When it comes to new product development, trends are a huge factor in what gets made and what doesn’t. But which food trends deserve the hype and which are flying under the radar?

In this episode of the Food Matters Live podcast, recorded at our event in Manchester in May 2025, we gather a panel of industry experts to discuss what’s overhyped and underestimated in NPD right now.

Our panellists pull no punches: artificial sweeteners have failed to tackle obesity, lion’s mane mushrooms are being oversold as superfoods, and the protein obsession on TikTok is driving meat consumption back up for the first time in years.

Meanwhile, fermentation remains criminally underestimated as the missing piece in our nutritional puzzle, and pulses offer untapped potential for both human and planetary health.

And, of course, the topic of AI comes up – just how much of an impact is it having (and will it have) on NPD in the food sector?