An insightful trends report has been unveiled by the team at Darégal Gourmet UK following extensive research with chefs and consumers. The report highlights some of the key food trends which will be driving menu planning, product development and consumer food choices in 2025 and beyond.
Following in-depth analysis using The Food People’s Trends Hub, the team at Darégal Gourmet UK worked with the Craft Guild of Chefs to run a roundtable discussion at Westminster Kingsway College. This debate provided lots of food for thought on the trends coming through and some of the key takeaways from this session have been included in the report to inspire other chefs. To ensure the report was relevant for all working in food manufacturing and hospitality, Darégal Gourmet also completed a nationally representative independent study with 1,000 UK consumers.
Some of the trends explored in the report include stimulating the senses, remembering retro, humble ingredients, going global with local twists, using whole ingredients, the theatre of food and real food rules. The consumer survey revealed some important data that food manufacturers, chefs and retailers will need to consider in 2025.
A few takeaways include:
- 50% of consumers have made changes to food purchasing choices because of the economic challenges.
- 40% of consumers are looking for cuisines from other countries when they eat out.
- When eating British dishes, 52% of consumers prefer the traditional British classics.
- For male consumers, food aroma (38%) has a bigger impact than presentation (29%) on how they feel.
- 30% of females want to reduce their consumption of ultra-processed food.
To help chefs and food manufacturers learn how they can use the insight from this report in their own businesses, culinary tips have been provided throughout by Darégal Gourmet UK development chef, Mark Owen. He said: “I loved having the opportunity to hear the views of some of the rising stars in the industry which included former National Chef of the Year winners and finalists, members of the Craft Guild of Chefs Culinary team and other talented chefs working in a variety of sectors. I believe it is vital that we are aware of the food and drink trends for the years ahead so the consumer insight was equally important for ensuring all the information we are providing the industry will help drive sales.”
Martin McIlroy, managing director at Darégal Gourmet UK commented: “This has been a fascinating and valuable process for us, and we have loved engaging with chefs and consumers to get their thoughts on the latest food and drink trends. By putting ourselves at the heart of the industry, we know we are creating products that food manufacturers and chefs really need and want. Exploring the trends that are currently gaining interest or are likely to be a hot topic in the future can help food manufacturers and chefs to get ahead and create products and dishes that will excite and entice customers to buy.”
The consumer survey also revealed the most commonly used herbs with garlic, ginger, basil and coriander proving popular in adding flavour and aroma to dishes. Darégal Gourmet’s frozen herbs are a tasty and convenient culinary addition to freezers as they are washed, chopped and ready to use with zero waste. Chefs can discover innovative and creative ways for using these products in their dishes throughout this report.
To request a copy of the report you can email Kirsty Bell, commercial project manager at Darégal Gourmet UK via Kirsty.Bell@daregalgourmet.co.uk
