Pinoy food trends to watch out for in 2014

MANILA, Philippines - Pinoys paying attention to the food scene and enthusiastic about the food industry will be interested to know that yesterday’s food trends are going to shape tomorrow’s food market landscape.

Unilever Food Solutions Executive Chef Joanne Limoanco-Gendrano shared her data and observations in a presentation last Wednesday, in a media event launched to refresh the UFS presence as a resource for chefs, restaurateurs, and other commercial kitchen players. The press was invited to take part in a cooking and plating activity at the Unilever demo kitchen, using some of the newly launched products and supervised by the UFS chefs themselves.

Chef Joanne enumerated several important points that made last year’s food trend boom possible—and ongoing.

Trend shapers

There are obvious ones, like technology, where 96.2 percent of Filipinos are social media users and the increasing access to smartphones and tablets are huge drivers for the spreading of trends.

Fiscal factors, like our GDP growth, are at a place that favours our ability to support these trends. Societal consumerism is rife and rampant, with young people’s desires focused on an ability to buy. Household out-of-home consumption has jumped to 5.3 percent, meaning there are more people eating out of home anyway. The sheer volume of hotel and restaurant expansion in the country is significant.

“We’ve seen not just five-star hotels standing, but budget hotels coming up as well,” Chef Joanne says. “We’ve seen a lot of hotels expanding in the country.”

Health is also a huge influence. “There’s also growing awareness for health and nutrition, lots of sharing of links and information that have to do with what is actually good for you,’ Chef Joanne says, emphasising the way awareness of health stokes our interest in what we eat, supplementary to our exercise. “People now are more willing to pay for healthy ingredients…  and we also want to reward our bodies with better food.”

The bid for “better food” also has to do with the growing interest in an alternative medication lifestyle, focusing on prevention. “Before, we were very reactive,” says Chef Joanne, referring to the way our medicine was more often about curing an already-acquired disease. “But now you can see the articles in the newspaper talking about how to prevent these diseases.”

And like all things, the food industry is not free of politics.

“What’s worrying in the Philippines is that there’s not only a medical brain drain going on,” says Chef Joanne. “We’re also losing a lot of key people in the hospitality industry. Other countries are really paying like five times more than what we are here in the Philippines.”

Still, there are also avenues for positive and conscientious change. “Some politicians have been talking about inclusive growth,” Chef Joanne explains, “where we want to make sure the farmers and the communities are making as much as the last person selling the food item.”

Natural calamities, too, have forced consumers to be more eco-conscious, and has seen results in government, such as the “no plastic” commitment.

2014’s Food Trends

Hybrid food

Last year the Philippines saw a frenzy of food trends, from the infamous Cronut spree to the sprouting of all things ramen. Chef Joanne points out that the Cronut craze is really part of a larger underlying trend known as ‘Hybrid Food’.

“This is about combining food concepts,” says Chef Joanne, “combining familiar things to create a different experience.” Cronuts have stuck around, though the fad has mostly died down abroad. A cursory look at the Food Channel mirrors our taste for more sweet-and-savoury hybrids, particularly with bacon. And while the Ramen burger did not quite enjoy the same glory as the Cronut, it was successful enough to confirm that there is indeed a space for hybrid food trends in the Philippines.

“We’ll probably see more traditional Filipino food presented on western platforms,’ says Chef Joanne. The Filipino fried chicken and ube waffle dish of the Maharlika restaurant in New York is a pretty good example,” she adds.

Big and bold

Places focusing on dishes embodied by hefty portions and value prices know success--establishments like RUB Ribs & BBQ, for example. Big gourmet burger places are also wildly popular, with burger concepts opening up in several places.

“We also have higher tolerance for hot and spicy,” says Chef Joanne, something that happened recently to Filipinos. We are more tolerant of stronger flavours and find ourselves more willing to go for Korean food, for example.

We are likely, Chef Joanne says, to see more of what Food Watch calls ‘Dude Food’—dishes we would stereotypically call “food for guys” because of the portion size and flavour. “Concepts and flavours are expanding from the normal American fare,” Chef Joanne adds, noting that we have pick up a taste for Latin American flavours like Argentinian or Brazilian. We also do not shy away from Moroccan flavours, let alone flavours from our Asian neighbours.

Home belly

“This has been going on for the past two or three years, people have been looking for an emotional connection to food,” says Chef Joanne.

