The cult classic TV show “Freaks and Geeks” follows Lindsay Weir, a high school mathlete who, following her grandma’s death, rebels against her studious, rule-following ways by hanging out with class-cutting rebels at the school. Throughout the solo season of the show, Lindsay finds a balance between her star-student persona and her new-found freedom and friendships outside of those excelling high school norms.

When it comes to food and beverage choices, analysts note that consumers are doing their own form of rebellion as they balance healthy choices and indulgence.

In its webinar “2025 Global Food & Drink Trends – Americas,” Mintel’s Jenny Zegler, director of Mintel Food & Drink; Melanie Zanoza Bartelme, associate director of Mintel Food & Drink; and Paris Hogan, director of consulting, discussed the four global trends to follow for 2025: Rule Rebellion, Fundamentally Nutritious, Chain Reaction and Hybrid Harvests.

In the webinar, Zegler noted that the team took a different approach to the trends this year, noting that in years past questions have been raised about how some trends operate in direct contrast to the other trends. In that sense, this year’s show how trends with differing objectives still can co-exist to support the duality of consumer need states.

To kick off the trends, Zanoza Bartelme and Zegler discussed the Rule Rebellion trend and it’s perfectly imperfect dichotomy. Noting this trend builds upon the 2023 trend of Unguilty Pleases, the Rule Rebellion focuses on the treat culture and consumers leaning into their imperfections, and embracing that they deserve to experiment and go wild. In terms of investment, experimenting with food and beverage purchases can be a lower risk to shake things up, Zanoza Bartelme highlights.

An example of this is the Coca-Cola OREO Zero Sugar Limited Edition release earlier this year. In August, The Coca-Cola Co. and OREO brands announced they teamed up as “besties” to create OREO Coca-Cola Sandwich Cookie and previously mentioned carbonated soft drink.

“Bringing together the playfulness of OREO and the Real Magic of Coca-Cola is unexpected, but also feels right because our brands are alike in so many ways,” said Oana Vlad, global vice president of brand strategy at Atlanta-based The Coca-Cola Co., in a statement. “As a first-of-its-kind collaboration for both brands, we are thrilled for besties around the world to join us in celebrating new products, great experiences, and unexpected moments of connection.”

This innovation plays into not just the experimentation side of consumers but also their indulgence needs. In the webinar, the analysts note that 75% of U.S. carbonated soft drink consumers use the refreshment beverage as a treat.

However, this mindset is not just for packaged foods and beverages. Mintel data shows that 45% of U.S. adults make dining decisions to visit restaurants when wanting to indulge.

In terms of what’s next, Zanoza Bartelme and Zegler note that consumer packaged goods brands will benefit from looking at micro-communities to see what works, and even can defy social stigmas around less discussed health issues. The duo point to Happy Coffee in the United States, which partnered with NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, to provide meaningful support, and across the pond with the UK release of Twinings Superblends Menopause, a peach flavored herbal infusion tea with lemon balm, sage, honeybush and added vitamin B6.

Yet, the counterpart to indulgence and the Rule Rebellion trend is Fundamentally Nutritious. Here, the analysts note the conversations around GLP-1 drugs has resulted in consumers taking a new view on health and updating the definition of food as medicine to evolve beyond functional products, but by getting the best nutrition with easy-to-understand claims about protein, fiber and vitamin content. This deeper understanding could support an embracement of Rule Rebellion, Zanoza Bartelme and Zegler quipped.

Consumers are not singularly focused shoppers and given what Zanoza Bartelme and Zegler found in their research, it suggests that beverage-makers will benefit going forward by supporting these opposing need states. However, it might be time for them to take a different approach in the type of innovation and communication they use.

To hear more about Chain Reaction and Hybrid Harvests trends, “2025 Global Food & Drink Trends – Americas” is available to listen to on demand.