Curry toothpaste 'a future taste'

Curry - good to eat but the way forward for toothpaste?

A new report looking at the innovations of the future contains food for thought for many staples of British life.

Curry-flavoured toothpaste, banana mayonnaise and smelling CDs could be the future, according to Mintel.

The research, from its Global New Products Database's Innovations Club, claims every area of day-to-day life is ripe for change - and nothing is safe.

Other promised novelties include an alarm clock which wakes you up with a gentle waft of your chosen scent.

Already available in Japan, Wake Up Arome combines an alarm clock with a slow-release fragrance.

Go green

Or what about green tea cereal? Green in colour, as well as in taste, this rice-based cereal is also currently available in Japan.

Brushing your teeth could become a whole different experience - with a cafe au lait, Indian curry or pumpkin pudding flavour toothpaste.

Green tea - heading for your cereal?

A packet of toothpaste sold in Japan currently offers these among a pack of 31 pastes - a different flavour for each day of the month. Consumer reaction has not been recorded.

David Jago, director of Mintel's GNPD, said these products were following a trend towards improving the range and scope of goods already on offer.

Referring to the toothpaste development, he said: "On a more serious note, this is a bold step in a market dominated by mint flavour and the range of flavour options fits perfectly with the increasing demand for personal, customised solutions."

Proctor & Gamble has recently launched a new version of its Pringle crisps in the US which have jokes and trivia printed directly on the crisps themselves.

Mr Jago said: "It is something quite different to have words actually printed on the food.

"We foresee this could lead the way to a broad new range of products with information or messages printed on them."

Let's do lunch

Peckish? How about some banana mayonnaise on your sandwich? A South Korean company is currently producing such a product and aiming it at children.

Weight-conscious adults out there might be more intrigued by Aquascents Bottles - bottles with a cap you can attach which give out smells and provides calorie-free relief for hunger pangs.

Later at night, as you prepare to go out, why not tuck into a bowl of beauty enhancing soup containing collagen, instead of slapping on the make-up?

For relaxing at the end of a hard day, there's always Proctor & Gamble's Scentstories, which play scents rather than music.

Sounds unlikely? Maybe not - it could be the future, Mintel predicts.