Key Trends

Key Trend: Picnic Food &

Drink
Emerging from more than a year of pandemic restrictions,
consumers are eager to get together and enjoy the
outdoors. With picnics in the spotlight, we highlight the
need-to-know trends and product development
opportunities for this year and beyond

WGSN Food & Drink Team

07.09.21 · 13 minutes

Arabica
Executive summary
With outdoor gatherings on people's minds, opportunities for picnic fare
expand. Innovators are reimagining food and refreshments with bold and global
avours, healthful, convenient and portable solutions and provisions to suit
every eater.

Key trends and opportunities include:

Re-invented boards : from the mingling of sweets and savouries to plant-based
ʻcharcuterieʼ and unusual cuisine interpretations, visually arresting boards boast
more than just meat and cheese
Street food favour ites : DIY and prepared products take inspiration from global
street food to bring newness to the picnic basket
S andwiches & wrap s : colourful, plant-forward fillings, globally inspired
ingredients and better breads are upgrading offerings
Standout s alads : innovative chef-driven recipes and consumer desire to make
eco-conscious purchases and support and buy local are raising the bar
Bold condiments with benefits : dips, dressings and spreads are adding flavour
and nutritional value to picnic eats
Canned convenience: RTD cocktails, hard seltzers and wine come in
sophisticated formulations
Mini & multi-s ens or y des s er ts : scaled down in size but not flavour or impact,
sweet treats feature engaging flavours and multi-sensory textures
Pique Food

A bottomless brunch picnic from UK-based Pique Foods includes mini pain au chocolate,
poppy seed bagels and lox, blueberry pancakes with berries and maple syrup, Greek yoghurt
with seasonal fruit coulis and granola, iced coffee and Prosecco and peach purée

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Analysis
The safety of picnics became a bright spot of the pandemic era. Looking
forward, consumers will continue to embrace the simple pleasure of eating
outdoors with loved ones, but expectations around food and drink are evolving
fast. 

Consumers rediscovered the great outdoors throughout lockdown in 2020, a trend

we detail in The Outdoor Boom. This shi impacted all parts of peoples' lifestyles
and drove demand for Outdoor Eats, from globally inspired backpacker meals to
RTDs for al-fresco happy hours. Here, we focus on the product opportunities around
picnics, social and dining occasion ripe for innovation.
What does this mean for you?
Bring excitement to the picnic by evolving products to meet changing consumer
expectations. Consider eye-catching, colourful grazing boards to offer a feast for the
eyes and tastebuds. Give beige and boring basics a punch via sauces and condiments
with bold flavour profiles and added nutritional benefits. Draw on cuisines from
around the world for a reinvented approach to wraps, salads and sandwiches to feed
people's desire to travel through taste.
Explore opportunities in global street food. Built for on-the-go eating, handheld
treats are perfectly suited to picnics and on-site assembly presents an opportunity
for engagement and storytelling that will appeal to the growing cohort of eaters
eager for discovery.
Finally, create or stock sophisticated canned alcoholic drinks and bite-sized but Bocca di Lupo
indulgent desserts to end meals on sweet note.
The picnic basket from Brit chef Jacob Kennedy's Bocca di Luppo restaurant adds Italian air
and includes smoked ricotta with grilled aubergines, Sardinian crispbread and marbled ricotta
and chocolate cake

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Re-invented boards
Carefully curated boards are trending on social media and at gatherings.
Brands are tapping into the buzz with innovative avours, specialty versions of
classic fare and creative re-imaginings inspired by global cuisines.

Grazing boards have captured the zeitgeist, appealing to demand for DIY and cra ,
ease and personalisation while also being aspirational, eye-catching and shareable.
The popular lockdown trend of cra cocktailing is infiltrating charcuterie and raising
the bar for flavour. NY's Brooklyn Cured infuses pork salami with bourbon and sour
cherries or mezcal and lime, while Cornish Charcuterie (UK) poaches pork in duck
fat seasoned with sloe gin. Plant-based versions of meats and cheeses are also
proliferating as eaters cut back on animal products.
As the trend grows around the world, influencers are putting a local spin on the
concept, evolving offerings to include everything from a platter of popular Asian
sweets and snacks to top off a sushi-themed picnic, to a selection of savoury Indian
chaat.
How you can action this : the rise in DIY cra food boards that are aesthetically
pleasing and fulfil myriad lifestyle choices make them a limitless way for customers
to try a multitude of flavours. Create packaged, ready-to-plate products that meet
the need for simplicity and convenience but move beyond basic offerings to include
unexpected takes and treats. Think outside-of-the-box and borrow inspiration from
global cuisines or trending flavour profiles. Tap the opportunity to cross-
merchandise products with themed bundles.
@nom_life

