To learn more about how food companies navigate culinary trends, Prepared Foods reached out to the Research Chefs Association (RCA), a 19-year-old group whose 2,000 members include manufacturing, retail and foodservice chefs as well as associated ingredient and service suppliers.

Manufacturers and operators alike have experienced challenges when working together trying to develop trusted partnerships.

Prepared Foods talks with Jason Henderson, vice president-product innovation at Captain D’s, a Nashville, Tenn.-based seafood restaurant chain with more than 500 units nationwide.

For leading restaurant chains, the past year was somewhat of a mixed bag.

Prepared Foods talks with Joe Bybel, senior vice president of marketing and research & development at Ventura Foods, a Brea, Calif.-based supplier of oils, dips, dressings, glazes, sauces and more.

The past decade has seen restaurant operators expand menu offerings at a furious pace, eager to stay ahead of flavor fads and stave off aggressive competition.

The culinary landscape is rife with all manner of food and beverage trends—centered on everything from ingredients that promote a healthier lifestyle to the authentic flavors of palate-pleasing ethnic cuisines from lands far outside US borders.

This spring saw the National Restaurant Association (NRA) recognize some of foodservice industry’s top new food and beverage products.