Food and drink trends 2025

Here are 12 new themes to look out for (as featured in our quarterly Infuse magazine) to get your taste buds tingling. For more professional insights, recipes and ideas - read the full magazine online here.  

Plant-based food technology is developing all the time, so don’t expect the demand for meatless menus to go anywhere in 2025. However, vegan and vegetarian diners will be on the lookout for great-tasting, high-protein and microbiome-boosting dishes based on more natural proteins, such as mushrooms like Lion’s Mane, seaweed or algae. 

Protein-rich, full of omega-3s and delicious – seafood from across the globe offers excitement and health benefits. Japanese sushi, Hawaiian poke and Mexican ceviche are firm favourites, but why not up the ante with dishes from East Asia, including Thai Pla Muek Yang (grilled squid with lime, garlic and crushed peanuts) or crispy, spicy Typhoon Shelter Shrimp from Hong Kong?

With a growing appetite for adventurous new flavours – and a major emphasis on authenticity – now’s the time to embrace spices such as North African harissa and Korean gochujang and weave them into more well-known dishes, such as Korean BBQ tacos, kung pao chicken wings or paneer masala quesadilla.

While world flavours are inspiring creative combinations in the kitchen, at the same time, diners have a desire for sustainability and locally-sourced ingredients now more than ever. Proudly highlighting the British wild garlic in your pesto, your UK-coastal foraged samphire, or the locally-reared beef in your burgers will tempt in and retain customers who are passionate about local, fresh produce.  

Diners with allergies, intolerances and special diets increasingly expect a variety of thoughtful menu options that are tailored to their needs. Rather than playing it safe, try different grains to liven things up – such as buckwheat flour in cakes and biscuits, gram flour as a base for sauces and stews, or coconut flour for pancakes.  



While the burrata craze has not completely subsided, other cheeses are waiting in the wings for their moment. Bocconcini are small, soft, round and creamy mozzarella spheres, ideally paired with fresh heritage tomatoes, olive oil and salt. In the plant-based cheese world, rubbery coconut-based counterfeits are out, and great tasting cultured dairy-free cheeses are in. 



In the world of coffee, plant-based milk alternatives are only growing. Almond and oat milk are still leading the way, but there is a rising desire for cashew, hazelnut and rice milk. Animal-free milk, made through precision fermentation, is another gamechanger on the horizon. 



Gen-Z is the generation driving the ever-expanding alcohol-free market (61% planned to cut back on alcohol in 2024*), but despite this, their taste for tequila remains. Stock up on non-alcoholic tequila and put spicy margs back on the menu!