Why pistachio is the must-have flavour of 2024
In the relentless quest for novelty, innovators scour the planet for new ingredients. But occasionally, they circle back to a classic and reboot its reputation. Such is the experience of the pistachio, a mild, creamy nut long overshadowed by peanuts, almonds and hazelnuts by confectionery formulators.
Why pistachio is the hottest new trend in confectionery
You see, quietly over the last five year, pistachios have been peaking. Fuelled by high profile launches such as Starbucks’ fan favourite pistachio latte returning to counters each winter for the last four years and New York’s Lafayette Grand Café & Bakery going viral for its round and cream-filled Suprême pistachio croissant, Google trends analysis shows a 60% rise in web searches for pistachios since 2019.
More specifically, over the last year food and beverage trend platform, Tastewise, found social conversations about pistachios grew 10% with a 15% rise in interest in the nut as a confectionery ingredient.
Innovative pistachio flavors shaping the future of confectionery
Disruptive start-ups such as Dubai’s Fix Dessert Chocolatier have ridden this wave. The brand's super chunky handmade Can’t Get Knafeh of It bars are filled with bright green oozing pistachio and tahini paste and created a sensation on TikTok in December when food influencer Maria Vehera filmed an ASMR video eating the bar that has been viewed more than 56m times. Since then, the firm has had sold its 500 bar capacity within minutes each day.
Retailing at a price point of $20 (€27) Fix’s bar reflects pistachios’ perception as a premium ingredient. Indeed, the nut’s appearance in more established FMCG’s formulations often sits at the luxury end of the market.
Premium positioning of pistachio
Swiss brand Läderach, for example, has both dark chocolate slabs studded with roasted pistachios ($27/€24) and Tartufi, made from rich roasted pistachios and splits of rolled wafers wrapped in almond-pistachio gianduja ($21/€19).
Similarly Spanish dairy-free chocolate brand Arna Falco took 3-stars at the global Great Taste Awards this year for its Bombón de Pistacho (€8/$9) – elegant tubs of pistachio wrapped in plant-based chocolate.
Meanwhile, luxury pistachio creations have also been big in seasonal sales, especially during Easter this year. Venchi, the Italian luxury chocolate brand, introduced its 2024 Easter collection, which included crunchy pistachio nuts and creamy gianduja filling in pistachio flavour. Its £68 White Chocolate with Salted Nuts Egg featured pistachios in its inner coating. Chocaviar meanwhile launched its £55 Pistachio Chocolate Egg this year, too.
Pairing pistachio with blonde chocolate has been a popular premium partnership in confectionery and bakery creations. In 2024, high-end UK supermarket Waitrose released its £14 ($18/€17) Cracking Pistachio Egg, which features a large white chocolate egg with a caramelised sugar shell and inner pistachio egg containing real pistachio pieces.
The rise of pistachio-based treats in the global market
Nonetheless, pistachios appear in midmarket launches too. Lindt & Sprüngli for example recently added four new flavours to its Lindor line-up, one of which is Lindt Pistachio. Similarly, Ritter Sport is launching its Pistachio Tower with travel retailer Gebr Heinemann. The chocolate brand’s exclusive limited-edition product launch is for the travel retail channel and contains five 100-gram bars of pistachio-infused chocolate.
Health benefits driving pistachio’s popularity in sweets
As well as providing a degree of novelty for consumers, pistachios appeal to those looking for better-for-you reformulations. Compared to some other nuts, pistachios are a nutritional powerhouse. Lower in fat than most other nuts they are high in protein and amino acids as well as vitamins and minerals such as Vitamins A, E, C, B and K and potassium, phosphorus, magnesium and calcium.
Not only that, but they require less water to grow than both almonds and cashew nuts, and produce a third of the CO2 of almonds meaning pistachios performance as a confectionery ingredient is unlikely to wane anytime soon.
