5 Millennial Trends in Food and What We Can Learn from Them

Hi, this is Mianna. Everyone seems to have an opinion about millennials or those who were born between the early 1980s and late 1990s. If you ask someone who’s not actually a millennial, you’ll likely hear they’re self-absorbed, confident, entitled and quite demanding. Those are not quite positives! But, looking the other way, it appears that millennials are a generation that knows what they want. It applies to a wide range of things: from their furniture to the work they do and the food they eat. In fact, if you just go to a larger supermarket now, you’ll notice how many different types of food there are that weren’t there before. We’re talking organic, or kosher, halal, gluten-free, lactose-free… This generation truly has been making changes to the way we eat. Here’s how, and here’s what we can learn from millennial trends in food.

1. They Care About Where Their Food Comes From

Not only do millennials pay attention to the source of their food, but they’re making you want to know it too! Have you noticed yourself reaching for organic more often, or even considering growing your own vegetables? This probably wouldn’t have been the case were it not for these millennial trends about food.

Millennials also care about how far the food has travelled to their tables, and are great proponents of locally produced food. This is both because they know of the environmental hazards of gasses that come from vehicles carrying the products, but also because they value their own communities much more than the big industry.

2. They Like Cooking – As Long as it’s Easy

Millennials are very aware that cooking their own food is beneficial for several reasons:

• You’ll save money,
• Waste less food, and
• Know exactly what you’re eating

But because they work a lot and focus on advancing their careers and nurturing their social lives, millennials don’t have time, nor the desire, to spend hours at the stove. They want to make meals that are easy and rely on food choices to fuel their body the right way for health.

So they develop their own takes on traditional recipes that are just as tasty and nutritious. If you browse the internet, you’ll find plenty of websites with easy-to-cook meals full of nutrients you need for proper functioning. And most of the time, they are yummy too!

3. Sometimes They’ll Skip Grocery Shopping

Take note, folks. Grocery shopping can be a daunting task, especially if done on weekends when literally everybody else is doing the same and it’s hard to navigate aisles without running into other shopping carts! Millennials know this and they will sometimes skip grocery shopping in favor of delivery instead.

Now, if you think pizza delivery, you have probably missed out on one of the millennial trends in food that’s huge around the world. Ordering food does not mean ordering junk exclusively anymore; there are services that offer healthy food delivery and it’s possible to get the food delivered to work several days a week.

That way, they will save the time otherwise spent on food prep, but they’ll still know they get full nutrient-dense meals that will taste good and equip them with enough energy to get through the day and win at work.

4. They Want the World in Their Kitchens

Millennials are known for their love of experiences instead of material things, and what is one of the best ways to get an experience? Travel, of course! They travel a lot. But when they’re at home, they try their best to live internationally and introduce new products and spices in their diet.

This fourth item on our millennial trends in food wouldn’t have been possible if they weren’t able to find those new things in the stores. so the industry giants go the extra mile to offer new and exotic food. This is countering what we said about locally grown food, but it’s because millennials are so open-minded and curious and they want to constantly explore in life.

Ethnic restaurants, international aisles in stores, vegan shops? It’s the new generation you have to thank for those, and while you’re at it, try them out too!

5. They Get Healthy From the Inside

Last but not least, millennials value their health and are seriously devoted to staying healthy as long as possible. For example, they seek foods that don’t contain gluten when consuming it contributes to their GI issues. They jog, run, go to gyms, visit dance classes, and they eat healthy food.

They know about nutrition, and they want to learn more. Also, they know their macros, supplements, they want healthier choices and nutrient super foods.

Rarely will millennials skip on a whole group of food. That’s because they know that for a balanced diet you have to have everything – yes, even doughnuts. But unlike Generation X, they won’t base their diet on those. They will go for the extra tasty Neapolitan like pizza, but only once in a while. The rest of the time they’ll be munching on healthy protein, good fats and complex carbs. Truly worth learning from, right?!

Final Words on Millennial Trends in Food

Following trends can be seen as something superficial. Yes, even food trends, because they come and go – anyone remember how afraid we were of bacon just a while ago? But they’re worth considering. In case of the trends that come with and because of millennials, we can’t really think of any downsides. After all, what’s bad in introducing tools and information that help us live better and healthier life?

About the Writer

Mianna Korben is a passionate writer currently living and dreaming in Europe. She is a strong believer that both mental and physical fitness go hand in hand; you can’t have one without the other. And like many other girls, she is guilty of falling in love, over and over again, with premium makeup, fashion and champagne.