TREND: The Next Thing In A Fresh Cookie?

The Sweet Flour Bake Shop in Toronto is at the vanguard of something we haven’t seen before: cookies and muffins custom-baked with your choice of mix-ins, prepared while you wait—in as little as two minutes. You can create just one cookie or take home a dozen. Do the math, and you get 15,000 different combinations—a…
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TRENDS: Flavor Trends For 2010?

Mintel, a leading global supplier of consumer, product and media intelligence, creates an annual list of what the hot new year’s flavors will be among American food enthusiasts (and those who make packaged products and restaurant meals for them). Here’s what Mintel predicts you’ll be enjoying in 2010, with our comments in italics: 1. Cardamom.…
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TRENDS: 2009 Restaurant Directions

In a down economy, discretionary restaurant meals are one of the first things to get cut by conservative consumers. Food industry consulting and research firm Technomic sees five trends looming large in 2009, as restaurants try to coax customers to come out and spend: 1. Experimentation and innovation—with new menu items, delivery services and price/bundling…
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