What's your next flavour combination?

CONSUMERS’ taste preferences are becoming rather complex, but the growing focus on health and wellbeing is definite. This means that nutrition and ingredients that support good health and vitality remain important.

Yet, while nutritional needs are front and centre, authentic taste and flavours rank high among consumers who still enjoy travelling through their taste buds and trying foods they experienced over their holidays.

People want more value and greater fulfilment from what they eat and drink. They want experiences beyond merely eating or drinking. We see this appearing in premiumisation of snacks, the growing popularity of new, innovative food and beverages, and products that better support health.

As an easy guide for F&B brands and manufacturers, Kerry added a nutritional chart to its Taste report to highlight the nutritional claims and functional needs forecast to be big over the coming months.

The new research in Kerry’s Global Taste and Nutrition Charts for 2023 will help companies understand claims emerging across regions as well as trends and preferences, so they can provide better food options for consumers in their market.

The charts are categorised under 4 key trends:

Maximising Taste: With advances in technology around taste and texture, consumers expect food and beverage options that deliver the same taste experience and flavour intensity they enjoy, if not more so.

For example, taste can be enhanced using ingredients like jaggery, and vanilla undertones. In addition, espresso tonic has been around since 2015 but now there are unique flavour pairings such as yuzu espresso tonic (yuzu and coffee are identified as up & coming in the APAC charts). The tonic harmonises with coffee’s floral element, while the addition of citrus like yuzu gives the whole drink an aroma lift, maximising the taste and drinking experience.

Roots & Origins: Traditional practices, heirloom flavours and ingredients and recipes are experiencing a revival, with post-modern food coming full circle to authentic, wholesome experiences. An example would be noodles inspired by traditional cooking methods or recipes of the past. Asia Pacific markets, where influence comes not just from the West, but also sub-markets within these regions, are inspiring flavours globally. From Indian spices to Korean Doenjang, Asian food and cuisines are getting more attention, as the charts reveal.

Off The Reel: Social media and the emphasis on visuals continue to influence food and beverage trends. Consumers like to see extravagant food and beverage creations, dressed with abundant toppings, ingredients and sprinkles attract consumers because they look great in photos and videos, but also because they carry familiar, nostalgic flavours and ingredients. Think chocolate biscuit stick or wafer coated with green apple sprinkles infused with green apple flavour.

TikTok has been changing the food landscape, especially during COVID. Its accessibility and visual format provide a creative outlet for new flavour pairings and combinations, such as matcha martini, known as the prettiest green cocktail. Matcha is a key flavour identified under Sweet in Kerry’s Taste & Nutrition charts.

Joy in Simple Things: In a fast culture, the simplicity of familiar, comfort flavours continue to bring joy to consumers. According to a report by FMCG Gurus, 54% of APAC consumers say that traditional flavours most influence their food and drink choices.

The insights in this comprehensive taste and nutrition charts will help F&B brands fine-tune upcoming launches and craft delicious and nutritious food and beverages that deliver the flavours and ingredients consumers want. You can mix and match flavours and ingredients, and create products that are unusual or innovative to excite consumers. So for example, sesame is an up & coming flavour under Savoury and Sweet. You can add it to a sweet treat like brownies for a savoury twist, while black sesame can be used as coatings for breads, chicken tenders and cakes.

Under the Ingredients chart, there is a long list classified by purpose; “Multisensorial” (ingredients that deliver a multi-sensory appeal), “Functional” (ingredients with health benefits), “Alternative” (alternative proteins, meat alternatives) and “Ethnic” (well-loved local, ethnic or regional ingredients). For a multisensory experience, you can add a dash of cinnamon to a smoothie to lift the flavour and transform its taste, even its smell and visual appeal. Then there’s lemon, a mainstream flavour in dairy and hot beverage. You can add ashwaganda (under Functional), which is known to support cognitive and heart health, to lemonade or lemon soda, making it a healthier beverage.

The huge popularity of Sriracha is an example of how a trend starts small and go mainstream quickly. Similarly, across APAC, we see flavours like Speculoos, Banofee (Banana and Toffee) having the potential to become mainstream; these flavours started appearing a few years ago and we see them growing every year.

Fermented foods are also getting more attention as people better understand how they are linked to gut health and how the gut-brain axis is connected to positive mental health. It’s no surprise that in our region’s charts, fermented foods like soya sauce is mainstream while spicy Korean jjajang is up and coming.

As a global leader in Dairy Taste, Savoury Taste, Smoke and Grill, Flavour Modulation and Natural Extracts, Kerry invests in a broad range of process technologies and expertise, including flavourists, sensory scientists, analytical chemists, application scientists and manufacturing specialists. Deep understanding of taste within the Asia region is key and we invest in local insight into the emotions that influence taste preferences and trends.