From foie gras and porchetta to pomegranate yogurt and valerian soft drinks the 35th Winter Fancy Food Show had it all. Abundant displays of specialty foods were presented at Moscone Center in San Francisco on Jan. 17 -19 at the largest and most encompassing National Association for the Specialty Food Trade (NASFT) event on the West Coast. 80,000 specialty foods and beverages from more than 32 countries packed booths and counters in both North and South Moscone Halls, vying for the buyers’ and distributors’ attention.
A carefully selected panel of food experts at the show determined five newest trends for 2010: 1. Good-for-you foods, 2. Coconut, 3. Gluten-free, 4. Exotic citrus, and 5. Nostalgic foods. Among other identified trends were fermented and smoked foods, and snacks with a twist, such as spicy popcorn and baked potato chips with jalapeno. Before the show, hundreds of retailers, restaurateurs, journalists, producers, farmers and other industry workers played the online Food Trend Challenge game. The grand prize – a free trip to the 56th Summer Fancy Food Show in New York City on June 27-29 went to Eddi Marie Julian of Beckles Candies and Gifts from Modesto.
This reporter’s amazing finds and faves included the top 5: 1. Ex-Chill soft drink made with chamomile, valerian, lemon balm, and vitamins (exdrinks.com). 2. Hand-crafted natural fruit HOTLIPS soda (hotlipssoda.com); 3. Greek Gods Yogurt (greekgodsyogurt.com), 4. Porchetta Primata (porchettaprimata.com), and 5. Hudson Valley Foie Gras (hudsonvalleyfoiegras.com). The NASFT is a not-for-profit trade association established in 1952 to foster trade, commerce and interest in the specialty food industry. Today there are more than 2,900members of NASFT in the U.S. and abroad. More information at specialtyfood.com.
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