The year is fast coming to a close and with it we’ve seen new trends emerge, old ones gain even more momentum and a few others slow down. It can often feel like trends contradict themselves; on one hand consumers want value for money and on the other they’re willing to pay more for functional, healthy products.
According to The Food People, these are some of the most prominent trends taking us from 2025 to 2026. From snacking and sweet treats to time savers and indulgence, here are the trends to keep an eye on as we move into the new year.
Gourmet Indulgence
- Takeaway meals that can be made at home, like burgers, fried chicken or curries. They’re not-for-everyday meals but more people are swapping takeaways for ‘fakeaways’.
Pure & Clean
- People are more aware of the ingredients that go into their favourite products than ever, from food to cleaning products – favouring those with less. Stocking brands with real, whole ingredients, and products that offer good sustainability credentials can help you to win these customers over.
Sweet Treats
- Confectionery will always have a place but consumers are preferring to hold out for a special ’treat occasion’ each week. Usually in the form of pastries or cookies. Perhaps it’s time to increase your offering with a freshly baked and coffee offering?
Snacking
- Consumers are adopting a more flexible approach to eating, rather than sticking to three meals a day. This could be anything from instant noodles to savoury croissants, cooked meats, microwave dumplings and more.
Protein Power
- The trend for protein-rich foods is still going strong. From sweet and savoury snacks to full meals, it can be the difference between making a sale and not.
Frozen Convenience
- Frozen food hits three main needs: convenience, waste reduction, and often value for money. Whether it’s a treat, a prepared meal, a snack or side, you can increase basket spend and customer retention by stocking some great offerings.
Time Savers
- Rice packs, ‘healthy’ noodle pots, spice rubs, ready made mash potatoes, dumplings – they’re all time savers that consumers don’t mind spending money on to make life a little easier.
Real Food
- For so long products like milk, eggs, butter were shamed for being bad for you but now people are realising these are the purest forms of the products, preferring to buy locally made butter, milk, cream and eggs. It could be worth seeing if there’s a local farmer you can work with to enhance your offering.
Plant-Based
- Plant-based eating hasn’t necessarily grown due to more vegans, it has grown due to consumers deciding to mix up their omnivore diet by choosing to cook a few meals a week without animal products. Stocking trusted meat-free and dairy-free brands will help to gain customer loyalty.
Feel Good
- Gut health and brain health has never been more prominent with more and more brands bringing out functional drinks and gut-loving foods. They may come with a price tag but it’s something many consumers are willing to pay for…
