Should you buy an ingredient that everyone suddenly starts talking about?
Attention is a signal, not a conclusion.
Not automatically. Sudden popularity may reflect genuine advantages, but trends can also be driven by marketing, novelty, or social influence.
People often assume popularity proves quality. History is less certain.
The hidden mechanism is attention concentration. Once an ingredient becomes fashionable, conversations, recipes, and recommendations amplify each other.
Imagine an ingredient receiving constant praise online. More people buy it because others are buying it, not necessarily because they independently evaluated it.
A second-order effect develops because increased demand improves availability and visibility, making the ingredient seem even more important.
People often think trends reveal what is best. Sometimes trends reveal what everyone is currently watching.
