Visit Our Table at SCIFTs Suppliers Night Expo
Attend Our Gut Health Session at Natural Products Expo West
Connect with ABC at the Research Chefs Association Conference
Visit Our Booth at PMCA Production Conference
With 2025 in full swing, consumers are focused on foods that improve their health without compromising on flavor and innovation possibilities. Almonds have over 14 versatile forms that give you the confidence to tackle wellness, flavor and product innovation trends in 2025 and beyond. Keep reading to learn more about what trends and consumer needs to consider responding to in 2025.
Almonds, due to their well-rounded nutrient composition, will support precision wellness and top health needs like gut health and weight management. One ounce (28 g) of almonds provides 6g of protein, 4g of fiber, 13g of unsaturated fat, only 1g of saturated fat, and 15 essential nutrients, including 77mg magnesium (18.3% DV), 210mg potassium (4% DV), and 7.27mg vitamin E (50% DV).
Weight Management is the fastest growing claim on launches with almond protein (+73% CAGR2).4
With a subtle nutty flavor that can be amplified or subdued, almonds are a blank canvas for sweet and savory flavor innovation. Almonds’ fat content (13g of “good” unsaturated fats and only 1g of saturated fat per ounce) also contributes to perceptions of richer texture or mouthfeel and adds an indulgence factor.
Almonds have been the #1 nut in global new product innovations since 20066, and the food and beverage industry keeps finding fresh avenues for innovation. Consumer preferences for new products vary widely, with a strong preference for old/traditional flavors (64%) alongside a significant interest in the “wow” effect from crazy and indulgent creations (43%). Finding a way to merge these desires with new uses for familiar and trusted ingredients can help pave the way for inventive products.
Almonds are leading innovation in snacking. All the almond health benefits help meet consumer demands of health and indulgence.
Almond ingredients are a go-to partner for innovations to take plant-based snacks to the next level and offer the best of both indulgence and health, according to a new report from Innova Market Insights1. Almonds are an ideal ingredient that helps broaden dietary options in snack products through their wide variety of forms to help introduce new flavor experiences and offer many health benefits. According to the Innova report, consumers are seeking a balance between health and indulgence. Enter almonds, the number one ingredient choice for consumers as they make recipes tastier, healthier, more satisfying, and more decadent.
The world of AI is growing into all industries and sparking innovation in the world of food creativity. Here at the Almond Board of California (ABC), we allow AI—Almond Intelligence—to inform our understanding of food trends.
Using Tastewise, the end-to-end Generative AI platform for modern food & beverage brands, ABC is allowing this new technology to analyze and understand real-time consumption data. Tastewise analyzes billions of social media posts and photos, restaurant menus, recipes and more to help understand what foods are trending and why— going beyond present food fads and looking into the lasting evolution of consumers’ tastes with more time to prepare for future demands.
To give a little taste into how AI can spark more creativity in innovation, ABC worked with Tastewise and Chef Henry Hill (Hill’s Research Kitchen) to identify key snacking opportunities for almonds and develop inspirational recipe concepts that bring those ideas to life.
ea where almonds can contribute to a guilt-free experience. Consumers on social are interested in finding ways to upcycle ingredients like almond pulp at home, posing opportunities for the food industry to communicate zero waste approaches to food and agricultural byproducts.These almond trends we’ve detected through Tastewise have allowed food professionals like Chef Henry Hill to create new and innovative recipes! Check out below to see these trends come to life in recipes he created.
Younger consumers are increasingly interested in international snacks and new flavors, and Chef Henry found opportunities to use current manufacturing technology in a new way.
“I wanted to repurpose rolled wafer tube/straw manufacturing technology and look at how you could enrobe them similar to Japanese biscuit sticks — and create savory versions, cut them into smaller bites, use fillings and different types of crackers that can be labeled as baked and not fried,” he said.
Chef Henry married the world of Japanese and Mexican flavors by creating a Mangonada-flavored Almond Biscuit Stick, inspired by a popular thin biscuit stick snack from Japan that is often sweet and covered in chocolate for a grab-and-go delight. Mangonada poses opportunity as it’s in the early stage of its lifecycle in the U.S., according to Tastewise, and has seen +19% YOY social change (2023.) By filling the centers with chamoy, a sweet-spicy-tangy condiment that originated in Mexico, Chef Henry created a tasty snack that packs a punch. The recipe also reduces almond food waste by utilizing leftover almond pulp.
Finally, Chef Henry explored a new take on chili crisp, which Tastewise shows is a trending ingredient that has seen a +60% YOY social change (2023.)
“I chose chili crisp as an inspiration because it has really been blowing up as a platform, but there is much more room for differentiation among the products being launched,” said Chef Henry. “Miso is in this concept because it seemed to complement the umami of the almond butter and tie through to the chili crisp idea.”
In this spicy condiment, Chef Henry highlights the various textures of almonds in this Almond Butter Chili Crisp. Originally from China, chili crisp is growing in popularity for its versatility in flavor and texture to heighten the experience of any meal. Chef Henry captures the chili crunch taste by utilizing toasted almonds and dehydrated almond skins but adds an element of smoothness by mixing in almond butter. The use of dehydrated almond skins is another way to implement zero waste in a recipe, as almond skins can be leftover after the blanching process.
Pictured: Inspirational AI-generated concept suggestions related to almond and chili crisp trends from Tastewise’s Content Agency, a generative AI platform built on robust, real-time food and beverage data (2023.)
As consumers look for more specific health benefits, “energy” is a top consumer functional health need for gummies.
Pictured: Functional Health Consumer Demands for Gummies, Oct. 2022-Oct. 2023 via Tastewise.
Conversations about gummies and energy have increased by 37% YOY, according to Tastewise (2023.) While berry-related flavors like black raspberry, strawberry, cherry and others are frequently used, Chef Henry notes that the gummy format is a great way for entrepreneurs to introduce functional benefits and new flavors.
“Gummies still seem to be a favorable delivery platform for functional ingredients— they have a lower barrier of entry compared to other delivery platforms (like beverages), so they’re a great way to test an idea and validate it on a functional consumer,” said Chef Henry.
The Almond Milk & Orange Blossom Honey Energy Gummies he created may be small, but they offer big opportunities for product developers to experiment with food for fitness and new flavors. Chef Henry created a chewy, flavorful gummy that combines the flavors of almond milk, honey and orange with guayasa tea extract (which contains caffeine) to offer a functional and delicious energy bite.
Pictured: Inspirational AI-generated concept suggestions related to almond, honey and gummy trends from Tastewise’s Content Agency, a generative AI platform built on robust, real-time food and beverage data (2023.)
In the ever-evolving world of food trends, the future of almonds is sure to grow with consumer tastes. Follow ABC’s LinkedIn page for Food Professionals to stay up to date on the latest trend research.