With 1,800 exhibitors in three halls, this year's National Restaurant Association (NRA) show attracted more than 40,000 attendees. Walking (and eating!) our way around the show floor, we noticed three important trends related to whole grains:

1) More grains, more products. Whole grain momentum isn't just about whole wheat bread and crackers anymore (though both of these were abundant at the show). We're delighted to see much more being done with intact grains -- like the cold Wild Rice Salad in Riviana's booth, and the warm Marinated Mushrooms with Einkorn in American Roland's booth just to name a few. One up-and-coming grain is millet, mentioned by some companies for its price point (one-eighth the cost of popular quinoa) and for its non-allergenic impact.

2) Gluten-free still strong. A very large number of companies highlighted their products as gluten-free. (We even passed one maker of pots and pans who was -- albeit humorously -- pitching his products as "low sodium, gluten free, non-GMO" to hit all the current buttons.) Will this continue? See related health study update below on gluten.

3) Influence of new school rules. As of July 1, virtually all grain products sold for school meals must be "whole grain-rich" -- which means at least half the grain in the product must be whole grain. Companies that offer products for school foodservice were exhibiting a wide range of tasty whole grain options for schools, which will then potentially be available for general foodservice or retail.

WGC Director of Food & Nutrition Strategies Cynthia Harriman documented the rapid rise in whole grain momentum in a "Healthy Menus" panel presentation to show attendees (email her for a copy), then later in the show paired up with WGC Advisory Board Chair Chef Michael Holleman for a lively hands-on grain tasting session. In this "Foodamental" session, participants tasted twelve different grains, watched Chef Mike make a Massaged Kale and Greenwheat Freekeh® salad, and experimented with making their own whole grain salads. Both these events were excellent opportunities to make the potential of whole grains in restaurants more widely known.