The Simple Joy of Sweet Flavors

Every day provides an opportunity to enjoy sweet flavors. Comforting, contagious, and delightfully universal, baked goods, ice creams, and other desserts provide a simple yet powerful joy that can ease our daily lives. Going out to lunch with friends? Try a fabulously fruity-and-floral drink. Enjoying a night on the town? Celebrate with a sumptuous chocolate cake. Wake up early on a Saturday morning? Make fluffy waffles drizzled with maple syrup. Sweet flavors provide boundless enjoyment for today’s consumers.

And who says sweet treats should only be savored on special occasions? By pulling them off that pedestal, you give consumers moments to delight in their favorite sweet foods whenever they like – an everyday enjoyment! With their satisfying flavors, pleasing textures, endless possibilities for customization, and the opportunity to share a smile with others, sweet treats provide joy, pure and simple. So, spread ‘the simple joy of sweet flavors!’ And encourage your customers to do the same

The talented chefs at Giraffe Foods are well-equipped to give you and your consumers a taste of the sweet life, providing sweet flavors, formulating expertise, and unparalleled production capabilities that will make your best bakery menu items even more delectable. Let’s explore the sweet flavor landscape – current favorites as well as upcoming trends, designing a road-map for how to spread the simple joy of sweet treats!

Get the Scoop on Ice Cream Trends 

With over 94% of U.S. adults saying they purchase frozen treats, these chilly desserts are virtually ubiquitous. (Mintel 2023) Help your consumers create more sweet memories with both classic and innovative frozen goodies.                               

Mix it up. The ice cream industry has seen a surge in flavor and format innovation. Add mix-ins or layers to spice up classic flavors!

Embrace the basics. Though variety is having a moment when it comes to ice cream flavors, don’t forget about the basics. When consumers want commonplace comfort, they’ll turn to you for tried-and-true classics like vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry.

Enhance flavor across the health spectrum. Consumers don’t expect their ice cream to be “healthy,” but they do want ice cream options that fit their personal diet needs: plant-based formulations, full-fat dairy products, environmentally friendly frozen treats, and more. Whatever type of ice cream you make, we can enhance it with our flavorful toppings, swirls, and syrups.

Celebrate plant-based products. Only 31% of adults who purchase frozen treats want non-dairy products to be “just as indulgent” as dairy-based varieties. (Mintel 2021) So instead of trying to achieve the creaminess of traditional ice cream without the cream, focus on other valued attributes like taste, sustainability, and nutrition. In addition, plant-based ice creams featuring bakery-related flavor components have risen considerably (Mintel 2023) Satisfy consumers’ appetite for decadence with cookie dough and cake-flavored plant-based ice creams.

Bring Baked Goods to Life with Consumer Insights 

Nothing says “home sweet home” like family, friends, and the aroma of fresh-baked goods. Pair your bakery items and baking mixes with value-add solutions for a fun experience, a hands-on feel, and even more delectable flavor. Match your chocolate cake with a packet of raspberry drizzle. Offer an icing sachet with your cupcake mix. Bring a little extra joy to already-delicious desserts.

Focus on ease of preparation. The prevalence of baking from scratch has faded in recent years, with more consumers favoring convenient, affordable, and quick baking mixes that produce delicious results. (Mintel 2023) Give home bakers a shortcut. Help them enjoy the simple joy of baking with less fuss!

Encourage everyday enjoyment. Why save cake for birthdays or ice cream for summer picnics? Brands have the power to make home bakers feel good about enjoying sweet treats as a part of their daily lives. Emphasize taste satisfaction, offer favorite flavors, and give consumers the power of choice with health-focused formulations.

Provide time savings. Time is money, as they say! Consumers are willing to pay a little more to save time and enjoy a fun, easy, hassle-free baking experience. The majority of home bakers (57%) agree they want baking to be “as quick as possible.” (Mintel 2023) Amplify these time savings with value-add solutions like icing packets, dip cups, and squeeze-on drizzles. Provide all-in-one baking mixes, limiting the ingredients a baker needs to add on their own. 

Invest in your in-store bakery. Today’s consumers value in-store bakery items as a middle-ground between bakeries and center-store goods. The outlook for in-store bakeries in the coming years is excellent, as it’s viewed more and more as a viable substitute for food-service. It’s also a staple amongst the growing work-from-home crowd. Bring restaurant-quality desserts and café-quality bakery goods to your grocery store!

Innovate to Develop Menu-Worthy Desserts 

Though desserts have declined on menus over the last few years, you can tempt consumers and sharpen their sweet tooth through innovative ideas. Elevate inventive ideas into top-tier realities. Everyday delights are born when we pool our insights and ingenuity to deliver the simple joy of sweetness.

Create pint-sized desserts. Smaller, portable desserts like donuts and cookies are thriving. In fact, donuts saw a 24% increase in menu incidences from 2019 to 2022. (Mintel 2022) Their modest portion size appeals to a wider consumer base, including health-conscious consumers.

Hone in on bold flavors. Exciting flavors and global fruits appeal to consumers seeking unique treats when away from home. Explore sweet treats that incorporate spicy, salty, and savory flavors, reaching out to consumers who typically avoid sweet desserts. For example, flavors like salt, popcorn, and brown butter are seeing menu growth. (Mintel 2022)

Add flavor to health-forward treats. One-third of US consumers are eating more healthfully when dining out post-pandemic, avoiding high-calorie and artificially sweetened desserts (Mintel). Enhance frozen treats across the health spectrum with flavorful drizzles and syrups. Give health-conscious consumers the ability to tailor their dessert experience with these customizable, hands-on, flavor-packed options.