flock here, many locals simply hang out like it was an extension of their home — enjoying coffee in the morning while reading the newspaper and returning in the afternoon or evening to share a few cold beers on tap with friends.

JWO LEKKERNIJEN FOR GOUDA CHEESE

Our next stop on the tour was for cheese — and not just any cheese.  We tasted The Netherlands’ most famous cheese originating from a town called Gouda in the south.  We learned about the range of gouda cheese based on age — from jonge kaas, which means young cheese (lightly flavored and creamy) to the older or mature oude kaas, which has a strong complex taste and a grainy, almost crystallized texture.

Our cheese tasting included both the young and aged gouda, along with a gouda with cumin, fig bread and bowl of Indonesian-style ginger — which I would love for my next cheese plate!

SWIETI SRANANG SURINAMESE AND INDONESIAN CAFE

I especially loved learning more about the cuisine from Suriname and Indonesian, which were both former colonies of the Netherlands that brought their spicy specialties  to Europe.  We stopped at Swieti Sranang, a toko (takeaway counter) that specializes in Surinamese and Indonesian food.  We were served by the shop’s owner Juliet, who was born in Indonesia but grew up in Suriname.  She makes everything herself and was so proud to share the most amazing chicken satay smothered in a thick peanut sauce, which was served with pickled cabbage.

SPRENKELS FOR STROOPWAFELS

On our way to the  boat for the canal tour, we dove into a bag of stroopwafels, a sandwich of two thin waffles filled with a thick syrup, or stroop.  This is a Dutch favorite, and I spotted several people making fresh stroopwafels the next day when I visited the Albert Cuypmarket, the largest outdoor market in an area known as De Pijp. 

URKER FISH SHOP FOR HERRING AND COD

Perhaps the best known Amsterdam food tradition is raw herring, and I must admit I was a bit nervous to try it. We visited Urker Viswinkel, one of the best fish shops in the Jordaan neighborhood, for a sampling of the herring (which was brined and much milder than I expected). The herring was served on toothpicks with the Dutch flag, along with pickles and onions — a combination that is frequently served as a sandwich in stands throughout Amsterdam.

The Dutch are proud of their fish and chips, made with beer-battered deep-fried cod.  We tasted the kibbeling fresh out of the fryer and it was seriously the best fried fish I’ve tasted.  They brag that it’s better than what you can find in London, and I think they might be right.  We enjoyed our pieces of kibbeling dipped in remoulade while sipping tulip vodka.  Yes, tulip vodka! 

CANAL TOUR WITH BITTERBALLEN

Bitterballen was our treat on the boat, along with an iced cold local beer.  This is a favorite pub snack and you can hear our guide Rudolph describe these crunchy, fried balls as a “layer for the drinking.”  I rather enjoyed these popular beer snacks, which are like a fried bite of beef stew that you dip in mustard.

The canal boat ride is a must if you visit Amsterdam.  Loved the view of the city from the canal, and it was amazing to see all the boat houses, which are popular to rent for a week when visiting Amsterdam.

CAFE DE PRINS FOR POFFERTJES

After the boat ride, we visited Cafe de Prins, where we tried poffertjes — small puffy pancakes served with butter, syrup, and powdered sugar. Traditionally made with buckwheat flour and yeast to give them a light, fluffy texture, poffertjes are made with a special cast iron griddle that has small indentations across the surface. It requires this large iron for making these mini-pancakes (see below) so not everyone has the equipment at home.  That’s why poffertjes are often made outside in the open markets and fairs where they’re served up hot and fresh.  I loved watching them being made the next day when I visited the open market in De Pijp.

The Jordaan Food and Canals Tour was one of the highlights of my trip.  I would encourage you to reserve ahead of time if you’re interested in going.  Check out Eating Europe.

The group also conducts food tours in Rome, Florence, London, Prague and most recently Paris.

Amsterdam surprised me.  Charmed me.  Had me wanting more.  I can’t wait to go back.

Let me know about your experiences in Amsterdam.

