The Global Culinary Innovators Association and International Food and Beverage Technology Association announced their respective formations at the industry’s largest trade show last month.

Two new organizations serving the foodservice industry launched at the National Restaurant Association’s 2014 Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Show in Chicago in May. Both aim to impact and benefit from the sharing of best practices and information with counterparts and colleagues around the world.

Following is a brief description of each new organization:

Global Culinary Innovators Association (GCIA)
The new association benefits corporate chefs and menu innovators from leading multiunit foodservice operations. Members will include company founders, leading culinarians and marketing experts who are spearheading the menu innovation for their companies within multiple industry segments.

Research and trend predictions point in the same direction: Use more fresh mango on menus.

National Mango Board consumer research shows that consumption of mango continues to grow. The trend toward healthy dining, as well as increased interest in tropical and global flavors, creates buzz about fresh mango.

Most recently, a quantitative study by research firm Datassential confirms use of fruit overall on menus has increased since 2008, with mango the sixth-fastest-growing fruit, climbing to the ninth-most-commonly menued fruit in 2013.

Datassential research reveals that mangos are menued in all restaurant segments and usage is growing across regions, dayparts and cuisine types.

The chancellor of Johnson & Wales University tells chefs to follow their passion to achieve success while also becoming agents of change in their industry and careers.

By Mary Petersen

Dr. John J. Bowen, chancellor of Johnson & Wales University, was the American Culinary Federation Northeast Regional Conference keynoter at the opening general session in Providence, R.I., April 12, 2014.

He began by recognizing one of his mentors, Certified Master Chef Fritz Sonnenschmidt from The Culinary Institute of America. The lesson he learned from Sonnenschmidt, Bowen said, was to find your passion and follow it, and you will be successful. 

Bowen has been with Johnson & Wales University for more than three decades. Throughout his career, his leadership has directed JWU’s success and cemented its commitment to preparing students for professional success through academics and professional skills, community-leadership opportunities and its unique career-education model. As chancellor, Bowen oversees more than 17,000 students and approximately 2,000 employees at four domestic campuses.

Though not new to the market by any stretch, flatbreads, particularly those that say “global,” are enjoying a revolution. A pastry chef-instructor at Kendall College in Chicago reports on the trend, making the case for need-to-know among culinary-arts and pastry/baking students as they embark on their careers.

By Heidi Hedeker, CMB, MA/MSW

In the realm of baked goods, flatbreads don’t have a standard definition. Wheat flour is often the main ingredient, and just as often not. Flatbreads are leavened or unleavened. No nation on earth can claim to be the origin of flatbread (although the region that includes modern-day Iraq can take some credit), and no single flavor, color or texture is shared by all flatbreads. Some breads considered flatbreads aren’t even particularly flat. Or thin.

When you think of the lifestyle trends of the last several years, today we are basically nomads. More of the foods we eat are to go, and what is more nomadic than a flatbread? The origins of most of today’s flatbreads are in early agrarian society. Foods had to be simple enough for travel. That fits with our lifestyle today, because everything we do is portable.

Technomic research reveals significant increased blueberry use across categories, suggests Gen-Y marketing opportunities.

As consumer interest in healthy dining options continues to rise, so does the presence of fruit on U.S. menus, and new research from trend-tracker Technomic shows blueberries—a fruit renowned for its nutritional profile—gaining major traction among the top 500 chain restaurants.

Overall blueberry mentions on American menus have increased 97% since 2007—a stronger growth rate than that of strawberries, raspberries or blackberries—with fresh blueberry mentions up more than 176% in the same time period.

Contributing to this growth is a combination of factors including changing consumer preferences and an evolution in the way foodservice professionals view blueberries. The U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council (USHBC) works to influence both.