2020 FOOD TRENDS

From pea milk to salmon pastrami, Filipino BBQ to gorse gin ice cream, Tony Naylor suggests you pour yourself a hard seltzer, buckle up and get set for a roller-coaster ride into the food future

Tony Naylor looks ahead at what we’ll be eating and drinking this year

LOW-SUGAR CHOCOLATE HIGH

‘We’ve seen a big increase in dark chocolate’s value sales. People see it as healthier – higher cocoa, lower sugar content,’ says Emma Weinbren, features editor at The Grocer. That benefits ethical dark chocolate makers such as Doisy & Dam, while – possibly to deter any ‘snack tax’ – big brands like Nestlé (who have launched Milkybar Wowsomes) and Cadbury (30% less sugar Dairy Milk) are also innovating hard in the reduced-sugar realm. Emma adds, ‘They see that as a real area of development.’

LOCAL, SEASONAL 2.0

From the botanical garden at Jamavar ( jamavarrestaurants.com) in Mayfair to the garden-to-plate ethos at The Pig (thepighotel.com), chefs are finding their inner Monty Don and

SHOPPING UNPACKED

Pick ‘n’ mix frozen veg, pasta dispensers and tap beer are being rolled out by Waitrose in four stores in a bid to go plastic-free. At their Oxford Botley Road store, unpackaged products are outselling their packaged rivals and 90% of shoppers say they are happy to bring along refillable containers, bottles and bags to carry their shopping. Phase two of Waitrose Unpacked will be announced in spring, while the northern supermarket, Booths, is simultaneously trialling entirely loose fresh produce in two stores. Unpackaged retail has its challenges; it is more costly for retailers and difficult for some shoppers. But with politicians, the public and independent, zero-waste grocers such as The Clean Kilo (in Birmingham and Bourneville) exerting pressure, unpackaged food will be one of 2020’s big stories. growing their own produce. With ‘dug today’ spuds and ‘picked today’ berries, Booths supermarket has caught the bug, too. ‘We’re interested in the environmental impact of growing and transporting food. An exciting result of this is a resurgence of artisan growers cultivating interesting varieties like monk’s beard and salsify (greens). I see 2020 being a big year for beautiful British vegetables,’ says Dan Fletcher, chef at new Somerset restaurant 28 Market Place (28marketplace.co.uk).

THE UNSTOPPABLE RISE OF PLANT FOOD

Unilever-backed Dutch brand The Vegetarian Butcher (thevegetarian butcher.co.uk) recently launched its soy sausages, burgers and nuggets in Tesco. At both a micro and macro level, meatfree eating is a trend which, says April Preston, director of product development at M&S, ‘has shown absolutely no sign of slowing down. Our customers are adopting flexitarian lifestyles and we’ve a pipeline of new plant-based products planned, including a no-chicken Kiev.’

LEVANTINE LOVE-IN

With Moroccan Kitchen, Turkish Delight and Chicken Shawarma courses selling out at its cookery schools and sales of sumac and za’atar spiking, Waitrose reckons more of us will be cooking North African and Middle Eastern food at home. Its senior development chef Zoe Simons credits the ‘winning blend of spice, heat and sweetness. Home cooks will soon think nothing of whipping up baba ganoush or tabbouleh.’

SEACUTERIE

Chefs are raving about Josh Niland’s fin-to-tail ethos explained in The Whole Fish Cookbook (£25, Hardie Grant). ‘Everyone’s going to be trying all manner of sea offal,’ says Aarik Persaud, of Heritage in Soho (heritagerestaurant. co.uk). Key to it is so-called ‘seacuterie’; yes, charcuterie for fish where it is dry-aged or cured to intensify flavour. Chef Tom Brown has also been inspired, serving salmon pastrami, sea bass ‘hams’ and monkfish bresaola at Cornerstone (cornerstonehackney.com).

19 WHEY TO GO!

Food producers such as Cumbrian bakery Lovingly Artisan (lovinglyartisan.com) and Black Cow vodka (blackcow.co.uk) are making the most of whey – a waste product of cheesemaking. ‘It’s super-flavoursome and sweet,’ says chef Tommy Banks of The Black Swan (blackswanoldstead.co.uk). He uses raw milk whey to make ricotta and also loves it in ‘simple, acidulated butter sauces’ or reduced and caramelised to make Scandinavian-style brown cheese, which he describes as ‘like a salty, savoury version of Caramac’.

CBD

The science is inconclusive, particularly in relation to food and drink containing low doses, but CBD (or cannabidiol, a non-psychoactive cannabis plant extract, touted for its potential to alleviate pain and anxiety) is a hot ingredient. It’s available in a variety of forms including gin, hummus and ice cream. ‘Every week, we get sent a new sparkling CBD drink,’ says Daniel Woolfson, drinks expert at The Grocer. Find out more at bbcgoodfood.com/cbd.