The year 2024 is all about exploration.

I have been introduced to more extraordinary foods this year than ever before, and I bet there are a lot of consumers out there who can say the same. While there may be many factors driving the high level of experimentation we see in today’s culinary space, one key figure in the equation is the impact of social media.

Social media has expanded the awareness of unique fruit and vegetable varieties, opening shoppers up to items that are highly seasonal or may traditionally only be available in other markets. Crazes have been born from simple videos on Instagram, TikTok, or YouTube, sparking rising demand for specialty categories like dragon fruit—which recently gained steam on these platforms for its coveted gut health benefits.

Experimentation plays into a variety of trends originally predicted for 2024, as FoodMix Marketing Communications forecasted that “consumers will seek out interesting and exotic food and beverage options” this year*.

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Instacart also weighed in on this evolution in the produce department, reporting that “a variety boost in produce choices” will be calling to consumers throughout 2024, with a notable shift in which shoppers are not only eating more produce but are “actively embracing a diverse and colorful array of fruits and vegetables.”

In fact, Instacart’s 2024 Consumer Trend Forecast** uncovered cart share growth across an assortment of unexpected produce players, including items like red dragon fruit, yellow passionfruit, purple broccoli, mangosteen, purple asparagus, Mayan melons, and more.

With some of these categories seeing over 200 percent growth from 2022 to 2023, both buyers and suppliers have a lucrative opportunity to redirect some focus to their more exotic or lesser-known offerings. Take Giumarra Companies, for example, whose Do You Fuyu persimmon brand has seen impressive success since the company revitalized the merchandising approach in collaboration with its retail partners, placing the fruit front and center in contrast to its traditional home in the produce department.

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If there was ever a time to diversify your produce offerings and captivate consumers with underrated varieties, it’s now! Sixty-one percent of the consumers who want to improve their diet in 2024 plan to do so through increased fresh produce intake**. How can we fuel that already increasing momentum with a wider or more adventurous product assortment?

If consumers are embarking on a journey of produce exploration, it is only right that we be their guide.

Source: www.thesnack.net