BEVERAGE TRENDS
Non-alcoholic spirits and boba emerge as major beverage trends
8 beverage trends to watch NRN senior food and beverage editor Bret Thorn checked out the latest drinks on the show floor. Here’s what caught his eye.
understand how to incorporate his company’s products into their busi- ness. “Everything’s driven by the con- sumer. It’s very easy to see the op- portunity in this category because cannabis is being legalized and nor- malized. More people are trying it,” he said. “I think in 5 to 10 years it will be a 50/50 market share split be- tween THC-infused beverages and the alcohol category. It’s a genera- tional thing.” Boba There were also plenty of boba and boba adjacent (e.g. equipment suppliers) companies represented this year, and for good reason; the global bubble tea market is expect- ed to grow at a compound annu- al rate of nearly 9% through 2030, according to Grand View Research. While beverage-forward concepts like Starbucks, The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Dutch Bros, Caribou Cof- fee, The Human Bean, and McDon- ald’s CosMc’s have been more bull- ish about boba, even food-forward chains are jumping into the cate- gory, including Jack in the Box, Del Taco, and BJ’s Restaurant and Brew- house. This demand is, once again, driv- en by younger consumers who are more adventurous with their bev- erages and who want to have fun with them, a Bossen representative said. Bossen supplies boba tea and toppings and the representative de- scribed the show as “very busy.” A representative from Twang, which provides “inclusions” like boba pearls, also confirmed the growing interest for such creative additions to beverages, noting that such de- mand is driven entirely by younger consumers who are more exposed to global offerings and who also hap - pen to like the social media-friendly visuals of such additions. Speaking of younger consumers, a 2021 con- sumer survey from CLSA found that 94% of those between the ages of 20 and 29 had purchased boba tea in the past three months.
1.
5.
Sprouted coffee
THC beverages
2.
6.
Spirit-free cocktails
Ready-to-drink cocktails 7.
3.
Dirty soda
Energy drinks
4.
8.
Yuzu
Cold foam
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National Restaurant Association Show 2024
PHOTO CREDIT: JAYNA KROPAS (P.44), ADOBE STOCK & FREEPIK.COM
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