Mintel has kicked off the top-10 list season with its predicted food trends for 2008:

1. Clean labels: Clean labels — ingredient labels that read like a home recipe.

2. Transparency throughout the system — where ingredients come from, how they are manufactured and how they are packaged.

3. Junk-free foods —  additives, preservatives, colors, flavors or otherwise unknown ingredients listed on food labels.

4. Salt, a positive and a negative — sea salt rather than mineral salt, and "place" salts, like Hawaiian red clay salt.

5. Faux genomics — products designed to be consumed all at once, like a supplement, and deliver a very specific single benefit will become increasingly popular.

6. Experiential shopping –more in-store dining, warmer lighting and familiar display fixtures at the supermarket.

7. Carbon footprint — manufacturers will start discussing their company-wide environmental initiatives instead of just focusing on the carbon footprint of a particular product.

8. Fairtrade expansion — more Fairtrade and Fairtrade-certified products appearing in the United States, Latin America and Asia.

9. Ancient and sacred grains — such as amaranth and quinoa moving from niche markets to mainstream.

10. Bottled water backlash — consumers will become more aware of the environmental impact of shipping water from remote locations to local supermarkets.