Local, sustainable and natural are three watchwords from a 2017 food and beverage trend list compiled by Teneo Hospitality Group.
Teneo, an Eden Prairie, Minnesota-based group meeting sales organization, says trends are chef-led, millennial-driven and embrace the issues of sustainability, sourcing, wellness and diversity.
“Today’s hotel and group banquet guests have new and highly diverse dining requirements and demands,” said Teneo President Mike Schugt, who addressed F&B trends recently at an annual summit the company hosts.
The top trends identified by Teneo include:
Local and sustainable: Sourcing and using locally raised meat and produce is the most productive way to meet the changing requirements for healthy dining while reducing a hotel’s or resort’s carbon footprint.
Natural, minimally processed foods: As healthier, plant-based ingredients replace processed food and awareness of the dangers of sodium, sugar and saturated fat grows, Americans are demanding healthier food at meetings and banquet events.
New cuts of meat, nontraditional fish, meat versus plant: Look for a greater use of vegetables, seeds, nuts and legumes as part of the protein intake at group dining events. Since some fish have become scarce, more abundant species such as mackerel, rock fish and skipjack are trending as healthy protein sources. To make food more sustainable and affordable, chefs are using a variety of cuts of meat – not just breasts, shoulders, and legs, but the entire animal.
Read more trends on Teneo’s website.