In uencer @nomlife’s Asian snacks charcuterie board includes savouries like nori arare (seaweed
crackers) and shrimp chips alongside sweets like lychee jelly and White Rabbit chews

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Re-invented boards

@royaleys.smokyboat

A Bali-Indonesian platter from Singapore-based

Royales Smoky Boat

Tienda Pesoneto @vegancheeseshoppe

Specialty food shop Tienda Pesoneto in Madrid
@jackandfriends sells pre-packaged olive bites of cheese and
sh ready to go on any board (left); a plant-
Jack & Friends Jerky offers meatless jackfruit jerky enhanced with pea protein. The snacks mimic based board including Violife vegan cheeses
the texture and appearance of real meat from @thevegancheeseshoppe
@brooklyncured
Brooklyn Cured's heritage salami comes in
classic cocktail-inspired avours. Products are
made in small batches from certi ed humane
meat raised with no antibiotics

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Street food favourites
As outlined in our Key Trend: Outdoor Eats, picnic hampers increasingly include
international treats for shoppers hungry to explore the world through taste.
Global street food favourites offer an opportunity for culinary exploration,
shared DIY activities and avourful experiences.

Created for on-the-go eating, street food is ideal for a picnic, presenting near
limitless inspiration. Tacos, arepas and rolls – including Vietnamese summer rolls,
Japanese hand rolls and Indian kati rolls – can be assembled fresh on-site to avoid
going mushy in transit and can be stuffed with anything one desires.
Prepared products are also multiplying, with international cuisines cross-pollinating
into new global fusions. London-based Domʼs Subs adapts trending dishes into
sandwiches, including a birria taco-inspired sandwich with slow-cooked ox cheek,
cheddar cheese, coriander (cilantro) and Tajín-seasoned onions and a dipping
consommé; and a Japanese ramen-inspired so chashu pork belly sandwich with
spicy pickled mustard greens, pickled ginger and gem lettuce topped with an
ajitsuke tamago (so boiled egg cured in the chashu pork juices) and a sprinkling of
togarashi seasoning.
How you can action this : meet consumer hunger for far-flung fare with global foods
and flavour mash-ups. Look to picnic classics in your region, then explore ways to
add flavours from around the world or create local reinterpretations of unfamiliar
dishes. Go all in with DIY picnic kits to recreate street food favourites. Add value with
instructions, background information and storytelling to turn the feast into an
activity. @arepasandco

Venezuelan arepas (corn cakes stuffed with savoury meat, cheese, beans or avocado) t today's
trends: they are gluten-free, multi-textured and can be stuffed with anything. Above, a fried
chicken arepa with chipotle and guava glaze

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Street food favourites

@pieminster

British brand Pieminster offers patties in

varieties including Chana-Rama (spiced
chickpea and spinach), Holy Chipotle (black
bean, sweet potato and smoked paprika) and
Jerk Chook (Jamaican-spiced free-range
chicken)

@dailysuztenance @katirollcompany

An array of cut of veggies, rice, seaweed and @cottonbro_summerrolls

@impeccablesandwiches Spam for instant Japanese hand rolls (left); Kati
rolls from London and NY-based Kati Roll Vietnamese summer rolls are ideal for DIY picnic
A pork belly ramen-inspired sandwich from London-based Dom's Subs Company (right) projects and a fun project for kids of any age

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Sandwiches & wraps
Diners are eager to expand their culinary horizons and customisable and
portable sandwiches and wraps are being used as canvases for various avours,
ingredients and experiments.

