When bread or other baked goods are made by an artisan—created with only a few pure, high-quality ingredients; mixed and shaped by hand; and baked in a hearth oven—every last crumb has soul.
The artisanal baking trend of the past few years left many large baked goods companies wondering how to hurdle all the obstacles in creating mass-produced items that achieve artisan-style quality.
While Italian foods appear to be almost completely mainstream, manufacturers are pushing the envelope with creative toppings and sauces; more convenient approaches; and even items that meet the needs of food-allergic consumers.
Mintel Menu Insights finds the number of U.S. menu items with poultry as an ingredient climbed an average of 12% over the past three years. In pizza, that number is even more pronounced: The pizza segment has seen a 26% increase in chicken as a topping.
Sterling-Rice Group has identified the top 10 food trends that will be served on restaurant menus and line the supermarket shelves across the U.S. in 2013.