Fall has arrived, and with it comes the bountiful selection of pumpkin flavored and scented products. In almost every store, pumpkin spice has taken over the shelves. This magical concoction of spices has ruled fall and sometimes winter for the past few years.

The list of pumpkin-flavored products has grown over the past five years at an alarming rate. This fall, pumpkin lovers can indulge in pumpkin spice caramel chocolate squares, pumpkin spice almonds, pumpkin spice cereal, pumpkin spice pizza and even pumpkin hot wings.

Pumpkin spice has taken over everywhere, leaving those with a disdain for the taste very few other options of fall flavors to enjoy. There’s so many other great flavors that represent fall, yet pumpkin spice overpowers them all.

Flavors like apple, caramel, maple pecan and cranberry all represent fall just as well as pumpkin spice does, yet these flavors aren’t used as widely. There’s only a handful of spices that make up pumpkin spice, making it hard to change the recipe. On top of that, pumpkin spice is often overpowering, drowning out other flavors in a product. Other fall flavors offer more variety and some of those flavors aren’t as overpowering.

Take the flavor of apple as an example. Each variety of apple has its own flavor, and there’s over 100 varieties of apples grown in the U.S. alone. That’s plenty of variety. Maple pecan is also gaining some mainstream use as both Starbucks and Dunkin’ Donuts are now offering that as an option for coffee.

Yet, no matter what happens, pumpkin spice continues to be on the forefront of everyone’s minds when fall comes around. So what kind of solution is there?

Look to companies who produce fall scents.

Bath & Body Works’ fall scent collection offers a variety of scents that feature more than just pumpkin. Citrus, honey, marshmallow, caramel and apple are all featured scents in their fall products. Of course they have their take  on that very popular fall drink that shall not be named, but that’s expected in a fall flavor line-up. But, they break the norm with their other fall food-inspired scents.

Pumpkin spice doesn’t need to disappear forever. There is a large population of people who love the taste of the spice blend. However, companies need to recognize that not everyone enjoys those flavors but still want something that represents fall. Keep the pumpkin spice, but add a few more apple or pecan products on the shelves too please.

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