Vegan Barbecues: New Summer Food Trend?

Most people will agree that we’ve actually been having a pretty good summer here in the UK so far this year, which makes a nice change. The sun’s been shining, the Royal Wedding was everything we’d hoped it would be, and England haven’t even been knocked out of the World Cup yet! Last time we checked, at least.

With all of these other ingredients in place for a truly great British summer, we’re left wondering – what are the seasonal food trends that will really make summer 2018 one to remember? Well, it turns out that the analysts over at Mintel have been pondering the same thing, and have just published their 2018 Summer Food & Drink Trends report – with results that may surprise you.

When we think of summer food, our thoughts usually turn to sizzling barbecues, burgers and beer out on the terrace, or to strawberries and cream and other indulgent ice-cold desserts in front of the tennis. Mintel’s research reveals that Britons haven’t turned their back on these staples, but may be taking a more health-conscious approach than in summers gone by.

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Take the classic barbecue, for example – the old ritual of gathering friends and family around the garden grill isn’t in danger of going away any time soon, but the choice of ingredients seems to be evolving. The Mintel survey revealed that at least 28 per cent of UK adults have taken active steps to cut, limit or reduce the amount of meat and poultry they are eating, resulting in a newfound embrace of vegan barbecuing, even among the traditionally carnivorous.

But it’s not just health reasons that are motivating this change – it’s the fact that vegan food is becoming more widely available and downright delicious than ever before. Mintel cited black bean chipotle as a great example of the kind of product that’s winning vegetable-sceptics over the vegan cause, while pointing to Indian jackfruit, with its meaty texture and mouth-watering flavour as “the star of the vegan barbecue this summer”.

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This growing adoption of tasty new health foods is also reflected in the growing embrace of low-sugar, high-protein ice cream, with 32 per cent of Brits saying they’d consume more ice cream if sugar-reduced options were available. Which means the recent UK launch of brands such as Halo Top – a low-calorie option that became the best-selling ice cream in the US last summer – is happening at just the right time!

Of course, any summer meal can’t be considered complete without a cool, refreshing drink to accompany it, and even here the healthy living trend is having an effect. Sugar-laden fizzy drinks are giving way to bold new sparkling waters that bring all of the flavour without any of the artificial ingredients, and 53 per cent of UK consumers now agree that sparkling flavoured water is a good alternative to old-fashioned soda and coke, according to Mintel.

From this report, it seems pretty clear that Brits want their summer cuisine to be as good for them as it tastes – and that increasingly, they’re finding ways to make it happen. How’s that for a perfect summer?