Britain is a nation of animal lovers. The PDSA estimates that 24% of the UK adult population own a dog with an estimated population of 8.9 million pet dogs in the UK. So with so many of us devoted to our furry friends it makes good business sense to pander to our pets and offer dog friendly dining and accommodation. Once the domain of the country pub, fine dining restaurants and hotels across the UK are embracing the ‘hound pound’ as a valuable revenue stream.
I have always loved cooking. I find the whole process relaxing and very rewarding. But throw a new baby into the mix and suddenly our fridge was looking rather sparse and the idea of heading down to the supermarket with an ever-so screamy little one was too anxiety-inducing to handle.
In today’s society, food is no longer a way to feed yourself. It has now become a lifestyle, which many millennials call being a ‘foodie’. A person who has a passion or refined interest in food, who eats food not out of hunger, but due to their interest or hobby. A ‘foodie’ is constantly in search of the perfect photograph, consisting of perfectly composed food on a perfect plate, in a perfect setting. ‘Foodies’ will do whatever it takes to capture their desired shot, whether that means standing on a chair or table in the middle of a busy restaurant to get the ideal angle.
Every year, millions of pictures of food are posted on social media with Instagram being the pivotal platform for a picture of the perfect pastry, or two. As it stands, there are currently 188 million hashtag mentions on Instagram under #Foodporn. A recent study from YPulse shows 63% of people between thirteen and thirty-two years old post their food pictures on social networking sites while they are still eating. Moreover, 57% of people in the same age range posted a description of the food they were eating at that time – it is no wonder that the #FoodPorn trend has exploded. Food on social media is a key trend to watch and using the hashtag #FoodPorn means the food industry can easily track audiences on social networking services to see what’s hot!
We recently attended the annual MCA Food to Go Conference at Ham Yard Hotel, London. With the MCA forecasting that the Food to Go market is set to reach a value of £21.2bn in 2019 and continue outperforming growth from the wider eating out market, it therefore represents a vital area of growth for operators. We heard from an array of fantastic speakers including Welcome Break, Sustainable Restaurant Association, LEON, Pret A Manger, Yo! Sushi, Eat and many more.
Here are 5 Food to Go Trends arising from the day that we think will impact and drive Food to Go growth in 2019.
The way we eat is changing and choice is becoming more important than ever. Consumers want the opportunity to try new things and street food markets are providing a world of exciting opportunities right at their fingertips.
January has a canny reputation for making us all feel a bit doom and gloom. Christmas is all but a distant memory, jeans are twenty inches too tight and temperatures are twenty degrees too low. At such a time, positive mental attitude is key; if we look for things to bring us joy, we’re going to find them, right? Equally, if we look for an excuse to feel miserable, let me tell you, we’re going to feel miserable. This January, I have been determined to feel the joy. Let me tell you about an initiative I have encouraged my fellow beans to join me in supporting, this month…
Veganuary is here, with every man and his dog jumping on the vegan bang wagon, it’s hard to avoid this upgrade to the standard ‘New Year, New You’ start to 2019.
For four days in December you can find pretty much any celeb chef worth their salt in Padstow, Cornwall. Often referred to as ‘Padstein’ due to Rick Stein’s prevalence, for the four days of the Padstow Christmas Festival the rest of them also get to have their share of the limelight. As a regular visitor to this foodie haunt of the South West, this was the first time we had ventured down for the Christmas Festival. The weather wasn’t quite what we had ordered, but despite the high winds and torrential rain that buffered the marquees, the festival lived up to the hype with an incredible line-up of chefs and local suppliers in attendance, not to mention the fireworks, live music, Santa fun run and cycle, lantern procession, Christmas market and the Just Add Beer Cook Book from Sharps Brewery in aid of one of our favourite charities Hospitality Action.
Just as many brands are getting to grips with engaging millennials, Generation Z is emerging. Who are they? GZ are people who were born from 1995 onwards (13- 23 year old) – and they are starting to make their presence known as they enter the workforce and begin to earn their own income.
Not all Christmas sandwiches are created equal and here to separate the wheat from the chaff are Jellybean’s Group Account Director for retail trade and food and drink marketing, Neil Brenson and Foodservice PR Director, Nick Clancy with their dual verdicts. In all, eight sandwiches have been put through their paces, sourced from Eat, Pret, M&S, Boots, Sainsbury’s, Costa, Gregg’s and Waitrose.
As we lurch awkwardly towards 2019, forcing it to immediately evacuate itself in fear and repulsion, we examine just some of the über trends that definitely won’t make the headlines in the coming food and drink year.
Every year during August Edinburgh transforms itself into one of the most exciting places on earth to be if you like live comedy. Every space that can accomodate an act, from the tiniest alleyway to the largest auditorium is taken over by comics, poets, magicians and performance artist young and old, established and unknown – all of them united by the ambition to hone their material over the next 30 days.
Anyone who has been brought up on a diet of American films and TV knows the importance of Thanksgiving in the US. Celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November this public holiday originated as a harvest festival and the event that Americans commonly call the “First Thanksgiving” was celebrated by the Pilgrims after their first harvest in the New World in October 1621.
This year National Curry Week is celebrating its 20th anniversary. It was started back in 1998, by Peter Grove, to celebrate Indian cuisine as part of the UK’s diverse culture. According to research, in the UK we spend over £250 million a year on Indian food and have 9,000 curry houses and restaurants. London also contains more Indian restaurants than Mumbai and Delhi combined. Apparently we crave a curry mainly due to the fact that the spices arouse and stimulate the taste buds. So, to stimulate your taste buds this National Curry Week I would like to share one of my favourite curry recipes. It’s nice and simple and tastes divine!
Salut! My name is Morgan and I am currently doing work experience at Jellybean. As a French student and lover of the Great British Bake Off I decided to base my post on the national cuisine of Manon, who has sadly now left the tent. According to the Telegraph, French food is the fastest growing cuisine with French ready-meal sales having risen by 27% in the last year and restaurants such as Tante Marie and Côte Brasserie increasing in popularity. But I realised, ahead of Patisserie Week on Bake Off, that I do not know much about the history of French food.
On my quest to discover the good and the great/the interesting and the innovative at this year’s Lunch! Show, I was delighted to learn of the wonders of Kombucha. I’ve shared my new discovery with my friends at Foodservice and Retail Marketing Agency, Jellybean, and now I would like to share them with you…
When people think of Dubrovnik they often conjure up the spectacular citadel of the old town (a UNSECO World Heritage site) or the beautiful rugged coastline and crystal-clear waters of Croatia, which of course is a big part of visiting this beautiful city. However, from a foodie’s point of view the city and surrounding areas also offer up some fabulous culinary experiences, which are not to be missed. All in the line of duty, we visited the following wonderful restaurants enjoying some great meals along the way (well what else would you expect from the MD of a food and drink agency!?) …
When Ray Kroc, the first McDonald’s franchise restaurant opened its doors in Illinois, 1955, fast food dining became the latest breakthrough in the eating out sector. The fact that food could be ordered and ready to eat within a significantly short amount of time was considered to be something of the future. Fast forward to 2018 where all the advances in technology mean service throughout the foodservice industry is quicker than ever. So, what sorts of technologies are now shaping the foodservice industry and out of home eating?
With the UK casual dining sector going through a challenging period driven by cost pressures, we thought it was a good time to see how the fine dining sector was coping with industry challenges.