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It’s a huge show and there’s so much to report on, and I hope to go back again in the next few days to visit more exhibits and attend some of the sessions before the end of the show.  But for now, some of the major trends I spotted included plant-based protein, probiotics, fermented foods, craft coffee, tea (matcha and more), gluten-free and technology — from 3-D food printers to robotics.  Food as experience and entertainment was huge, including #coffeeinacone — a South African company that sells what they describe as the world’s most instagrammable coffee.

There’s so much to share, but for today I’ll focus on some of the plant-based options and technology.

One of the most intriguing products I tried was from Ocean Hugger Foods.  The CEO was on hand to sample Ahimi, the world’s first-plant-based alternative to raw tuna that can be used for sushi, sashimi, ceviche and poke bowls.  It was quite tasty and surprisingly similar in taste and texture to tuna.  It wouldn’t quite cut it for me, I love real tuna. But I liked the creativity and the passion of the founders.

The folks from Beyond Meat introduced their first plant-based sausage, which I tried during a press briefing in the morning with sauerkraut and it was delicious.  The Beyond Sausage was one of the FABI Award winners this year, and their exhibit was consistently packed.  Although not  everyone was a fan.  When stopping by the booth later after trying it earlier in the morning, I overheard some attendees who were standing in line for the brats that were on the grill.  Once they found out they were “fake” they didn’t want to have anything to do with them.

The company behind Just Mayo introduced Just Scramble, a plant-based egg substitute made from mung bean.  They also served an egg patty in an egg sandwich for the press briefing in the morning.

Looks like jackfruit is getting into foodservice.  I saw several exhibits promoting this plant-based meat alternative and showcasing multiple applications, including jackfruit tacos.

Plant-based beverages were also featured in multiple booths, including this brand-new dairy-free yogurt drink from Califia.  It’s made from almond milk with added probiotics.  Look for it coming to a supermarket near you this summer.

Technology was a major focus at the show and there’s a session on the Future of Restaurants that I hope to attend.  A German company called Procusini demonstrated their 3-D food printer that can make chocolate, marzipan, pasta and other customized creations.

Robotics are also moving into restaurants, including this “server” from Bear Robotics.

The post Food Trends Spotted at the National Restaurant Association Show 2018 appeared first on Nutrition Unplugged.

Mushrooms at farmers market by Chris Goldberg on flickr

As we approach 2018, there’s been an onslaught of predictions on what we’ll be eating in the coming year.  Have you had a hard time keeping up with all of these food trend predictions? Me too. It’s been my tradition to assemble these lists, and I’ve done that for the last several years, including here and here.  So once again I’m compiling all of the food trend lists I’ve spotted to try and capture the 2018 trends.  Hope it’s helpful to you.  And let me know if there’s something I’ve missed.

Update:  Here are some additional compilation lists for 2018 food trends that were published after my original post —

Eater Literally Every Single Food Trend Prediction to Take Over 2018
Global Food Forum 2018 Food Trends
Produce Retailer Tracking Food Trends 2018

Foods

mushrooms
edamame and snap peas
dumplings
puffed and popped snacks
ube (purple yams)
romanesco
seaweed and algae
specialty meats (nose to tail butchery, responsibly raised)
jianbing (Chinese street food breakfast crepes)
arepa (Venezuelan bread)
seeds
persimmons, figs
timut pepper (Nepal)
labneh, cottage cheese
Hispanic-style cheeses (queso blanco and fresco)
raclette cheese

Raclette cheese in cheese cave by Andrew McFarlane on flickr

Flavors and ingredients

floral flavors (orchid, lavender, elderflower, hibiscus, rosewater), edible flowers
salt-curing
new hot sauces
zhug (Israeli-Yemenite condiment)
ghee
whey
black garlic
cannibis
super powders (moringa, matcha, maca root)
sugar alternatives

Bubble waffle cone by Jeff Amador on flickr

Desserts

vegan desserts
Thai-rolled ice cream
boozy ice cream and shakes
freakshake
raw cookie dough
filled doughnuts
s’mores
bubble waffle
cotton candy
savory desserts
smoked dessert ingredients
Indian-infused desserts
avocado desserts
nitro desserts
feel-good treats

