Culinary Compassion™
by Darling Culinary
Every foodservice operator and CPG knows the importance of innovation, and many have their own processes of how to launch that next new product or menu item. Most will research top ingredient trends and what their competitors are doing…which can result in “hit or miss” innovation that ultimately may not be truly innovative, but a “fast-follow” instead.
Culinary Compassion™ re-examines current methodologies of food and beverage innovation, determining that there is a deeper, more impactful way strategists and chefs can approach innovation - through the spectrum of universal human emotions and a desire to help address these emotions through intentional, sensory-based culinary innovation.
“The course offered insights into the importance of empathy and compassion in the culinary world, fostering a deepering understanding of the impact chefs can have on their customers and communities. I gained practical knowledge and ideas on how to incorporate these principles into my culinary practices, making the course beneficial to my professional growth and development.”
“In my position as a Corporate Chef, we are challenged with providing as many solutions as possible to help solve [customers’] pain points. Being able to offer insights into why diners order what they order based on environmental and personal influences has changed the way I go to market with my customers.”
Compassion is not the same as empathy or altruism, though the concepts are related. While empathy refers more generally to our ability to take the perspective of and feel the emotions of another person, compassion is when those feelings and thoughts include the desire to help.
Culinary Compassion™ traces a crave back to its origin point, understands the human emotion behind it, and overlaps this emotional need state with our respective brands. Thus, we design impactful culinary innovation that will tap into something that’s deeply connected to humanity and is unique to our brand’s mission and strategy.
When a product can return a consumer to a sense of childhood nostalgia, when it can help someone feel a sense of accomplishment…when it can lift the anxiety of longing or loneliness…that product achieves Culinary Compassion™. This compassion can be the start of a lifelong relationship with a consumer.