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Five Trends You Can’t Miss From 2017 Winter Fancy Food Show

By January 31, 2017 February 2nd, 2017

2017 Winter Fancy Food Show

The 2017 Winter Fancy Food Show marks the fourth I have attended, and I always love this show because all of my food friends visit me in my home city of San Francisco. Last year’s show left a bit to be desired and was a bit disappointing and stale, but this year I was energized and not just from the coffee and reishi mushrooms at the show. My team and I sampled dynamic snacks that brought something new from all corners of the world. Here’s a recap of the new trends we saw this year:

The New Primal - Southwestern Flavors

Southwestern Flavors: Notes of chili, lime, and cilantro were in abundance at the show with items like Chili Lime Seaweed from Ocean’s Halo and the New Primal Cilantro Lime Turkey

Macadamia Nut

Macadamia Nut: There’s a new ‘it’ nut in town and it’s not almonds or coconuts. Nope, it’s macadamia, or as I call it, the Rolls Royce of nuts. The creamy richness of this nut makes for a delicious nut milk. Case in point – Milkadamia, which comes in original, unsweetened, and latte da. Macadamia nuts are also quickly replacing walnuts and pecans as a go-to baking ingredient, as seen in Kelley’s Kookies and their Chocolate – Dipped Macadamia Shortbread.

Favas Peas

Beans: Hear the word beans and you might think boring or bland, but many brands brought their bean–tastic A-game this year. There were nothing but beans in the Eat More Beans Steamed Bean & Edamame Mix by Maruyanagi Foods Inc. of Kobe, Japan, but it proved to be a snack worth fighting over – just ask the SN team who were unwilling to share. Also new this year, The Good Bean launched Crispy Favas + Peas in fun flavors like Balsamic Herb and Habanero Cirtus, which currently has distribution at Sprouts. Popcorners made a splash with their new Bean Crisps that come packed with pea protein and fiber.

Pork Skins

Pork Skins: While jerky continues to gain market share, there is a new meat snack in town that packs a bit more crunch . Pork skins, which have been known for ages South of the Border as chicharrones, are beginning to become a larger presence here in the US. We enjoyed these meaty treats from 4505 Meats, Epic, and Pork Barrel BBQ (although we still prefer Pork Barrel’s Bacon jerky best).

Protein Butter

Protein: The protein trend continues to gain steam as 30% of the items we encountered at the show featured protein callouts. In fact, we saw protein highlighted in some pretty unexpected places. Just when we thought peanut butter had enough protein, Wild Friends decided to launch a Protein+ line available in three flavors and with 50% more protein. If protein in a crunchy and savory form is more your thing, Plocky’s has you covered with their new “protato” chips that come in fun flavors like Peppercon Ranch and Spicy Honey BBQ.

On behalf of the team here at SnackNation, I hope you are as amped about these new snacks as we are, and I look forward to seeing if these trends carry.

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