Madison—The majority of food forecasters for the coming year agree on a dominant trend for 2022: the explosion of plantbased dairy and meat alternatives at both retail and foodservice.

The boom has been years in the making, and the dairy industry in particular will face stronger competition.

Clean Eatz Kitchen, a readyto-eat meal service headquartered in Wilmington, NC, reported the influx of plant-based dairy products is a result of “the intolerance we didn’t know we had.”

“About 70 percent of the world’s population has some degree of lactose malabsorption,” Clean Eatz reported. “In layman’s terms, dairy products don’t sit well in many of our stomachs.”

“Enter almond milk, oat milk, hemp milk, cashew milk – essentially, squeezing foods that have fat and fiber in them and mixing them with water creates a gastronomically similar product as cow’s milk,” the company said.

“While more expensive and arguably worse for the environment, milk alternatives are here to stay,” Clean Eatz Kitchen said.

Lyons Magnus, a global foodservice and ingredient source, predicted potato milk will emerge as the new “it” plant milk” in 2022.

Waitrose, the UK-based supermarket chain, agreed that potato milk, which is low in sugar and saturated fat, will be one of the biggest trends of 2022.

In the UK, one-third of residents now use plant-based milk alternatives, according to research by Mintel, up from a quarter in 2020.

The alt-milk trend is especially prevalent in younger generations: almost 44 percent of UK consumers aged 25 to 44 years are plantbased milk users, Mintel reported.

“Grain milk is another development to watch, and it’s currently the fastest-growing dairy-free milk with barley milk, in particular, proving highly popular among many consumers,” said Philip Linardos, co-founder and CEO of ShelfNow, a marketplace for specialty brands.

Dairy-Free Dessert Market Grows

The plant-based, dairy-free dessert category is a fast growing segments of the alternative market.

Grand View Research reports that the global vegan dessert market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of just over 10 percent from 2020 to 2027.

According to Grand View Research, one of the key driving factors in the vegan dessert industry is an increasing demand for dairy alternatives.

The number of vegan dessert offerings on our platform has risen by 82 percent in 2021, added ShelfNow’s Philip Linardos.

A new vegan ice cream product that also features tumeric – a trendy ingredient that maintained its popularity over the last few years – is Green Girl Bakeshop Golden Mylk Plant-Based Ice Cream Cookie Sandwich, Whole Foods Market noted.

Other players in the vegan ice cream market include Bliss Unlimited, Danone, Nestle, Tofutti Brands, Trader Joe’s and Unilever. Swedish company Oatly began selling soft-serve, oat-based ice cream at Major League Baseball stadiums in Texas and Illinois last spring.

During the same period, Wildgood, a company backed by celebrity chef Bobby Flay, also began selling its olive oil based ice cream at US grocery stores.

Flexitarian, Reducetarianism

More consumers are finding a fluid, middle ground when it comes to food selection. Whole Foods Market has seen an uptick in “reducetarianism – reducing consumption of meat, dairy and eggs without cutting them out completely.

When animal products are on the menu, reducetarians opt for grass-fed meat, pasture-based cheese and organic dairy, and pasture-raised eggs.

A flexitarian approach to eating has also become mainstream, as consumers look to functional, wholesome plant-based nutrition to support healthy, environmentally friendlier lifestyles, Whole Foods reported.

Waitrose called this the “5:2 diet,” where consumers opted to eat vegetarian for five days a week and go for an animal-based protein on the other two days. The supermarket’s vegan range, Plantlife, has seen sales up 21 percent compared to last year.

At the foodservice level, Lyons Magnus predicts the launch of even more plant-based products in restaurants – both fast-casual and upscale eateries. Over the past year, chains like Burger King, Long John Silver’s, Panda Express and Little Caesar’s have released their first vegetarian options.

When asked what reasons consumers have for considering plantbased alternatives, respondents said they consider it healthier and better for the planet, according to Innova Market Insights’ “Top 10 Trends.”

Fermented & Functional

Fermented, functional products like yogurt, kefir and kombucha have appeared on many food trend forecasts over the past several years. However, the global pandemic accelerated the appeal of food and beverages with beneficial ingredients that may improve health or treat or prevent a future health issue.

Of all the various functional options available, immunity-boosting food and drink products are the most sought after, according to Clean Eatz Kitchen.

ADM, the global flavor, nutrition and ingredient company, likewise predicted an array of products with “postbiotic power,” which aren’t “live” and can be treated with heat.

Postbiotics are the by-product of probiotics, after they eat prebiotics, according to ADM. They also help maintain a person’s microbiome, but they’re more shelf stable, and will show up in all kinds of convenient formats, including beverages and powdered supplements.

Consumers Still Love Cheese

Regardless of waxing food trends and fleeting fad diets, cheese consumption remains high, and Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin (DFW) has assembled predictions for what the category will see in 2022.

• Classic Dishes Get an Upgrade. Millennial and Gen Z consumers are looking to recreate classic comfort dishes with a new twist. Retailers can tap into the trend by offering recipe suggestions like Pepperoni Pizza Monkey Bread, Monte Cristo Swiss Strata, and Maple Cheddar Dutch Baby.

• Upcycling Leftovers in the Home Kitchen. While consumers look to reduce food waste in their homes, retailers can suggest new ways to use leftovers like upcycling Parmesan rinds for broths, sauces, and risotto.

• Discovering Global Flavors at Home. The pandemic prompted consumers to try new flavors and dishes from around the world, including cheese styles with German, Swiss, Italian, Dutch, and Hispanic roots.

• Some Like It Hot. The cheese industry continues to develope varieties with serious heat that consumers desire. In 2021, buffaloflavored cheese sales grew 145.2 percent and ghost pepper-infused cheese increased 45.8 percent.

• Cheese Will Bring People Together. Coming together over a cheese board – either in-person or virtually – is a trend that is here to stay. Social media and virtual events give consumers the opportunity to meet cheese makers, cook with celebrated chefs, and participate in guided tastings led by top cheese mongers.

Gawker announced that while 2021 was the year of the air fryer, 2022 is about “abandoning all pretense” and “hunkering down” with the kitchen appliance of the new year – the Williams-Sonoma At-Home Raclette Maker, which “comes with all the equipment required for eight guests to broil individual portions of cheese.”