| There are trends in food much as there are trends in clothing. |
| Interest in food fashions has risen rapidly since the birth of the smartphone |
| when people first began taking photos of their food and instantly sharing them with their friends. |
| The food industry in the UK in particular is obsessed with finding and exploiting the next big food trend. |
| Marketeers aim to create a huge demand for a food item which was previously unknown or not needed. |
| One of the most effective ways of promoting a new food product is by using social media influencers as brand ambassadors. |
| In return for free samples, many influencers will post content about a product. |
| Although there are influencers with hundreds of thousands of followers who can command large fees for their services. |
| Companies which sell vegan produce were pioneers in being able to increase sales really quickly in this way. |
| For a food item to become really popular, it has to be readily available. |
| So supermarkets have a role to play in creating a new food trend. |
| They have dedicated teams closely following which new products or ingredients are trending on social media |
| and are particularly interested in what well-known chefs are putting on their menus. |
| I'd like to look at a few examples of marketing campaigns which were really successful in launching a new fashion trend. |
| Starting in the 1990s with the avocado. |
| A British PR company was hired to raise its profile and stimulate demand. |
| They paid for a group of journalists to travel out to South Africa to meet avocado farmers. |
| Articles written following this visit helped to educate the British public about the avocado, |
| which at this time was certainly not the daily staple it's since become. |
| Advertisements were designed to promote the avocado as a superfood, |
| rich in nutrients and therefore beneficial for health. |
| Avocados became hugely fashionable, |
| and within a few years UK avocado sales had grown from 13 million pounds annually to around 150 million, |
| making it one of the most successful fresh produce campaigns in UK history. |
| Oat milk is a recent example of a new product which became fashionable very quickly. |
| Now, there are many brands available |
| but one company which had early success was the Swedish brand Oatly. |
| They attracted a lot of attention with a media campaign which used provocation as a way of getting their message across effectively. |
| The fact that this campaign aggravated competitors producing milk from dairy cows was seen as a plus, |
| as it helped to make oat milk seem cool. |
| In the USA, the brand decided against a big retail launch in favour of getting the product into coffee chains, |
| which removed the need for a big advertising budget. |
| This proved far more effective than offering samples in supermarkets. |
| Oat milk had an advantage over other alternative milk products, such as almond milk. |
| Many consumers prefer it because it has less of an impact on the environment. |
| It requires significantly less water to produce than other alternative milk products |
| and it also has a relatively low carbon footprint. |
| Norwegian skrei, a rarely available seasonal fish delicacy, |
| otherwise known as Arctic cod, |
| is now found on the menus of Michelin-starred restaurants throughout Europe. |
| The demand for skrei has been used by a food marketing agency |
| to build the reputation of Norway's fisheries in general. |
| Marketing surveys have shown that a significant number of shoppers now associate Norway with excellent seafood. |
| Food trends can be considered a good thing in some ways, |
| as they can benefit farmers and food producers enormously. |
| The public can also be encouraged to buy things which are more sustainably produced. |
| But ethical concerns have been raised about the effects a surge in demand can cause. |
| Quinoa is a classic example. |
| This plant is native to Peru |
| and when demand peaked some years ago, |
| the price soared, making it unaffordable for local people. |
| While the popularity of quinoa has benefited farmers financially, |
| there have been other negative consequences. |
| As demand grew, farmers began working the land all year round in order to produce more quinoa. |
| One issue has been that the fertility of the soil decreased dramatically. |
| Which could potentially lead to desertification in some areas. |
| Another example would be the case of... |