Purple power: Color to continue to draw attention throughout 2018, claims GNT

05 Mar 2018 --- One of Innova Market Insights’ top trends for 2018 were “Say it with Color” and the trend is still harnessing innovation and symbolizes the power of purple. The fact that consumers “eat with their eyes” is more relevant today than ever before, in fact, the foods we buy and eat with family are often photographed and shared on social media. Increasingly the emotional aspects of food come into play; it’s all about pleasure, anticipation and our inherent love of food! We’re all becoming “foodies,” and visual appearance is the first attribute to stimulate and excite our senses.

“As users look for the latest trends to pimp their social media profiles, color became a key driving force for product development,” says Lu Ann Williams, Director of Innovation at Innova Market Insights. According to their research, 10 percent of consumers from Mexico, the US, Spain, and Australia are influenced by social media when purchasing food and beverages. For Indian and Chinese consumers, this is already the case for 20 percent.

“Simply spe

aking, the trend for 2018 is purple. It is the ideal color to attract attention and provides the perfect opportunity to unite market developments and consumer demands,” says Paul Collins, Director of International Sales and Marketing at GNT, the global market leader in coloring food with food using Exberry. Whether it is lavender, dark violet, magenta, lilac or mauve – all imaginable shades are predicted to hit retail shelves this year and the Exberry Purple Collection is perfectly positioned to meet this trend.

The trend towards purple foods and beverages is rooted in health and wellness, as well as visual appeal. For fruits and vegetables, purple indicates a high phytonutrient content which signals health and wellbeing to consumers. As a result, purple vegetables such as purple carrots, sweet potatoes and yams appear more frequently in supermarkets.

Earlier this year, Pantone, a global authority on color, named UltraViolet their “color of the year,” which will continue to drive the demand for purple. At the same time, fragrance and flavor company Firmenich declared fig as their flavor of the year which in turn fits perfectly with the trend towards purple.

“At GNT, we closely monitor trends to identify opportunities that offer the most appealing and relevant products for the consumer,” Paul Collins explains. Exberry application experts develop exciting color concepts and inspiration for every application: purple-colored blueberry porridge appeals to breakfast lovers, violet croutons are an eye-catching topping on soups or salads for lunch, while berry flavored purple granola bars upgrade the afternoon snack alongside a sparkling blackberry pressé with a delicious violet gin to finish a perfect purple day.

When manufacturers want to benefit from this purple trend, the solution must be natural and according to GNT, Exberry delivers in all respects: providing an array of truly natural purple shades from fruits and vegetables.

Selfies become Healthies
Recent color innovations such as “unicorn” and “rainbow” evoke feelings of fun and intrigue. Thanks to Instagram and other social media platforms, a food’s appearance has become even more important than its taste and supports the impression of flavor, quality, freshness and innovation.

Vibrantly colored food is omnipresent in every social media feed and by using Exberry: “Selfies can become Healthies.”

In a video with renowned food vlogger Sally Özcan, the role for social media in food marketing is discussed, as well as baking trends.