Restaurant flavors impact retail product trends at the Summer Fancy Food Show

Schnitzel and spätzle products, miso-flavored condiments and Belgian waffle-inspired goods are just some of the new foods that may soon be flying off retailers' shelves, according to trendologist predictions at the Summer Fancy Food Show, taking place July 10-12 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C.

Kara Nielsen, trendologist for the San Francisco-based Center for Culinary Development and David Sprinkle, director of research for Rockville, Md.-based market research firm Packaged Facts, presented three emerging food trends ripe for translation in the retail space during an education session Sunday morning.

"We're looking at what's happening in the marketplace," Sprinkle said. "A lot of the trends that are coming from the food world are very populace[-driven]. They're coming literally from the street, from food trucks, bars, cafes and beer gardens."

Using a five-stage trend map, the CCD determines when a trend will be adopted by the general public.

• In stage one the flavor appears in "foodie" dining establishments, Nielsen explained.
• Gourmet media and blogs begin covering the trend in stage two. In this stage it may even appear in natural and specialty stores.
• By stage three, it's embraced by food TV programs and conventional chains such as Applebee's or The Cheesecake Factory.
• Women's magazines and recipe websites adopt the food in stage four.
• It isn't until stage five that the trend appears in conventional retail stores at which time it's accepted as "mainstream."

Aioli and açaí are two recent foods to move into stage five. Though both appeared in natural and specialty stores several years ago, it wasn't until this year that the items showed up in conventional stores and, in the case of açaí, on a Wendy's fast food menu. It can take 10 to 15 years for a trend to move through all five stages, Nielsen said.