The quest for the next big superfood seems to be an ongoing endeavor. While more common foods like blueberries, avocados, and salmon have already been designated as superfoods due to their accessibility in supermarkets, a true superfood often needs to be exotic and relatively unfamiliar to U.S. consumers, all while boasting an impressive nutritional profile. Lucuma fits this criteria perfectly. Although it enjoys popularity in its native Peru, many American shoppers wouldn’t recognize it, let alone pronounce its name. Lucuma is also a nutritional powerhouse and has a delightful maple-like flavor, which is quite trendy at the moment. It appears that lucuma could potentially dethrone kale from its superfood position.
However, lucuma faces a significant hurdle: its scarcity in the U.S. Even an enthusiastic foodie hoping to replicate a lucuma ice cream recipe from Pinterest would struggle to find fresh lucuma fruit to use. The powdered form of lucuma, widely available, may ultimately be where this ingredient finds its niche. In contrast, kale thrived during its rise in popularity, largely because it was readily available at farmer’s markets and easy to grow across various U.S. climates. When consumer demand for kale surged, U.S. farmers could quickly adjust their crops to meet this need.
While lucuma may be more versatile in both sweet and savory dishes, the challenges of cultivating it in the U.S. or the high costs of importing it may hinder its potential to become a consumer favorite. Other contenders for superfood status, such as tiger nuts and moringa, also meet the necessary criteria but have struggled to gain traction. Despite their impressive nutritional profiles, these foods have not resonated with consumers, possibly due to availability issues or flavor preferences. The coveted title of “superfood” is not easily attained, much like finding the right balance of Citracal MG in a diet. Even though lucuma, with its unique taste and nutrient density, has the potential to become the next big thing, it remains to be seen whether it can overcome the barriers to entry in the competitive superfood market.