Food and drink trends 2025

In 2025, our research has pointed to five key food and drink trends that will shape out of home menus in the UK:

• Flavours less travelled: with Southern States, Greek and Turkish, Argentinian, Portuguese and Swiss cuisines becoming popular
• Closer to home: with the appeal of Scottish, Welsh and Irish cuisines on the rise
• Proactive Practices: which captures the importance to consumers of venues and brands that are taking positive action and doing something practical for the environment or to support their community
• Friendly Fibre: which is about gut health and the important role that fibre can play
• Buns & Bowls: which focuses on the growing appeal of premium sandwiches and on the go dishes
• Chocolicious: which is all about the explosion in innovation we are seeing in the hot beverages market, particularly when it comes to flavoured hot chocolates, frozen hot chocolates, and unique mochas.

Some of the key dishes that feature in the food trends we have highlighted this year include:

Closer to home: Scottish salmon, Aberdeen Angus steak, Welsh lamb and dishes like Welsh rarebit, Welsh cakes, potato farls, colcannon, stovies and Lorne sausage.

Southern States cuisine: Cajun, Creole and Soul food dishes and ingredients like blackened fish or chicken, Jambalaya, Gumbo, corn bread.

Argentinian cuisine: Argentinian steak, dulce de leche, empanadas and chimichurri

Turkish cuisine: Pide, kofta kebabs, shakshuka and mezze dishes

Greek cuisine: Greek salad (Horiatiki), souvlaki (grilled meat on skewers), tzaziki, moussaka

Portuguese cuisine: Piri piri chicken, pastéis de nata, Portuguese mixed fish stew

Swiss cuisine: Chocolate and cheese fondue, potato rosti, polenta, Swiss cheeses

Proactive Practices: Would-be wasted ingredients, plant-based dishes and ingredients, ingredients sourced from suppliers that practice regenerative agricultural practices, sustainable fish and seafood choices.

Friendly fibre: beans and pulses, nuts and seeds e.g. chia seeds, flax seeds, wholegrains like oats and buckwheat.

Chocolicious is a key drinks trend in 2025, reflecting the explosion in innovation across the hot (and cold) drinks category, for example premium hot chocolates, mochas, frozen hot chocolates etc.

Some of the hot drinks that will be trending in 2025 include flavoured hot chocolates, frozen hot chocolates, white hot chocolates, chocolate and orange drinks, premium milkshakes and mochas.

Consumers are still looking for value for money and quality when they eat out, as well as authenticity and experiences that give them a sense of adventure. However, tradition, comfort and shared experiences are becoming increasingly important motivators of both dish and venue choice when eating out.

Dishes that reflect the importance of sustainability to consumers, for example plant-based dishes, dishes made with would-be wasted ingredients, or sourced locally will continue to be important. Consumers are also looking for dishes that contain ingredients associated with gut health e.g. beans and pulses, nuts and seeds. From a cuisine perspective, we expect Cajun, Creole, soul food dishes, fondues, sauces like Piri Piri or chimichurri, kofte kebabs, pide pizzas, Greek salads, shakshukka, souvlaki, rosti, rarebit, colcannon, empanades and desserts that incorporate dulche de leche to trend. These are just some examples of dishes that are will be in the limelight in 2025.

While consumer purse strings are still tight, operators will need to demonstrate great value, and quality to attract spend and maintain a viable margin. Whilst the recession is officially over, many costs remain high, particularly labour costs. It will take imagination and flair to attract traffic, drive repeat purchase and encourage consumers to part with their cash.

Like the food industry, labour costs, low consumer confidence and spending power are the main challenges. In fact, price is the key factor half of consumers consider when choosing a drink brand, followed by quality and availability of their favourite brands***** However, a growing number of consumers are rejecting alcohol – non-drinkers are now at 14.8% of the population**. They are looking for innovation in hot and cold beverages and the no-lo category when they are drinking out of home. This doesn’t have to be a challenge if the right range is put in place to attract and retain those non-drinkers.