Meeting Planner Careers

Food and beverage trends pertaining to meetings and events are constantly changing, with some tried and true standbys staying in the mix, as well as many new ideas coming into play. Some changes in F&B trends are influenced by the economy and the increasing need to lower costs and find innovative ways to accommodate shrinking budgets, some are influenced by the growing green movement, and some have resulted from an increasingly health-conscious audience that demands healthier fare. Staying up with meeting and event planning trends is important to your success as a planner and to ensuring that your attendees enjoy your events.

To assist you in keeping up with the current trends in F&B, here is a quick rundown of four of the most prominent trends taking hold:

1. Smaller portion sizes and lighter food options – Smaller portions and lighter foods are becoming popular in response to both shrinking budgets and attendees that prefer healthy eating.
2. Green, organic, seasonal, local foods – This trend comes from the expanding green movement and is taking the meeting planning world by storm.
3. Food doubling as decoration – Using colorful food trays as centerpieces is a great cost-saving option that allows you to forgo expensive centerpieces and table decorations.
4. Comfort foods – This is one of those tried and true options that will always serve you well. It is hard to go wrong when serving comfort foods, particularly if you remember to include one or two options that are healthier or suitable for vegetarians or vegans.