Global sandwich styles perfect for picnics, from the Japanese katsu sando to the
Nashville hot chicken, are spreading on social media and capturing attention outside
their native markets.
Colourful, plant-forward fillings that appeal to both vegetarians and omnivores are
taking shelf space from traditional cold cut-and-cheese builds to bring a rainbow of
flavours to sandwiches and wraps. London's The Dusty Knuckle layers roasted
cauliflower, lime and coriander chutney, tamarind and date, and pumpkin seed tahini
between fresh-baked bubbly bread, while Tesco's Plant Chef Falafel Houmous
Wrap includes carrot and coriander falafel, hummus, mango chutney, carrot and
spinach in a tomato tortilla. For plant-based eaters looking to replicate traditional
stacks, seitan, tempeh and lunch meat offerings have evolved to mimic everything
from corned beef to mortadella.
It's not just fillings getting a second look. The quarantine baking boom has increased
focus on bread and wraps, with a generation of novice cooks turned on to the
varieties in taste, texture and pleasure of quality baked goods.
How you can action this : explore craveable, trending sandwich styles that are less
familiar in your market or take an artisan, multi-textural approach to layered meats,
veg and quality bread.
Dona Zita

In NY, Mexican cemitas are making a splash. Seeded rolls are stuffed with layers of shredded
Oaxacan cheese, chipotle chillies, onions, papalo leaves (imparting the sandwich’s distinctive
avour), avocado and thin fried chicken cutlets

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Sandwiches & wraps

@lukasando

At Bangkok-based Luka, pork meatloaf replaces

panko-crusted Wagyu and is accompanied by
tsukemono-style cucumber and tonkatsu sauce
in a Japanese-style sando

Tesco Miyokos Rainbow Nourishments

Tesco's falafel and houmous wrap (left); The
@foodliife_ Vegan Picnic Kit from kit from Miyoko's
Creamery and Mrs. Goldfarb's Unreal Deli (US)
In uencer @foodliife stacks grilled courgette (zucchini) and red and yellow bell peppers (capsicum) includes corn'd beef and cheddar as well as
in a lemon-thyme-honey mustard glaze with provolone and burrata between ciabatta turk'y and pepper jack for sandwiches (right)
A rainbow roast vegetable sandwich with
beetroot hummus, kale pesto, alfalfa sprouts,
roasted butternut squash, red pepper, zucchini,
avocado and carrot from Aussie in uencer
Anthea Cheng

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Standout salads
Innovator brands are creating fresh salads with sophisticated avour
combinations, local and seasonal ingredients and a focus on sustainable and
portable packaging to stand out at picnics.

Interest in bold recipes from across the globe is updating salad offerings. Look to
innovators like Bangkok's Broccoli Revolution, which brings warmth and texture to
salads while keeping mixes plant-based. A Cambodian-style Phnom Penh mix
includes chunks of tofu tossed in a bright cumin dressing, while a Kayanthee Thoke
salad features Myanmar grilled eggplant with white sesame seeds and sauce.
Green Common, from Omnipork and Omniseafood innovator brand Green Monday,
taps dragon fruit for its Gold Globe salad, pairing the tropical fruit with sweet potato
and vegan ranch.
Focusing on freshness and sustainability, Philadelphia-based Simply Good Jars layers
organic, fresh and local produce in patent-pending jars made from recycled plastic
that keep ingredients fresh without the use of preservatives. Varieties include the
Heavenly Pesto with Israeli couscous, basil pesto, spring mix, mozzarella and sweet
peppers, or the Simply Greek with farro, arugula, tomatoes, feta, red onion,
cucumber and Kalamata olive vinaigrette.
How you can action this : use unexpected flavours and ingredient pairings to
breathe new life into salad offerings, including crunchy or roast veggies, tropical
fruits and mixed grains, pastas and pulses, from chickpeas and quinoa to orzo.
Choose local and seasonal ingredients and sustainable and portable packaging.
Simply Good Jars

Simply Good Jars makes portable fresh salads with local ingredients. The jars can be re-used

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Standout salads

@broccolirevolution

Broccoli Revolution, a socially and

environmentally responsible fast-casual
restaurant in Bangkok, offers a tempeh gado
gado salad with fresh ingredients

@noodfoodof cial @kauaijuiceco @avocaireland

@mana Crunchy veggie-based salads featuring pasta, Ireland’s specialty food market Avoca
grains and pulses from chickpeas and quinoa to encourages board presentation for picnic
Hong Kong-based vegan and vegetarian restaurant Mana! prides itself on fully compostable meals, orzo (left); tropical fruits make a bold addition to salads, with ingredients ranging from tomato
compostable packaging and a zero-waste policy salad mixes (right)  and onion to roasted cauli ower and chickpea

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Bold condiments with bene ts
Versatile dips, dressings and spreads, from smoky, citrus, fermented and chilli
spiced to dairy-free and plant-based, are adding new dimension to picnic fare.
Consumers are seeking fuss-free, portable and inexpensive ways to add chef-
quality avour and nutritional value to snacks and mains.

