Egg Trends

The versatility of eggs can be expressed in the number of menu items that utilise this high-protein wonder. As an ingredient, it binds and softens, such as in doughs and meatloaf, and on it’s own it is the star of the breakfast table and the crown on a perfect specialty burger. Hardboiled, fried, scrambled, omelets and on sandwiches, the incredible, edible egg is a gift for the successful kitchen.

The American Egg Board offers information for foodservice professionals, from nutrition to current trends. Read on to gain some insight into making the most of that ubiquitous styrofoam container.

A few stats:

Breakfast sandwiches remain the #1 item on Quick Service Restaurant (QSR) breakfast menus, with 4 time more items than the #2 item, breakfast burritos.
Gourmet Benedicts are trending up, with pulled pork use increasing 300% and lobster up 72%.
Millennials, 27% of the US population, want to order what they want to eat, when they want to eat it. Eggs at 3AM? Yes, please.
3 out of 4 visitors to coffee houses and/or donut shops went there during breakfast hours.
52% of consumers cite a craving or being in the mood for a breakfast sandwich as being the reason for their last purchase.
The number of QSR locations offering egg white breakfast items increased 13% between 2012 & 2013.
32% more restaurants now offer egg whites than in 2009, with growth being strongest at QSRs (+77%).
Breakfast items have grown 19% in menu penetration in the past 8 years.
More people in general are eating more breakfasts – 336 annually/person in 2013 vs. 316 in 1999.
52% of breakfasts being eaten on-premise are eaten at QSRs – compare to 36% in 2002.

BREAKFAST TRENDS

Comfort Foods are always big, and these days they are being kicked up with special touches to add a modern style to the tried-and-true favourites. This would be omelettes and Eggs Benedict, as well as the way eggs are incorporated into recipes.

Health Trends dictate that people need lean protein all hours of the day – “Clockless Dining”. Eggs are beloved for their high protein, low carbohydrate status, and egg whites are basically a guilt-free food. Not just for breakfast, eggs are now being served to order, day and night.

Breakfast is Very Important Notwithstanding the 24-hour upswing in egg ordering, people are realising how important it is to refuel the body with high quality foods in the morning. According to Breakfast Beat, the “undisputed king of foodservice breakfast proteins is the egg with a 92% penetration, followed by bacon, sausage and ham. Once again, your mother turned out to be right.

Ethnic Inclusion means that our traditional boundaries for egg usage are being lowered, to let in concepts from Asia, Latin America and innovative chefs in the US and worldwide. Curried eggs, anyone?

READ FULL ARTICLE on Breakfast Trends

EGG NEWSLETTER

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