Cold brew coffee by Oleksii Leonov on flickr

Beverages

evolved coffee (with “superpowers,” nitro and cold brew, spiced, maca-fortified)
hard cider and root beer
mocktails
cheese tea
Earl Grey, specialized tea (green tea, tea bars)
kolsch (German brew)

Jianbing or Chinese breakfast crepe by srei on flickr

Cuisines

 Moroccan
Hawaiian
Native American
Middle Eastern
African
Peruvian
Burmese
Indian street food
Phillippine
Artic
Upscale Korean

Mini falafel by Paul Saad on flickr

Nutrition

plant-based (including meat and dairy alternatives)
fermentation and gut-friendly foods
brain fuel, nueronutrition, biohacking
eating according to your DNA
self-care food (personalization)
healthyish
souping over juicing

Cooking Techniques

branded foods (with branding iron)
air-fried
salt-cured
root-to-stem
cowboy cooking (charred, smoked, open fire)

Food Production

cellular agriculture
biodynamic
clean label 2.0
radical transparency

Food Lifestyle

culinary heritage, nostalgia, throwback dishes
knowing a food’s provenance
food halls
visual food experiences
political plating (food waste, hunger relief)
cooking robots
everyday food-tech (voice activated devices like Google Home)
grocery delivery

Sources with links to trend reports:

Baum + Whiteman
National Restaurant Association
CCD Innovation
Sterling-Rice Group
Phil Lempert
Pinterest
Whole Foods
BBC
Fine Dining Lovers
The Daily Meal
Datassentials
Campbell’s
Unilever Food Solutions

Food Management

Food Navigator

Innova Market Insights

The post Compilation of 2018 Food Trends: A Collection of Predictions for the New Year appeared first on Nutrition Unplugged.

I had the great privilege to present this year: Second Century Communications Tools for Dietitians. It was a lot of fun and I hope it was inspiring to the dietitians in the audience.

I also spent quite a bit of time walking the aisles of the exhibit hall to spot food trends — one of my favorite parts of the annual meeting (besides connecting with good friends). So what did I think were the big trends?  Plant-based was an overarching trend, including a “reducetarian” approach of combining meat and plant protein, such as the Blend Burger that blends mushrooms with ground beef, or the pasta dish I had at the Lentils booth that combined ground meat and lentils.  It’s about cutting down, not out.

Specific trends I spotted included gut-friendly foods, nuts in multiple forms, allergen-free foods, convenient single-serve snacks, new look at grains, good fats get better, old-school foods with a modern twist and farmer as hero.  Virtual reality was also a trend, offering attendees a peek at the journey from farm to glass for Fairlife Milk and Tropicana Orange Juice, or a viewpoint of a bee from the National Honey Board. I also noticed several Amazon.com only products and founder-led brands, such as Rachel Pauls Happy Bars.

I was live-tweeting some trends from the exhibit floor and I had one dietitian reply to me on Twitter saying she wished there were more whole food vendors at the conference.  Really?  I thought there were quite a few.  Wild blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, cranberries, prunes, pears, peaches, almonds, walnuts, pistachios, and avocados were all there.  You could find eggs, lentils, yogurt, cottage cheese, milk, honey, whole grains and fresh salad mixes.  Come on!  It’s so easy to criticize “big food,” but there were lots of whole fresh foods on display — along with companies introducing better-for-you options that happen to come in a box, can or package.

Gut-Friendly Foods

The exhibit floor featured a Healthy Gut Pavilion that was full of products positioned to promote digestive health — from probiotics and fiber to low FODMAP foods.  I talked about low FODMAP foods as a trend last year, but it’s grown even more.  These foods are low in types of carbohydrates that aggregate IBS and other digestive issues.  I liked these trail mixes featured above from Fody Foods that include nuts, banana chips, coconut chips, dark chocolate chips and cranberries.  The Rachel Pauls’ Happy Bars are also low FODMAP.