Premium dips, dressings and spreads are offering depth of flavour as well as
improved nutritional value to meet growing health interests. Innovators are adding
vegetables, good oils, protein-rich nuts, spicy chillies and fermented ingredients for
a complex sour flavour and gut health benefits.
Dressings made with seeds and pulses offer protein, texture and creamy flavour for
salads. Dr. Wills Miso Tahini (UK) fits the bill with reduced sugar to appeal to keto
dieters. Australiaʼs Rozaʼs Gourmet Tarragon & Mustard oil features toasted hemp
seeks for flavour and omegas, while Oʼdang (US) taps chickpeas for creamy textured
low-cal hummus dressings in flavours like Red Pepper and Balsamic Feta.
For dipping, plant-based formulations meet todayʼs needs. Fabalish (US) uses
aquafaba to create dairy-free dips and sauces including a Queso and Ranch
alternative.
For spreading or topping, Ooʼmämē (US) makes it easy to bring the flavours of
Chinese, Mexican, Indian and Moroccan cuisines to dishes with its spoonable chilli
crisps, a growing cult condiment category.
How you can action this : create flavour-packed products that can be poured on
salads, spread on sandwiches, mixed into pasta and rice or sprinkled on hand-held @hipointdrivein
fare. Formulations should offer extra nutrients with functional benefits and
communicate health gains clearly. Pork belly with Oo’mämē chile crisp-infused coleslaw, sriracha aioli, arugula and pickled onions
on mini cheddar chive biscuits from St. Louis-based Hi Pointe Drive In

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Bold condiments with bene ts

@chicP

UK company ChicP ghts food waste by using

surplus imperfect veggies; its Beetroot &
Horseradish hummus adds colour and zest to
sandwiches

Trader Joe's Tigg's Preludio

Trader Joe’s Vegan Caesar Dressing relies on
tofu, capers, mustard and miso to replace
@fabalish Worcestershire sauce, anchovies and eggs (left);
UK-based Tiggs' dressings come in individual-
A blend of aquafaba (chickpea water) spices, tomato and nutritional yeast makes Fabalish Foods’ sized packs and use real fruit and veg including
Queso cheesy and dairy free. Its Ranch dip is also made with aquafaba and is dairy free Basil & Pea and Beetroot (right)
Fernando Arévalo, the chef behind Singaporean
contemporary dining concept Preludio,
incorporates smoke avouring to add dimension
to his branded Smoked Raspberry butter, an
ideal accompaniment to crusty bread as well as
fruited crackers and rusks

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Canned convenience
Sophisticated RTD cocktails, hard seltzers and canned wines with juicy and
fruit-forward avour pro les or lower ABV, carbs, calories, sugar or functional
bene ts are upgrading picnic imbibing.

Innovative drink brands are standing out in the canned beverage category by putting
the same care and consideration into offerings previously reserved for traditional
styles.
Nomadica, a California-based sommelier-curated canned wine brand, offers two
sparkling wines, a still rosé and a red. Its latest offering, an 8% piquette, was created
in collaboration with Rootdown Wine Cellars, a Sonoma County vineyard that focuses
on varietal specific wines from single vineyards. The light, fizzy drink includes notes
of guava, raspberry and orange. Similarly, innovators in the hard seltzer space are
borrowing from cra beer styles, with the milkshake IPA trend sparking the rise of
hard-seltzer smoothies. Smooj (US) offers a 5% dairy free seltzer smoothie that's
half hard seltzer, half fruit purée.
Others are keeping the focus on light, refreshing drinks with health benefits.
Australia's Splash Vodka mixes tropical flavours of passion fruit and orange for a zero
sugar thirst-quencher, while SunDaze (US) offers a botanical cocktail made from
fermented orange juice that meets 100% of the daily requirement for vitamin C and
added probiotics.
How you can action this : the canned cocktail, seltzer and wine categories are
maturing fast. Suggest picnic pairings that complement food selections, from
@joiaspirit
indulgent to health-conscious.
Previously a fruit soda, Joia reformulated, adding alcohol to its RTD cans to create the Joia Spirit
range of canned cocktails with Sparkling Greyhound, Sparkling Moscow Mule and Sparkling
Cosmopolitan offerings

