How have eating, cooking and shopping habits changed due to the COVID19 lock down?

Here at Monty’s Bakehouse, we innovate constantly. We believe this can only be done through continually gathering data and staying ahead of the trends. Below, we have pulled together an exciting insight into the way shopping habits are changing due to COVID19. Read further to find out more!

Before the COVID19 lockdown, many consumers lived an on-the-go busy lifestyle, with little time to cook. Many meals were often rushed, skipped or eaten out. But as countries shut down and people were confined to their homes, the pace of life was forced to slow.

Consumers found themselves with ample time to cook and bake - something they hadn’t been able to enjoy in a while. With not much else to do, meal times became the highlight of the day so more effort was put into making them special and something to look forward to. Banana bread and sourdough were particularly popular recipes to bake in the UK - so much so that it became difficult to find flour in supermarkets. 

With their restaurants closed, chefs far and wide even started doing virtual cooking lessons on social media to help consumers at home looking for new recipe ideas - but also to keep busy and build relationships with their customers (and potential customers) for post-lockdown reopening.

Not everyone enjoyed all this extra cooking though. Parents who were working at home as well as trying to home-school their children were stretched for time and meal ideas. Ready-meals and frozen items were a handy option - as they also were for vulnerable people struggling to get supermarket home deliveries. Companies selling delivered frozen meals were stretched to keep up with this extra demand.

And even for the childless and non-vulnerable, eventually, cooking from scratch for 3 meals a day became monotonous, especially for those missing their favourite eateries. Hot food delivery demand skyrocketed. Many restaurants started offering delivery services for the first time and many chefs even started selling meal kits direct-to-consumers - everything from frozen complete meals, to fresh pasta dough and toppings. 

Looking forward, these changes in behaviour and new types of food offerings and experience are going to have lasting effects. Consumers are going back to planning big shops and many more of us are ordering online as the frequent last minute ‘for tonight’ basket shop is now not the safest of habits. This planning ahead has resulted in more mindfulness around what we buy i.e. choosing healthier immunity-boosting options and ensuring we don’t waste food and give back if we can – especially as more people are facing the prospect of unemployment and the potential of living on a family breadline.

As restaurants start to open, cover numbers are still low, due to customer’s lack of disposable income and/or fear of the virus. It is likely restaurant’s hot food deliveries and meal kits will continue to play a part in post-lockdown life. Food offerings in retail and hospitality were already blurring with Co-op, Sainsbury’s and hotels partnering with Deliveroo so we should expect more of this post-lockdown as consumers and food businesses alike navigate a COVID-19 infected world. 

If you’d like to get in touch with us to find out how we can support your food service needs as we transition out of lockdown, please get in touch with the team using ideas@montysbakehouse.co.uk.