She observes that with the traffic situation worsening and the number of people working late increasing, you also get an increased number of people getting home late and wanting home-cooked meals. People are looking for a nostalgia kick and an emotional connection.

The popularity of ramen, though not quite Filipino, does embody the idea well—warm and comfortable and likely to induce you happiness and sleepiness after consumption. Many food establishments offer baby short ribs on the premise—rather than expensive steak, you have slow-cooked and very tender meat.

The focus on homey comfort affects the way restaurants lay out their dishes and engineer their ambience. “Home-style presentations now are casual, rustic, usually in sharing portions,” Chef Joanne says. “They use wood, tin, earthy materials.”

They also might do takes on many foods associated with childhood, from popcorn to ice cream to s’mores.

New alternatives

“In the past years we have seen a lot of gastro-pubs,” Chef Joanne says, joking that every other restaurant has the word “pig” in their name, possibly after the Spotted Pig restaurant in New York. Five-star hotels and restaurants are also stripping down their décor and offering more affordable food items. ‘Moving forward we’ll see high level dining in a casual setting at a fair price point.’ More restaurant buffets with hotel standards are likely, such as the Bay Leaf Hotel in Intramuros, which offers a good buffet with a great view of the old city.

More chef accessibility is also on the rise, which people more interested in chefs as personalities or celebrities, and wanting to experience their food. It has had interesting repercussions for even the most high-end chefs, who open more accessible dining establishments. Places like Brasserie Cicou and Sensei have been revamped and revived, not resembling anything stuffy despite being high quality dining.

Appetite for health

Past years have seen fad diets, but recent times are showing a serious bid for proper attention to things like what portion of your plate is in vegetables.
Chef Joanne says there is going to be a greater focus on ‘super foods’ this year, with many people keen for the benefits to come out of their diets.

“I think the most basic example would be malunggay,” says Chef Joanne, citing how its recent recognition as a super-food has even led to the demand that it be incorporated into schools’ cafeteria food.

Healthier fine dining, as well as more affordable healthy food in general should be on the rise this year, and more understanding and awareness of food allergies is likely. Diets are also now more likely to be medically supervised, not just celebrity-inspired.

Food with conscience

Politicians are not the only ones interested in the socio-economic repercussions of the food we eat.

“You see a lot of food scandals in farming production, which has raised our awareness for food safety. You also have NGOs lobbying for inclusive growth and sustainable supply,” Chef Joanne explains. “Because of that, we have seen communities build their own farms.”

The community farms in turn attempt to make sure that they offer responsible and sustainable methods of production.

Words like “organic” “farm-raised” “free range” have gathered in grocery shelves, and food companies have had to cater to the demand for these labels.

Chef Joanne predicts that there will be a push for greater food transparency. Food companies are expected to take steps to reduce their carbon footprint. Consumers are becoming more conscious carnivores, and concern for buying meat that has been treated humanely and chemical-free is only growing. And people are becoming for conscious about food wastage, a rising concern even before the Pope made his stern Christmas message.

Food adventures

“Before, we’d go to a place for a thing to see,” Chef Joanne says. “Now we go to a place for a thing to eat.” Pinoys have been enjoying and will continue to enjoy making food trips, small and large. And internationals have been eyeing the Philippines as a food destination as well, as evidenced by the features on local cuisine by foreign media.

“We will see more synergy with local government and chefs and tourism for sure,” Chef Joanne says. Local government has certainly been getting involved with the private sector for this reason. More regional and farm brands are likely to be available in our supermarkets, thanks to these efforts. Food presentation is also evolving to cater to the growth, and to make meals more interactive.

C-stores

An unexpected development in the food industry is the way convenience stores have adapted to carrying meals. “Convenience stores are offering very nice rice meals, salads, sandwiches,” says Chef Joanne. “Convenience store consumers have stated that quality and taste of the food are important factors when they walk into a c-store.”

Convenience stores have a growing presence that sets them apart, enjoying many locations that will not drag their consumers through worsening traffic, an advantage that gives them quite a share.

“What’s alarming for a fast food chain is that nowadays it’s more convenient to go to a convenient store to eat,” Chef Joanne explains, adding that most office buildings will have some kind of convenience store already there. Convenience stores can be expected to continue providing decent quality food.