In the past two years, the world has seen the largest socio-economic and health crisis due to Covid-19. This has not only opened the eyes of many people in terms of making conscious choices and but it has also encouraged them to maintain a nutritious diet.
Metrolife finds how the pandemic changed people’s lifestyle habits.
“Consumers are now more conscious of the food they eat and how much they eat. The pandemic has pushed a large portion of the fence-sitters over to the wellness segment,” says Shwetha Rajashekar, COO, Indian Sweet House.
This is unlike the mindless eating and sedentary lifestyle we had adopted in the past decades.
Cut to the present. There is a huge demand for food with ingredients that are organic or grown with sustainable practices, Shwetha states.
The pandemic has also brought back traditional food in a big way, riding on the nostalgia wave. “A sharp spike in the consumption of cooking videos and home cooking experiments is evidence of this trend. This has re-introduced all of us to our own culinary history and gastronomical roots,” Shwetha observes.
Before the pandemic, food was seen as luxury that satiates our tongue, but post-pandemic scenario, many people have woken up to the adage ‘you are what you eat’,” says D R E Reddy, CEO and managing partner, CRCL LLP. “There is a trade-off between healthy food and tasty junk food,” he notes.
Some people are buying products that are healthy and also have higher shelf-life like dry fruits, yogurt, green teas, dry mushrooms, frozen meats and cold cuts, etc, says Fabiola Mendes e Rodrigues, director, The Bennet and Bernard Company.
Echoing Shwetha’s opinion, Fabiola says people are drawing inspiration from the countless blogs that feature foods to build immunity, foods to beat Covid-19, foods to improve metabolism, food to gut health, and more. “This is all in good intent and it helps them make informed decisions,” she concludes.
However, the trend is not representative of all, warns Reddy. He says, “Some are going back to their old routine of consuming junk food as they are going out again. Others have chosen to remain fit and healthy.”