2021 Flavor Trends – The year of social wellness

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2021 Flavor Trends – The year of social wellness

Consumers are shifting their focus towards their health and immunity now more than ever with social media leading the way.

With 2020 behind us, we have found new ways of connecting with our friends, family, and coworkers—and with that we have seen dramatic shifts in consumer behavior and the trends that follow. Immunity has stolen the spotlight as we continue to improve our overall health into 2021. We are seeing an increase in “better-for-you” alternatives, such as botanical cocktails and mocktails. As social media continues to lead the trends, we are coming together in new creative ways and creating meaningful collaborations. From Insta-worthy drinks to celebrity inspired flavors, innovation in flavors and new products are not slowing down any time soon.

1. Immunity Never Tasted Better

Drawing from traditional medicine and ayurvedic influences, the introduction of flavorful ingredients like turmeric, ginger, lemon and honey into new product formulations give them an extra immune boost. Elderberry and Vitamin C based products were in high demand and continue to win shelf space in our medicine cabinets.

2. Social Distanced Drinks with Pure Class

With so many hard seltzers and alcoholic spritzers now to choose from we are seeing classic flavors with an exotic twist. Think pear, grapefruit, mandarin, pomegranate, and cranberry with a botanical twist of ginger, lemongrass, hibiscus, elderflower, or lavender.

Many consumers are moving to a low alcohol or non-alcohol lifestyle, but lucky for them there are now some great zero-proof alternatives. From refreshing flavored sparkling waters (like lemon cucumber and lime mint) to craft artisan mocktails that use many of the same great tasting ingredients sans the alcohol.

3. BYOB: Be Your Own Barista 

As everyone has their stay-at-home lifestyle now down to a science, it makes it harder to meet up for a social cup of coffee. Self-quarantine has forced many people to create their favorite hot beverages at home and discovering their inner barista. With a huge increase in the variety of coffee products making their way to the shelves, some popular flavors trends include: Cinnamon Dolce, Hazelnut, Toffee, White Chocolate Mocha, Salted Caramel, Cinnamon Roll, Toasted Coconut, Vanilla Honeycomb.

4. Insta-worthy Drinks

Dalgona Coffee. The popularity of some pretty Insta-worthy drinks has surfaced, including Dalgona Coffee. Dalgona Coffee (AKA whipped coffee) gained its popularity via TikTok and quickly became the #1 googled recipe. The drink is just 3 ingredients in equal proportions, instant coffee powder, sugar (or granulated sugar substitute), and hot water. You can make the drink easily at home by whipping it until it becomes incredibly fluffy and then adding it to a glass of hot or cold milk of your choice. While Dalgona Coffee isn’t the most complex formulation, there is a big surge in leveling up your daily coffee experience with the addition of ingredients like protein, collagen, adaptogens, mushrooms, and more.

Butterfly Pea Flower Tea. Another Insta-worthy drink that has gained viral popularity is Butterfly Pea Flower Tea. Butterfly pea flower comes from Southeast Asia and is a brilliant blue color with a slightly sweet taste. This ingredient offers a color changing effect when exposed to citric acid. With the squeeze of a lime or lemon, the blue hue transforms to a vibrant violet color.

Butterfly Pea Flower is now making appearances in teas, cocktails, ice creams, baked goods and more to create a picture-perfect experience.  As this trend is making its way off the internet and into market, bold and exciting flavors such as: Plum, Lychee, Asian Pear, and Passionfruit are perfectly paired with this new sensation. 

5. Creating Famous Flavors 

Celebrity inspired flavors is the next level of collaboration taking place. Several companies are developing flavors around key celebrities and influencers. January 1st, 2021 Liquid I.V. launched their collaboration with international DJ, Kygo. Kygo’s flavor of choice was Pina Colada because he felt it matched the overall upbeat mood of his music. Liquid I.V. also collaborated with DJ Steve Aoki earlier in 2020 to launch his signature Strawberry Cake flavor.

As these 2021 social and flavor trends continue to evolve and create the need for Insta-innovation, Sensapure is here to help you bring them to life.  

Contact us today to get started!

Food and Beverage Industry Pandemic Marketing – Then and Now

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Food and Beverage Industry Pandemic Marketing – Then and Now

The world is incredibly different today than it was one year ago. It’s even different than it was one month ago. Things are changing rapidly, and in order to keep up with the rollercoaster of this Pandemic, Americans are consciously and unconsciously shrinking their worlds, pursuing closer, more tight-knit connections with one another. This also applies to their purchasing habits. Consumers feel the unexpectedness of our world and are tightening their spending and sticking more to products they know well and are familiar with.

So, in this new “normal”, how do food & beverage marketers manage their campaigns to keep companies successful and in-the-know, without seeming tone-deaf or out of the loop? It’s important to confront an impending global recession and be sensitive to consumer’s needs to tighten spending, but the bottom line is they need to still sell product. Looking at past recessions can offer insights into what marketers should expect in these unfortunate circumstances.

