2021 Product Development Trends

Read Mattson President Barb Stuckey’s Forbes article on 2021 Product Development Trends Driving What’s On Shelf In 2021, inspired by input from 3 Mattson employee-owners.

“As professional food innovators, our clients usually come to us for the next big idea but our spirit of innovation doesn’t end on the bench!  We are always looking to reinvent the way we work so we can meet the evolving needs of the industry. The pandemic has given us an opportunity to think outside of the box and experiment with new processes.”

– Melanie Lai, Mattson Innovation Project Manager

“Food trends can be influenced by some pretty unexpected external factors — color of the year, political climate, pop culture — however, perhaps unsurprisingly, this year’s trends have been a direct response to the global pandemic. In fact, more than that, it’s a direct reflection of society’s increasing sense of responsibility to our shared ecosystems. Plant-based and cultivated meats, as well as upcycled foods are recent interesting expressions of this trend. As challenging as it can be to develop such products, I’m thrilled about the rise of plant-based meat 3.0 and feel privileged to explore these new possibilities with our clients.”

– Caroline Lafleur, Mattson Senior Food Technologist

“As a product developer, it feels good to have overcome and adapted to COVID-related workspace challenges with our company’s distributed development model so that our team can continue doing what we love, and that is to continue collaborating together, to make food happen and to service our clients well. Thinking about what matters most includes taking care of ourselves, others and the environment, so it makes sense that foods that are more homemade and less processed, with more attention on familiar core ingredients and less on perfect appearances, will be focal points, and that plant-based will continue to rise and become featured honorees rather than background, disguised guests. I feel so fortunate to be involved in this exciting food movement!”

– Brenda Fong, Mattson Senior Food Technologist