With the holiday season approaching, food manufacturers are monitoring trends to see if their seasonal-themed products are a hit or a miss with consumers this year. The return of certain well-established seasonal food or beverage items is as predictable as birds flying south for the winter: Starbucks is selling pumpkin-spiced latte, bakeries are offering candy corn-topped cupcakes and breweries are producing pumpkin-flavored beer. Special fall blends will eventually give way to peppermint-flavored offerings just in time for the holiday shopping rush.
