The NAFFS staff wishes all members and their families a happy, healthy and prosperous new year. NAFFS also thanks its members for their support throughout 2006 – whether it was in the form of corporate sponsorship, placing an ad in the NAFFS Yearbook, or serving on a committee. NAFFS values its members and the many ways they contribute to the success of NAFFS.

FUNCTIONAL FOODS GAINING
POPULARITY WITH DIETERS

For many people, losing weight becomes a high priority come January 1. According to a recent Calorie Control Council survey, 33 percent of Americans or 71 million people are currently on a diet – the highest number of dieters in the past 15 years. The Council, a non-profit association that has tracked dieting and weight loss trends for the past 20 years, predicts the top five dieting trends for 2007:

Restaurants will serve more low-calorie and reduced-fat foods, heeding the advice of a recent report from FDA which encouraged restaurants to market lower-calorie foods and increase awareness about the calories in foods for those trying to manage their weight.

Consumers will create personalized eating plans. To create low-calorie, customized meal plans, people will seek assistance through online dieting web sites where they can choose from a variety of meal plans and find the one that best suits their needs.

Exercise will become part of the "everyday." Many people will begin to make small changes to incorporate fitness into their daily lifestyle. For example, taking the stairs instead of the elevator and parking far away in the parking lot are simple ways to burn calories throughout the day.

Functional light foods will gain popularity. In order to get "more bang for the buck," many people will begin to consume functional light foods. Foods and beverages containing polyols allow consumers to enjoy sweet treats with fewer calories while eliciting a low glycemic response beneficial to everyone, including people with diabetes.

Healthy living will become a family matter. In 2007, major steps will be taken to diminish the growing rate of childhood obesity. Many families will choose to make proper nutrition and exercise a priority for the entire family.

FLAVOR PAIRINGS TRENDS
PREDICTED FOR 2007

Along with the New Year come many trend predictions for 2007.

McCormick & Company released its McCormick Flavor Forecast 2007, an annual report which looks at the tastes that will define the year. This latest report reached a whole new level, exploring 10 tempting flavor pairs that will influence the foods in both restaurants and at home.

Spanning sweet, hot, tangy, bitter, sour, and everything in between, the top 10 flavor pairings are:

REVISION TO NAFFS’
BYLAWS APPROVED

The NAFFS membership voted to approve the proposed revisions to the bylaws. NAFFS thanks its membership for their participation and timely response. A copy of the revised bylaws can be obtained by contacting the NAFFS office.

OMEGA-3 – A HOT
FOOD ADDITIVE FOR 2007

One of 2007’s hottest food additives will be omega-3, reported USA Today. Omega-3, fatty acids found in fish as well as some nuts and oils, are increasingly being added to other foods, often via fish oil or flax seeds.

Tropicana will be rolling out the first national orange juice with omega-3. Kelloggs has put it into a Kashi cereal and Unilever put it in I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter.

Two years ago, omega-3 showed up in 120 new food products, but in 2006 it appeared in about 250, estimates Mintel. “Omega-3 is the hot ingredient,” says Mintel analyst Lynn Dornblaser.

BEVERAGE MAKERS TOUT
DRINKS THAT BOOST METABOLISM

Will consumers purchase drinks that are designed to help them lose weight? Beverage makers are counting on it., reported the Houston Chronicle.

With falling sales and criticism that sugar-sweetened soft drinks raise the risk of obesity, beverage makers are reaching into laboratories to come up with healthier products, such as vitamin waters, fortified juices, sports drinks and now so-called negative-calorie drinks. The drinks, most notably Celsius and Enviga, promise to boost metabolism and burn calories.

The key ingredients in these negative-calorie drinks are green tea and caffeine. But the effects of the green-tea drinks go beyond those of caffeine-laden zero-calorie sodas, according to the manufacturers. An antioxidant found in green tea—epigallo catechin gallate (EGCG) significantly increases metabolism, they say, which boosts the body’s ability to burn fat. Both manufacturers say they have research to support their weight-loss claims.

NAFFS WELCOMES
NEW MEMBER

Star-K Certification, Inc.
122 Slade Ave., Suite 300
Baltimore, MD 21208
Phone: (410) 484-4110
Fax: (410) 653-9294
Website: www.star-k.org
e-mail: RabbiShuman@star-k.org
Contact: Rabbi E. Shuman, Director of Supervision
Products: Kosher certification

NAFFS CALENDAR

Be sure to save these dates when filling in your calendars:

February 2 – NAFFS Winter Meeting, The French Culinary Institute, N.Y., N.Y.

March 8 – California Meeting, Hyatt, Anaheim, Cal.

April 17 – NAFFS Technical Meeting, Edison, N.J.

October 18-21 – The 90th Annual NAFFS Convention, Longboat Key, Fla.