Any idea what you’ll be eating for breakfast next January? Or how you’ll be quenching your thirst next June? Didn’t think so. (TBH, we’re not even sure what we’re having for dinner tonight.) Well, the experts of Whole Foods Market’s Trends Council have a pretty good idea what you—and the rest of the world—will be munching on come 2024. Read on for the grocery chain’s ninth annual Top 10 Food Trends forecast, along with our favorite ways to taste the trends yourself.
10 Food Trends Everyone Will Be Buzzing About in 2024, According to Whole Foods
To a delicious new year
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Published Nov 1, 2023
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1. Put the “Plant” Back in “Plant-Based”
The days of ordering a veggie burger made of, um...not veggies are over. Mushrooms, walnuts, tempeh and legumes are leading the charge for vegetarian products packed with plant-based protein.
- Taste the Trend: Actual Veggies Super Greens Veggie Burger
2. Use the Whole Cacao
Cacao pulp is typically discarded and wasted. But thanks to a few revolutionary brands, we'll be seeing everything from cacao pulp jelly to cacao fruit powder (which is a sweet sugar alternative, BTW) on shelves next year.
- Taste the Trend: Blue Stripes Just Cacao Cacao Water
3. Buckle Up for Buckwheat
Buckwheat is not only naturally gluten-free, but it's also a prime crop to support soil health. Now, you'll see it in forms far beyond soba noodles, like crackers, milk alternatives and granola.
- Taste the Trend: Lil Bucks Clusterbucks in Chocolate Sea Salt
4. Fancy Faux Fish
Tinned fish stormed the food scene in 2022, so it's no surprise that plant-based fish followed suit. Think carrots in place of lox, trumpet mushrooms instead of scallops and even konjac, a root vegetable, taking over for raw fish in sushi and poke.
- Taste the Trend: Good Catch Plant-Based Crab Cakes
5. Clean & Conserve: Water Stewardship
Brands across the aisles are conserving H2O left and right with the help of regenerative agriculture. That includes restoring coastal ecosystems, coming up with water-saving products (like dry shampoo and laundry detergent sheets) and improving soil health.
- Taste the Trend: Lundberg Family Farms Regenerative Organic Certified Basmati Rice
6. Complex Heat
It's no secret that spicy (and swicy) foods have been steadily climbing the ranks since 2020. Nowadays, you can find plenty of snacks, condiments and even candies made with peppers you've never heard of, from scorpion to Hungarian Goathorn.
- Taste the Trend: 365 by Whole Foods Market Thai Curry Cashews
7. Noodle News
No hate to the 99-cent ramen that kept you afloat in college, but you can do so much better now. Brands are bringing instant noodles to a gourmet level with savory sauces and quality ingredients—without sacrificing convenience.
- Taste the Trend: Omsom Chili Sesame Saucy Noodles
8. Little Luxuries
We're eternally indebted to TikTok for bringing "little treat" culture to the forefront. Whether your luxury of choice is boba tea, colorful macarons or fruity kombucha, you can find plenty that'll hit the spot for less than $10.
- Taste the Trend: Petit Pot Strawberry Cheesecake
9. Women’s Health: from Taboo to Top of Mind
More and more products designed to support pregnancy, postpartum, periods, menopause and other life stages are hitting shelves, allowing customers to shed the taboos that perhaps once kept them from seeking help. Some brands even donate to women-focused charities with every purchase.
- Taste the Trend: MaryRuth’s 3-in-1 Daily Vaginal Support Probiotic
10. A Better Boost
Next year, better-for-you energy drinks, teas and coffees are coming for the sugar-soaked bevs you love. (Sorry.) Thanks to adaptogens and probiotics, you can get your caffeine fix without the crash in an endless array of forms.
- Taste the Trend: Four Sigmatic Think Organic Coffee with Lion’s Mane Mushroom
