Why are the United States suddenly passionate about sauerkraut? Accustomed to surprising positions, it is a statement from Donald Trump’s Health Minister, Robert F. Kennedy Jr, that would have triggered this trend. A trend that could have an impact on Alsatian producers.
And if our traditional sauerkraut became the favorite dish of Americans? In a restaurant in Strasbourg, it is increasingly appearing on the tables of tourists from the United States. They see this fermented cabbage recipe as the new trendy food.
If sauerkraut has long been appreciated by Americans, the food has been experiencing unprecedented enthusiasm in recent weeks. This is notably due to a podcast by a former White House advisor. She talks about the morning routine of Robert F. Kennedy Jr’s wife, Cheryl Hines, saying, “In the morning, at 6:30, he cooks a steak and eats sauerkraut. He is so strict in his diet that he even brings his sauerkraut to the restaurant.”
This has sparked a “sauerkraut mania” on social media. Dozens of internet users film themselves enjoying fermented cabbage and praising its health benefits, especially for digestion.
This trend is now crossing borders beyond the internet and opening up a new market for sauerkraut producers in Alsace. Hugo Meyer, co-manager of Choucrouterie Meyer-Wagner, says, “We have received some requests from the United States, including from an importer who was very curious to know what sauerkraut was. He was talking about sourcing directly from a full container. These are not requests we receive every day, so we were immediately interested.”
What the Americans are asking for is typically French raw sauerkraut, as it contains more probiotics beneficial for health than the pasteurized cabbage consumed more often in the United States. However, raw sauerkraut is a delicate product that the producer does not yet export to America. Hugo Meyer explains, “The complex points are logistics and shelf life of the product. Today, on raw sauerkraut, we are at about two months of shelf life, so it needs to be transported by air. These are very important logistical costs. It is a major obstacle for importers in the United States.”
Although it is a costly logistics challenge, it may not necessarily be prohibitive to enter the American market. In any case, producers are delighted with this unexpected publicity for Alsatian sauerkraut.
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