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5 Lunchroom Trends to Watch

While you may not be able to keep up with the latest slang, staying ahead of food trends is essential for engaging students and meeting their dietary needs. Check out five of the most popular trends with Gen Alpha to incorporate into your K-12 menu:

1. Build Your Own Bowls: Students love the ability to customize their meals. Offer a variety of healthy base ingredients (like grains or greens) and a selection of toppings. Bonus Tip: Consider building a theme around a particular global cuisine.
2. Bold and Briny: Parents in the U.S. are demanding foods that support immune function and digestive health. Fermented foods (like pickles) are gut-friendly and provide a tangy crunch in recipes or on the side. Offer pickled red onions as a topping, or add spicy pickled veggie slaw to wraps, sandwiches and bowls.
3. Mix Up Textures: Dishes with a variety of textures are appealing to students, such as soft grains with crunchy veggies. Add crispy toppings like dried chickpeas into healthy dishes to encourage good eating habits and keep young diners engaged.
4. Serve Up Spice: Students today are used to adventurous foods, with 53% likely to be flavor seekers. Try recipes like these Spicy Gochujang Meatballs, made with ground turkey, or Sweet Thai Chili Turkey over Fried Rice. Bonus Tip: Offer a range of spice levels (mild, medium and hot) to make sure every student can enjoy these dishes.
5. “Newstalgic” Flavors: Serve up comfort classics with a fresh twist, either with healthier ingredients or new flavors. This Turkey Alfredo Ramen transforms ramen with a creamy sauce and protein-rich turkey medallions over whole-grain noodles. Or serve a kid favorite like sloppy joes with shredded turkey thigh roast in these sliders.

Giving students more on-trend options like these will help boost school meal engagement while ensuring they get the nutrition they need. Which will you try at your school? Tell us on our Facebook or LinkedIn pages.

Sources:

https://www.foodservicedirector.com/k-12-schools/10-food-trends-that-will-be-popular-with-k-12-students-in-2025

https://flavorsum.com/gen-alpha-food-and-flavor-adventures/

https://www.chartwellsk12.com/chartwells-k12-is-thinking-outside-the-lunchbox-with-their-top-ten-food-trends-for-kids-in-2025/

https://www.mintel.com/insights/food-and-drink/meet-gen-alpha-next-generation-food-consumers/