A double cheeseburger with Parmesan crusted fries and a dulce de leche milkshake. Excuse me while I daydream about this for a minute.

In all reality, sure, that sounds amazing, but most of us aren’t indulging in a meal like this everyday. No matter how much we’d like to. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. Many of us try to watch what we eat. We choose foods and beverages that make our minds and bodies feel good.

There is an overload of information available to tell you which diet you should choose or the latest juice cleanse, promising to trim your waistline. While many of these options work for some, not everyone is on board with going ‘all-in’ on the latest diets. Many individuals and families now take a more holistic approach. Families are more conscientious about why they are choosing the foods and beverages they consume. There is a genuine interest to understand the function of many of the ingredients found in these products.

What drives someone to select one product over another? Debating between ordering a salad or something deep fried can be a daily struggle. However these small choices that people make each day add up over the course of the day, week, month and year. Have you ever walked into a restaurant, perused the menu and landed on something that sounds good only – to glance to the bottom of the description to see (1,267 calories) listed? I know I have, and it made me reconsider my selection. This simple change to menus perfectly illustrates the progression of a more mindful culture.

While many of these changes may not seem life changing, this thinking is shifting the market. Companies are producing products with lower sugar, higher protein, ancient grains, and natural and functional ingredients because consumers demand it.

This is not to say many of the indulgent foods that bring us joy should be off limits. There is still very much a need, and a place, to allow ourselves to consume the things that bring us happiness. For me, a killer taco paired with the perfect margarita will never be permanently removed from my diet, it just can’t be a daily occurrence. Its all about finding the right balance that works for you.

This trend focuses on one of our seven FlavourVision trends.

Elaine Schomaker

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