Shared Mealtimes
Over the past year, our lives have changed significantly. Whilst some aspects of life have been a bit tricky, other aspects have helped us bring us together and appreciate the value of family, friends and community.
Nearly three quarters of us Brits agree that sharing a meal with your nearest and dearest has become one of life’s simple pleasures during lockdown. 67% of us are now enjoying meals with our family on a regular basis and we’re thrilled to see that 34% of Brits have started to enjoy meals with their families for the first time ever!
For British Pie Week we asked members of the British public and our ‘Food for Thought’ Club to share their thoughts and tell us about how they’ve been enjoying shared mealtimes together this year. Here are a few highlights.
Getting the whole family involved
Lockdown has been a brilliant opportunity to teach the kids new skills, getting them to help around the house by loading the dishwasher or laying the table. The British public have found that kids have become more helpful during lockdown, especially when it comes to cooking. Over past year, our teams have loved teaching their little ones new recipes, hopefully kickstarting an interest in the world of food and cooking.
Mealtimes have fast become one of the most important times of the day, with the majority of us spending up to 26 minutes discussing what to have for lunch of supper. Dinner decisions are clearly a top priority.
When it comes to having a staple meal that the whole household loves, the Great British public and our ‘Food for Thought’ Club both said that a classic roast chicken was the favourite dish to enjoy. We were particularly pleased to see pie & chips high up on the list too! What’s more, enjoying eating a good meal together is what we’re loving the most about shared mealtimes.
Sharing is caring
Looking out for others has become a positive habit in light of the current situation. We’ve been amazed at how many of us have been reaching out to those in need.
Over the past year 36% of us have shopped for someone vulnerable and 29% of us have donated to a food bank. Acts of kindness like this go such a long way.
Our teams have been busy donating to FareShare and local charities as part of our Higgidy Helping Hand initiative and we’re pleased to see this continuing into 2021. During British Pie Week, we’ve pledged that for every pie purchased across the week, we’ll donate another to FareShare – creating meals for those in need.
We’ve all been in the situation where there’s the last slice of food on the table and everyone wants it. Whilst the temptation is to sneak it onto your own plate, we’re pleased to know that the ‘Food for Thought’ Club and the British public agree that any last slice should be shared equally around the table, ensuring that no one misses out.
We sincerely hope that as life starts returning to normal, we’ll all continue to enjoy sharing meals together – hopefully with extended family too. With British Pie Week in full swing, we also hope that everyone is enjoying a #PieceOfThePie together, tucking into some seriously swift yet satisfying pie suppers. If you’ve got any stories of how your household has been enjoying shared mealtimes, or if you’ve picked up any new recipes – we’d love to hear from you. As always you can reach us at thekitchen@higgidy.co.uk.
