By Leigh Belanger

Just like any other piece of popular culture, food follows trends based on consumer preference and marketing muscle. Remember oat bran, blueberries, and the more recent craze for pomegranates?

The public embraces and discards food, beverage, and diet trends in the same way we do fashion and film stars.

As 2007 unfolds and nutrition and food tastes in America continue to evolve, a new year will bring new trends for cooks, diners and dieters to explore.

In the kitchen

Despite continued interest among Americans in food and flavors from around the world, the number of people cooking meals from scratch will continue to decline, say consumer groups. Packaged and takeout foods have been improving in taste and appearance for years, and quality will keep climbing in 2007.

As consumers absorb more information about sound nutrition, they will look to takeout and prepared foods to provide their nutritional needs. Healthy take-out foods, filled with whole grains and good fats, will fill shopper's grocery carts in 2007.

And just as organic foods went mainstream last year - with Wal-Mart introducing organic milk in its stores - consumers will continue to ask questions about where their food comes from. From apples to zucchini, beef to fish, the origins of food have moved to the front of people's minds.

Socially responsible foods

This past year was big for ethical eating, with well-known authors questioning the food system status quo. In 2007, consumers will continue asking questions not only about where their food is from but how it was produced.

This curiosity will drive demand in 2007 for socially responsible foods.

Fair trade is a growing market-based movement that taps into a desire for consumers to do the right thing when shopping for their coffee, chocolate, bananas and other goods produced in developing countries. Although Fair Trade coffee, for example, represents a small overall percentage of the coffee market, this movement that guarantees farmers a fair and stable price for their products will continue its rapid growth and expansion in 2007.

Another piece of the socially responsible food trend is buying local foods, which will continue to grow in popularity as consumers realize that buying food grown close to home often tastes better than food shipped from afar.

Buying and eating locally keeps money circulating in your community, and helps conserve farmland while supporting the men and women who grow or raise your food.

On a diet?

As nutritionists continue communicating that fruits and vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins and healthy fats should form the basis of a healthy eating plan, fad diets will lose ground to a sensible approach to weight management based on a nutritious food foundation.

Although obesity remains an issue among Americans, many people are realizing that diets that eliminate major nutrients are not a long-term weight loss fix. The New York City ban on trans fats has also raised consumer awareness about packaged and processed foods.  

People paying attention to weight management in 2007 will likely include regular exercise as part of their plans. As diet and nutrition ideas continue to evolve, more people will understand exercise's broad benefits, from stress relief to weight loss to better sleep and stronger bodies.

In the restaurant

America's restaurant-going habits will surely increase in 2007, and many of the above trends will be reflected in restaurant dining rooms across America. As more of us go out to eat regularly, we are leaving high-concept food behind for simple, well-prepared dishes.

A sensibly dining American is coming into focus, one that values fresh food, prepared simply and well. Food origins will continue to be important in restaurants this year, but the emphasis will focus on well-chosen ingredients and skilled preparation.

An offshoot of the Fair Trade movement is an understanding of foods like coffee and chocolate as having unique, place-based characteristics. Single-origin coffees, teas and chocolates will be in demand in 2007.

The details and origins of food also will pervade drinks. Demand for organic and biodynamic wines will grow, as will the number of bartenders making their own sodas, syrups and liqueurs.

Consumers also will ask about tea's origins. This beneficial beverage will continue to grow in popularity as people are exposed to different varieties and learn about tea's health benefits.

A healthy year

As American palates grow more sophisticated, Americans hopefully will be able to customize the trends of 2007 to meet their nutritional needs.

Cooking our own food remains the best way to control our dietary intake. But if we're too busy, too distracted or too seduced by restaurants and take-out offerings, we need to demand healthy choices - and make them.