The Madness Continues
Well, here we are eight years later, and the superfood industrial complex has not slowed down one bit. If anything, it has mutated.
The headline act for 2026? Beef tallow. Yes, you read that right. The rendered animal fat your great-grandmother cooked with — before it was banished from kitchens in the 1980s in favor of margarine — is making a triumphant comeback. Whole Foods Official 2026 Trend List, celebrates Beef Tallow as a high-smoke-point fat and a “sustainable nose-to-tail ingredient.” TicTok is advocating to put beef tallow on your face as skin care. One comment: “I’m hearing mixed views about tallow. Some people are saying when you sweat you smell like animal fat and some are saying it’s good.”
Fiber is also having its big moment in 2026, finally stealing protein’s thunder after years of protein dominating every label. Brands are cramming prebiotic ingredients like cassava, oats, and chicory into pasta, crackers, and drinks. Note that cassava also appeared on my 2017/18 list – Eating Superfood – A Guide to Longevity — it has simply been rebranded from “exotic superfood” to “prebiotic fiber hero.” The cassava lobby did it again!
For the spiritually inclined consumer, ashwagandha — an ancient Ayurvedic herb — has muscled its way into chocolate bars, lattes, and nutraceutical blends, promising stress relief and mental clarity. Stress is, of course, best addressed by a $12 adaptogen chocolate bar rather than, say, working fewer hours or going for a walk.
And the botanical of the year? Hibiscus. It’s being added to drinks and desserts everywhere, bright pink and photogenic enough for Instagram. Which is, let’s be honest, the primary selection criterion for a 2026 superfood.
Meanwhile, Pinterest has declared cabbage the new kitchen MVP, predicting blistered cabbage “steaks,” kimchi cocktails, and crispier taco wraps. I will say — finally, a humble, affordable vegetable gets its moment. Cabbage has been quietly nutritious for centuries. No rebranding required, no influencer needed. Welcome to the party, cabbage.
Kelia Losa Reinoso from Tastewise points out that in 2025/2026 consumers are now 8.3 times more likely to follow a specific diet — anti-inflammatory, keto, gut-optimizing — than to simply eat for recovery. The goal is no longer health; it is optimization. We are not eating lunch anymore. We are “fueling cognitive performance.”
My verdict remains the same as in 2018: eat your vegetables, eat a variety of real food, go easy on the meat and processed junk, and stop buying powders with names you can’t pronounce. The science on that hasn’t changed. Only the packaging has.
Looking forward to the 2027/28 list.
