2025 food trends include beef tallow, mustard, flavored olive oil

Condiments are getting an upgrade. Chefs are taking their signature sauces and dips outside the kitchen. And “swicy” still reigns.

Those food trends were all on display at the Specialty Food Association’s Summer Fancy Food Show, which returned to the Javits Center in New York this week.

From Sunday to Tuesday, more than 2,000 exhibitors showed off a range of specialty food and drinks, offering attendees a glimpse at the products headed for grocery aisles and restaurants in the near future.

“It’s always been the show where people go to see the trends,” said Christine Couvelier, a culinary trend spotter and founder of the Culinary Concierge.

Couvelier, a seasoned show attendee, guided CNBC through three floors of booths, highlighting the trends — and winners — on her radar.

Past show trends that are now making their way to mainstream consumers’ palettes include new uses for vinegar, oil-based hot sauce and lavender as a flavor. But not all trends have that kind of staying power.

“I think I’ve seen six booths that have Dubai chocolate. We won’t see Dubai chocolate next year,” Couvelier said, referring to the chocolate bars filled with kadayif and pistachio that have taken over TikTok, grocery stores and even Shake Shacks nationwide.

The trade show has also traditionally been a springboard for new brands seeking to expand their reach. Honest Tea, Ben & Jerry’s and Tate’s Bake Shop are among the companies that attended the show in their early days on their way to becoming well-known consumer brands.

Here are some highlights from this year’s Summer Fancy Food Show:

Home cooks in the U.S. have been using olive oil for several decades. In recent years, olive oil has branched out, with more focus on the flavor that it offers, whether it’s drizzled on top of ice cream or used in cakes.

But the cooking staple is now getting an upgrade, thanks to infusions of trendy flavors. For example, Castillo de Canena, a family-owned Spanish company, has been making olive oil for centuries, but its booth highlighted two newer additions to its line: harissa olive oil and olive oil finished in sherry casks.

Olive oil isn’t the only pantry staple getting a makeover. The mustard category could be heading for a shakeup, thanks to a few new entrants hoping to enliven the tired condiment.

Pop Mustards pitches itself as the “caviar of mustards” because it uses whole mustard seeds, giving the condiment a new texture. The company also uses fermentation, smoking, brining and other methods to bring more flavor out of the seeds.

Caplansky’s Delicatessen showed off a more traditional take on the condiment at its booth, inspired by classic deli mustards. But its product lineup offers more flavor than the classic yellow mustard or dijon found in fridges today.