Like all sectors of commerce, the food industry relies on innovations to stay relevant and profitable. It’s a competitive sector, and everyone involved aims to introduce something new to the food business.

While producers, restaurants, and others battle, the average consumer benefits. New technologies are revolutionizing how we eat.

Not all of these entries will suit every diner, but each has changed how we eat or is aiming to convert the doubters.

1. Plant-Based Meals

Intensive animal farming is a significant factor in climate change. Meat eaters will always have choices, but the food industry needs to address this concern.

Plant-based diets offer a solution, and focusing on vegetables as meat alternatives is a good starting point. The improvement in the taste and texture of meat substitute products has been the most significant change for vegetarians and vegans in recent years.

2. Animal-Free Eggs

Avian flu led to a global egg shortage in 2022-23, which helped drive interest in this animal-free product. Eggs can be produced in a lab, using proteins and yeasts to replicate the real thing.

The Every Company produces egg whites this way, which could be great news for vegans. Yes, you can spend ages whisking chickpea water as an egg white substitute, but this product provides a faster, animal-friendly solution.

3. Irregular Produce

Along with climate change, food waste is another massive challenge for the industry. One way in which growers and suppliers can tackle this issue is to sell products that don’t usually make it to the store’s shelves.

Irregularly shaped and undersized fruits and vegetables are a perfect example. More households are buying these products, which may have been thrown away in the past.

4. Heinz Sauce Mixer

Resembling a regular coffee maker, the Heinz Remix Sauce Machine can blend about 200 different sauce combinations. When primed with base elements such as ketchup and barbecue sauce, the mixer also gathers data on customer preferences to produce more delicious varieties.

The sauce machine is already set for commercial use and should be available in theaters and certain restaurants throughout 2024.

5. 3D Food Printing

We haven’t made this up: 3D food printing has arrived. The technique not only creates shapes but also adds flavor and texture. Currently, the process is limited and restricted to base elements such as sauces, purees, and dough.

It will be some time before we see 3D food printers in the average U.S. home, but we can be sure that the science will continue to improve, along with an ever wider range of products.

6. Sous Vide Cooking

If you’ve ever watched cooking competitions on TV, you’ve probably seen a sous vide in action. This cooking method involves sealing protein in a vacuum bag and heating it in a water bath.

The temperature remains constant throughout the process, and the protein turns out moist and perfectly cooked. Sous vide appliances used to be exclusive to professional kitchens, but more affordable products are being produced and are more widely available for home use.

7. Recipe Kits

Families who want healthier meals but are short on time may consider a recipe kit subscription. While the cost may increase their food budget, the boxes contain fresh ingredients with easy-to-follow recipes and are ideal for those with limited time.

Recipe kits also help reduce food waste by supplying only the exact amount of ingredients needed to produce the meal.

8. Food Delivery

Delivery services have been around for some time, but the scope of their coverage has increased. Suppliers now head into rural areas, while even the smallest orders are picked up and brought to your door.

Delivery of a single item potentially creates issues with food miles, but households love the convenience of the service.

9. A Crisp Microwaveable Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Many individual products made the list of Time Magazine’s best food innovations of 2023. A grilled cheese sandwich that could be popped in the microwave was on that list.

Kraft Heinz designs this sandwich under its Lunchables range, and it promises that the sandwich will stay crisp. If it delivers on that promise, it could be the ultimate convenience food.

10. Diagnosing Food Allergies

Food intolerance of any kind is a miserable condition if undiagnosed. Unsuitable products can cause serious health problems and affect our quality of life.

More straightforward diagnoses of allergies and intolerance have made life easier for sufferers. Knowing which foods to cut out is essential, and improved testing methods are among the best innovations within the industry.

11. Air Fryers

Like sous vide appliances, air fryers have been around for some time but are becoming more widely used in the average household. The new batch of machines is easier to use and delivers delicious results.

The benefits of using an air fryer include reduced cooking time, which leads to lower utility bills. This is a significant advantage for households on a tight budget.

12. The Chef Doodler

We’d all like to emulate top chefs by being more creative in the kitchen, and the Chef Doodler offers one solution. It’s essentially a sugar pen, allowing even the clumsiest cooks to produce beautiful designs on cakes and pastries.

The Doodler resembles a glue gun. It uses real sugar to create colorful candy designs. It can also be primed with isomalt, a sugar alternative for those who need to watch their intake.

13. Invisible Cooking Hobs

The Invisacook is an innovative product with many benefits. It works like a conventional range top, but it’s installed beneath your countertop, so you cannot see it.

The manufacturer references the aesthetics of not having a cooker in your kitchen, but this is an ideal gadget for those short on space. Invisacook can also be installed on boats and in RVs.

14. Hybrid Produce

Producers and farmers want to invent new produce by crossbreeding. There have been examples through the decades, but one of the most fascinating new developments has seen the birth of the sweet garleek.

It combines the sweetness of leek with the potent flavor of garlic, and best of all, the sweet garleek can be eaten from top to bottom.

15. Robot Delivery

We touched on the rise of food delivery services earlier and conclude with the next stage in the process. People may ask what happened to drone delivery, and the issue was with costs to the retailer.

Small robots cost a fraction of the price to produce and put in motion. Robot delivery trials occur globally, and they’ll be coming to a town near you.