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Canned convenience

@splashvodka

Splash Vodka's two new summer avours,

Watermelon + Pomegranate and Orange +
Passion Fruit, have only 80 calories per can and
no added sugar

@greenbar @smush
Greenbar Distillery’s Un-Gin + Tonic and Un-
Nomadica Rum + Cola (left); Smush, a hard real-fruit lled
smoothie seltzer from US-based Lua Brewing
Nomadica is a CA-based sommelier-curated canned wine brand  (right)
Blue Norther
Austin, Texas-based Blue Norther Hard Seltzer in
Prickly Pear avour, sweetened with organic
agave

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Mini & multi-sensory desserts
Portable, hand-held and picnic-friendly desserts are meeting demand for
multi-sensory indulgence, with a focus on innovative avours, textures and
formats.

Multi-sensory dessert offerings that leave a lasting impression are gaining favour
with eaters eager for experiential twists and global flavour discovery.
NYC-based micro-bakery The Boiis Co. takes inspiration from Filipino cuisine for its
multi-textured cookies that pull apart to unveil gooey mochi; flavour combinations
include ube and matcha. Indian pastry chef Tejasvi Chandela makes bite-sized, multi-
layered, mousse-based mini entremets in flavours such as Kashmiri Kahwa, an
aromatic green tea with saffron, cardamom and cinnamon.
Creative shapes and formats are also capturing attention. British supermarket chain
Marks & Spencerʼs Beer Whips – hollow chocolate cones filled with fluffy mallow
and a layer of beer-flavoured caramel – offer a sweet and boozy textural experience,
while US-based Crumbl bakes cookie-pie mash-ups in classic flavours including
Banana Cream and Strawberry Shortcake.
How you can action this : take inspiration from micro-bakeries for indication of what
cuisines are on the rise with food-lovers and influential flavour pairings. Follow the
tried-and-true technique of blending something new to your market – perhaps
purple ube – with something beloved, like a doughnut. For picnic offerings, focus on
handheld and portable treats that compliment the theme of the basket.

@theboiisco

When pulled apart, Mooks, a multi-textured mochi lled cookie in avours of ube, matcha and
caramel, create the perfect Instagram moment

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Mini & multi-sensory desserts

Crumbl Cookie

A mash-up of a cookie and a pie, Crumbl

Cookies' Banana Cream Pie cookie is topped
with a vanilla wafer

@sughapie @vineshjohny
US' Shuga Pie Shops’ mini cakes layer bites with
Marks & Spencer whipped cream (left); bite-sized apple pies
with spiced apple con t from chef Vinesh
Beer- avoured caramel combined with chewy mallow make these Whips from Marks & Spencer a Johny, are housed in a buttery tart and don't
multi-sensory experience skimp on avour or texture (right)
@grampancakes
Soft and uffy pancakes house smooth cookie
butter in avours including Earl Grey, White
Chocolate, Lotus Biscoff and Oreo. Compact and
portable, they come boxed for easy transport

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Action points
Make convenience king
Create products suited to on-the-go,
outdoor eating occasions including
hand-held, shareable formats or
packaging that are resealable,
lightweight and compact. Pre-cut large
items or focus on minis for easy serving
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Put a twist on tradition
Make the old feel new by integrating
elements from less-familiar global
cuisines into picnic packs for an
element of adventure. Include
information on culinary heritage, key
ingredients and serving suggestions
Cross merchandise
Choose items that complement each
other and pair them as DIY packs or
ready-to-grab bundles. Consider picnic
menus to guide shoppers in grocery
retail or to-go meals with something for
every course
Consider packaging & disposal
Outdoor eating requires transport and
disposal. Carefully consider packaging
from a functional and environmental
angle. Help shoppers know how to
properly dispose of packaging with
clear recycling or composting
directions. Keep resealing le overs in
mind, too
Related reports

Key Trend: Outdoor Eats Ones to Watch: Canned Analysis: Summer Flavours Key Trend: Green Grilling Ones to Watch: Global
Cocktails 2021 Sandwiches

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