From mustard makeovers to beef tallow, six food and beverage trends that could take over

Home cooks in the U.S. have been using olive oil for several decades. In recent years, olive oil has branched out, with more focus on the flavor that it offers, whether it’s drizzled on top of ice cream or used in cakes.

But the cooking staple is now getting an upgrade, thanks to infusions of trendy flavors. For example, Castillo de Canena, a family-owned Spanish company, has been making olive oil for centuries, but its booth highlighted two newer additions to its line: harissa olive oil and olive oil finished in sherry casks.

Olive oil isn’t the only pantry staple getting a makeover. The mustard category could be heading for a shakeup, thanks to a few new entrants hoping to enliven the tired condiment.

Pop Mustards pitches itself as the “caviar of mustards” because it uses whole mustard seeds, giving the condiment a new texture. The company also uses fermentation, smoking, brining and other methods to bring more flavor out of the seeds.

Caplansky’s Delicatessen showed off a more traditional take on the condiment at its booth, inspired by classic deli mustards. But its product lineup offers more flavor than the classic yellow mustard or dijon found in fridges today.

Since Beyond Meat’s meteoric rise, plant-based purveyors have displayed their vegetarian substitutes at the Summer Fancy Food Show. But as the category struggles, the number of booths hawking plant-based products dwindled this year.

Still, the category hasn’t disappeared altogether. Instead, exhibitors presented their products by leading with their taste, rather than their vegan or vegetarian bona fides.

For example, Umyum displayed its cashew-based cheese and butter substitutes, with packaging that reads, “Our craft just happens to be plantbased.”

During the pandemic, many restaurant chefs pivoted to selling at-home versions of their beloved sauces, condiments and other foods that can be easily canned or packaged. Even after eateries reopened their dining rooms, some chefs have stuck with it.

“This is a longer lasting trend, and it’s the passion around making the best version of that food that there is, and now the chef wants you to have it at home,” Couvelier said.

At this year’s show, exhibitors included Zahav Foods, the packaged food brand of chef Michael Solomonov, known for his restaurants Zahav in Philadelphia and Laser Wolf in New York. The mustard brand Caplansky’s Delicatessen is also the brainchild of chef Zane Caplansky.

Over the last year, beef tallow has been having a moment, thanks to Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his “Make America Healthy Again” agenda. Kennedy has touted the rendered fat as a healthier alternative to “seed oils,” although nutrition experts broadly disagree.

Two newcomers displayed their beef tallow products at the Summer Fancy Food Show: Butcher Ben’s Beef Tallow and Beefy’s Own, which cooks its potato chips in beef tallow.