Unilever Food Solutions Hosts Future Menus Chef Luncheon in New York, Capping Week of Field Research for 2025 Future Menus Report and Celebrating Trends Published in 2024 Report

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Oct 07, 2024, 08:00 ET

ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, N.J., Oct. 7, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Unilever Food Solutions hosted its inaugural Future Menus luncheon in New York City on October 3, 2024. The luncheon served as the capstone moment for months of trend research conducted by the Unilever Global Chef team, including more than three weeks of collaboration and research in the field. New York City served as this year's trend capital, where more than thirty-one chefs from Unilever's team global team convened to focus on the assessment and development for the 2025 Future Menus trend report, which will publish in March 2025.

Unilever Food Solutions Future Menus Logo

Chefs gather around the table at the Future Menus luncheon.

The Future Menus report, published annually each March, brings together insights from more than 1,600 chefs from 21 countries across the globe to identify the year's top menu trends predicted to influence the restaurant industry. Unilever's own Global Chef team spends weeks on the ground in key markets, speaking with chefs and operators and researching current influences, changes, and impacts on the industry. As a culmination of all this valuable data and research, the annual Future Menus report details how identified trends will come to life on menus and how operators can leverage them to best delight their diners.

At the luncheon event, select media guests were invited to join the Unilever Global Chef Team for a multi-course dining experience that brought to life the trends identified in the 2024 Future Menus Report, while celebrating the intensive work conducted by the team to research, hone, and develop the resources available in forthcoming 2025 report.

Future Menus 2024 identified the following eight food trends, and offered clear tips, recipes, and other resources for chefs and operators to bring them to life on their menus:

Modernized Comfort Food: updated spins on familiar favorites, taking classic comfort food recipes and updating them with creative ingredients and technique that reflect the story of the chef who made them
Low Waste Menus: reducing food waste while maximizing the potential of every ingredient in surprising and delightful ways
Irresistible Vegetables: more than a supporting act, vegetables are poised to take center stage in delicious and creative forms that keep diners coming back for more
Local Abundance: drawing inspiration from the backyard, using the ingredients that tell a story of place
The New Sharing: celebrating the playful, unique, and multi-sensory ways food can facilitate connection with the planet and people
Flavor Shock: food that goes beyond surprise and delight to challenge diners with sensorial dishes that alight the senses
Plant-powered protein: flavor meets performance, unlocking the potential of nature's bounty in new and exciting ways
Feel-good food: diving deeper into the world of nutrition to explore the many exciting and good-for-you qualities of various superfoods and ingredients

Hosted at Lee's on Canal Street, the luncheon featured more than nine creative and thoughtfully designed dishes that interpreted elements of the 2024 featured trends. Guests enjoyed a menu of vegetable-forward dishes like Cauliflower Steaks with Salsa Verde, while indulging in riffs on Modern Comfort Food with classics like Apple Tarte Tatin. Ingredients for each dish emphasized locally sourced ingredients, and the menu design allowed for ingredient waste to be repurposed in inspiring and flavorful ways.

Through the collaboration and research of their far-reaching team and network, Unilever's Future Menus aims to cement the annual report as a valuable resource for chefs and operators hoping to better understand their diners, and to better equip foodservice professionals to innovate in surprising and ultimately unmissable ways. To view the 2024 report and to sign up for the release of the 2025 Future Menus report, please visit https://www.unileverfoodsolutions.us/future-menus-2024/download-report.html

About Unilever Food Solutions
While Unilever is known for their iconic brands such as Hellmann's, Knorr and Maille, their professional foodservice unit focuses on providing chefs and operators with cutting-edge solutions and guidance to support menu planning, pricing and culinary training. Unilever Food Solutions is a business built by chefs for chefs, with a global team of more than 250 experienced chefs located in 70 countries. Find out more at ufs.com.

Media Contact: Devinne Zadravec, The James Collective
Email: [email protected]

SOURCE Unilever Food Solutions