Probiotics dominated the Pavilion, including these probiotic shots from Good Belly and barley products offering prebiotic dietary fiber from Freedom Foods, a company from Australia.  Now we know that a combination of probiotics and prebiotics (or the fuel for beneficial organisms) is really what we need.

Nuts in Multiple Forms

Nuts are enjoying this new era of “good fats” and I spotted several nut vendors, including Yumbutter that promoted nut butters in pouches (also fortified with probiotic cultures), the first peanut milk from Elmhurst, and unique peanut puffs called P-Nuff Crunch by Perfect Life Nutrition (another interesting founder story). A Japanese company called Daily Nuts & Fruits, Inc. promoted individual servings of nuts targeted for different demographics (from kids to seniors) and different combinations of nut mixtures.  I think it’s good to think of nuts as a regimen product because of all the benefits they deliver.

Free-From Top Allergens

Several exhibitors touted the absence of the top 8 allergens: eggs, dairy, peanuts, tree nuts, wheat, soy, shellfish and fish. One of those vendors was Cybele’s Free to Eat Pasta, which were innovative “superfood” pastas, including the rotini below that’s made from red lentils, pumpkin and butternut squash.  It was really tasty.

Made Good and Ona Bizzy Bee both made “school safe” snacks without common allergens like peanuts or tree nuts.

Convenient Single-Serve Snacks 

There were many products designed for healthy eating on the go.  These Flap Jacked Mighty Muffins with Probiotics (again!) were a unique product that you add water and microwave for an instant muffin.  I’m not sure about this one. But it contains 20 grams of protein, and we know that’s a draw today for consumers.

Another product in a cup are these innovative frozen desserts from Daily Harvest, a subscription service that delivers the frozen cups to your doorstep for mixing up at home.  The Salted Caramel with sweet potato, banana, dates, coconut, pumpkin seed, and chia was really delicious.

Rise Buddy baked rice chips, in flavors like Pizza, BBQ, Sea Salt and Sour Cream & Onion, were marketed as “healthy junk food,” which was a turn off for me. Yes they’re made from brown rice and are gluten-free, but these are not a nutrient-dense snack by any stretch (similar to the Veggie Straws that I’ve written about previously.)  I didn’t even taste these, but I was not a fan.

This was an interesting product from Cocoburg, a company that was also exhibiting coconut jerky.  Their latest product is Nothing But Coconut, which was described as the world’s first dried young coconut strips.

 New Look at Grains

Glad to see so many grain products on display — let’s hope people are getting over their bread phobia.  Sprouted grains seem to be the next “whole grain.”

Good Fats Get Better

Conversations around oils are getting more detailed, including the amounts and levels of specific fatty acids.  Safflower oil is getting more attention, along with oleic acid.  A company called Oleico was touting the science, along with flavor-infused safflower oils like Provencal-style, Creole and Mediterranean-style.

Old School Foods Make Modern Comeback

Remember cottage cheese?  Well it’s back and sporting a new look.  It struck me how certain old-fashioned foods are putting on  new face to inspire the next generation.  Muuna served single-serve containers of cottage cheese in fruit flavors.  I loved the peach.   Wasa crackers (since 1919) are another old-school food that is suddenly shining bright — more relevant than ever.

Farmers as Heroes

Maybe my favorite trend of all was the focus on the farmer.  Increasingly consumers care about where food comes from and how it was grown.  That’s why farmers are the new celebrity chefs.  Farmers were featured in the pistachios booth (even though a cardboard cutout) and a real blueberry grower was on hand to answer questions at the wild blueberry booth.  Don’t you love her big button declaring “I’m a blueberry grower.”  But best of all was the cranberry bog built by Ocean Spray.  This over-sized exhibit that allowed actual interaction with a cranberry bog was the hit of the exhibits!

Did you attend FNCE 2017?  Let me know what you thought were the big food trends and I’ll link here.

Updated with links to other FNCE trend-tracking articles:

Dawn Jackson Blatner for Huffington Post

The post #FNCE Food Trends: Trendspotting at the Food & Nutrition Conference & Expo 2017 appeared first on Nutrition Unplugged.