We will eat mushrooms and put them on our faces in 2023

The popularity of mushrooms is set to continue, as The New York Times named mushrooms the ingredient of the year and a must-have food for the plant-based movement to close out the 2022 trend forecasting season. And in 2023, it is predicted to become as mainstream as CBD and collagen.

Rachel Chatterton, head of food development at Holland & Barrett predicted a “mushroom boom”, a rise in the popularity of supplements, extracts and drinks made from mushrooms, in the UK’s Marie Claire. This is partly due to a shift towards more sustainable eating – the growing demand for vegan and plant-based meat alternatives has brought mushrooms to the fore as excellent meat substitutes that also taste great. So much so that the Duchess of Sussex invested in a US-based mushroom coffee company, Clevr, in 2020, the functional mushroom category is forecast to grow from $24.9 billion last year to $47.2 billion by 2028. And data from trend analysis company SPATE showed that the number of Google searches for mushrooms increased by 22.4 percent last year.

And mushrooms are set to make inroads not only on our plates, but also in the wellness market, which is not surprising given their use in medicine for thousands of years – and even in the beauty industry for some time. They have already attracted the attention of well-known cosmetics companies such as Origins, LUSH, Fresh, Herbivore Botanicals, Tata Harper and Hanacure.

Studies so far have shown that mushrooms can reduce stress, boost energy, relaxation and immunity, among other things, so experts believe that there is only more to be done with this lovely little plant. From skin care and hair care to nutritional supplements, there are many other uses.

Source: MarieClaire