Consumers are prioritizing comfort- whether that is through community, mutual support, or through distanced interaction physical spaces where they live, or through their digital spaces. With so many things and activities shut down, people have turned to immediate communities and find solace in the nostalgic and familiar. While this pandemic has gone on longer than most people have foreseen, we’ve observed that people will continue to retreat to what they know. Knowing there is more close-knit value placed on daily life, businesses would do well to reconfigure their sales messaging to have a more direct-to-consumer, home-based feel.

Let’s examine how “comfort messaging” has been used in the past to help sell product. During WWI and WWII, Americans produced their own food and other goods as a patriotic act of unity through crises. “Victory Gardens” reduced the strain on the food system as commercial farms diverted resources to the troops, with 40% of U.S. produce grown at home. The Victory Garden movement boosted civic morale by giving every American a concrete action they could take to support overseas war efforts, quite literally from their own backyard.

Now, hobbies like cooking, gardening, and homesteading are becoming increasingly popular, as Americans have more time at home and deal with the restlessness of isolation. During large-scale shutdowns, many Americans have shifted their purchase habits to community-driven alternatives closer to home such as purchasing produce directly from farmers and supporting small local businesses. Just as in the past, this local, human-to-human focus indicates a desire to feel helpful and connected in a time of uncertainty, fear and loneliness.

So what does this mean for your food and beverage marketing? It’s time to think local and tell stories! Stories are one of the best ways to have that home-based connection. Share stories that show the positive human impact of your brand on their immediate community. Because of COVID, consumers are more willing to continue supporting brands if they see that the brand shows support for similar values. Now is the time to try creative, community-oriented solutions.

There’s no telling how long this Pandemic will last, and we don’t know for sure how the economy will adjust or if panic buying tendencies will continue to impact the F&B space. With all of that uncertainty, we need do adjust accordingly. If consumers cannot find a product in store — or especially now when they don’t want to risk venturing out to check — they order online. Now is the time to reach out to people where they’re seeing marketing. Getting your message of availability to the proper audiences will be key to brand building and awareness during this time of increased sensitivity and unknown.

 

Hot Trend: Summer Alcoholic Popsicle Ideas

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Summer alcoholic popsicle ideas

Hot Trend: Summer Alcoholic Popsicle Ideas

 

Looking to change up your next party with fun new summer alcoholic popsicle ideas? Yep, one of the hottest trends as we head into warm summer days and long summer nights, is boozy popsicles. Cocktail popsicles turn up the fun factor and are a cool, leveled up version of your favorite childhood treat. And we’ve got the flavor profiles you need for all of your summer’s alcoholic popsicle ideas.

Of course, our favorite part of these boozy ice pops, are all of the flavor possibilities. A peach schnapps pop would be exquisite while lounging beside the pool. Or you may go for the mint julep – a refreshing, cool mint combined with a simple bourbon is even more delicious when frozen. We also think a sangria with all of it’s fruity flavors would be a great choice. And not to be forgotten, a classic citrus combination of orange and peach accompanied by white wine is always a win. Margaritas are also a fantastic, slushy way to cool off this summer, and lend themselves well to being frozen into popsicles. There’s endless summer alcoholic popsicle ideas when it comes to margaritas, just start with a base such as watermelon, peach, apple, strawberry, and you’re good to go!

Also jumping on this trend are companies in the food and beverage industry. For example, many bars are offering popsicles as menu items- just blend up a medley of mangoes, citrus, berries, even veggies, and add a splash of wine or vodka, and they’ve got a trendy, Instagram-worthy menu item. Other restaurants are looking to alcoholic drinks to get inspiration for their dessert menu, and combining alcohol with the nostalgia of childhood- vodka and gummy bear popsicles have been a popular menu item at up and coming niche restaurants.

Alcoholic popsicles are a great way to serve something unique at your next backyard BBQ or party. And good news! They’re so simple to make. Below is one of our favorite recipes for this hot trend. If you have your own ideas for your own summer alcoholic popsicle ideas or flavor combinations, give our flavor library a glance to see how we can help you. We’d love to hear what you’re working on, or what popsicle you’re planning on making this summer.

 

Summer alcoholic popsicle ideas

Strawberry Mojito Pops (recipe from Delish.com)

YIELDS:6
TOTAL TIME:8 HOURS 30 MINS
INGREDIENTS
1/2 c. rum
3/4 c. chopped strawberries
2 c. limeade
4 oz. fresh lime juice
8 mint leaves, chopped
6 wooden popsicle sticks

 

DIRECTIONS
  1. Mix all ingredients together then evenly divide mixture into popsicle molds.
  2. Chill popsicle molds in freezer for about 20 to 30 minutes or until liquid is slightly frozen.
  3. Add wooden popsicle sticks and freeze overnight.
  4. Run warm water over molds to loosen popsicles and serve.

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