Ube Hype: Real Trend or Just a Color Swap?
A week or two ago, I wrote about matcha (if you missed it, here is the link — Your shopping basket is about to turn green) and ended with a thought: these fast-moving, seasonal food trends are starting to feel almost ritualized. One wave fades, another one queues up right behind it.
Well… it didn't take long.
A few days ago, I walked into a discounter and spotted the next "thing": ube — in full violet glory.
My first reaction? Confusion. Did I miss something? Is this already big and I'm just late to it?
After a quick check: ube is a purple yam, popular in Filipino cuisine, known for its mild sweetness and vanilla-like, slightly nutty flavor.
It's widely used in desserts, ice cream, and bakery. Social media confirms — there is some buzz.
But here's the key question from an FMCG perspective: Is this a real trend… or just a visual echo of matcha?
Why Matcha Worked — and Ube Might Not
Matcha wasn't just a color trend. It had multiple strong drivers:
- a health halo (antioxidants, "clean energy" positioning),
- a clear taste profile that translated across formats,
- and most importantly, mass visibility — coffee chains, RTD drinks, yogurts, desserts.
It reached critical mass.
Ube, on the other hand, feels different: visually striking ✅, culturally rich ✅, still relatively unfamiliar in Western mainstream taste memory ❌.
Right now, it risks being perceived as: "matcha… but purple." That's not enough to sustain a category wave.
The Missing Piece: Timing
Trends don't just appear — they diffuse. Using Rogers' diffusion model:
- innovators pick it up,
- early adopters experiment,
- then the majority follows… if momentum builds.
But here's the catch: after a huge, saturated trend like matcha, the market often needs a pause. What we typically see:
- overexposure fatigue ("I've seen this everywhere"),
- consumer pushback ("what else is new?"),
- and only later, openness to the next big thing.
This "cooldown period" is real — and often underestimated by brands chasing the next hype.
Retail Reality Check
From a shelf perspective, ube currently behaves like:
- a novelty SKU driver (limited editions, seasonal launches),
- a visual disruptor (great for social media and packaging),
- but not yet a basket staple.
So… Will Everything Turn Violet?
My bet: no — not at scale.
Will we see ube lattes in trendy cafés? → yes. Purple desserts popping up on shelves? → already happening. A full category takeover like matcha? → unlikely (for now).
Unless brands manage to build a stronger benefit narrative and educate consumers beyond just the color… ube will stay in the "interesting but niche" zone.
Anyway… let's take a look at what was already put on shelves just to keep you up to date.
1. Chocolate
2. Pretzels
3. Panko breading
4. Almonds
Final Thought
Spotting a real trend early is hard. What looks like "the next big thing" is often just a familiar pattern in a new color.
Ube might still surprise us — but today, it feels more like a visual trend chasing momentum, not a category-defining shift.
Let's see how purple this summer gets.