The Food Venture Gals

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As far as New Year’s resolutions go, “healthy eating” seems to be one of the most common yet short-lived resolutions every year. Most consumers fall prey to the “all or nothing” diet mindset communicated across media for decades. It usually sounds something like this: “Only eat the foods the media is saying are healthy and completely restrict anything else.” Unfortunately, we know this method often does more harm than good and results in unsustainable and unsuccessful healthy eating goals. A new kind of resolution In more recent years, more evidence-based approaches to healthy eating have held their place with food trends for not only allowing consumers to reach their goals but to do so in a way that supports all aspects of their health. As a team of food industry experts including Dietitians, we’ve seen recommendations such as practising mindful eating and focusing on aspects of cooking and eating that bring happiness to the individual. These types of practices are becoming increasingly popular in the medical feld and the media because they often produce more sustainable results.

Yes, we do think “healthy eating” will be at the top of mind for many consumers this January however, we think the way that consumers think about healthy eating has changed drastically from the traditional perceptions of what “healthy eating” means. We are seeing more consumers adopt something called “mindful eating”.

What is mindful eating? We know mindful eating encourages people to focus on “eating experiences, body-related sensations, and thoughts and feelings about food…” (1). This is great news for restaurant owners. Likely you started your restaurant because you not only wanted to serve incredible food, but you wanted to provide incredible experiences! Mindful eating aims to address the disconnection most consumers have with their food and the act of eating so that they can make sustainable diet-related changes and also enjoy the experience of eating even more! How can you promote this trend in your restaurant? One way your business can lean into these new concepts of “healthy eating” would be to have a menu-tasting event. At the event, your customers would be encouraged to learn about your ingredients, the techniques used to create your menu items and how different favours can impact different dishes. For example, a coffee roastery may want to host a coffee tasting where you showcase the different beans you have to offer while educating customers on different favor profles.

Furthermore, if your restaurant features traditional cuisine or even just a feature dish, hosting a cooking class where customers can come in and learn to make an item from scratch can provide a sense of joy around cooking that may be missing. Learning about one’s culture, sharing an evening with a loved one, and learning a new skill can all be a part of promoting mindful eating!

The final words As always, “healthy eating” will be a contender for many New Year’s resolutions. This year we encourage you to think more broadly about healthy eating to drum up some extra business. Nutrition may be top of mind for consumers this January, so don’t miss the opportunity to connect with your customers in a fresh way!

Sincerely, The Food Venture Gals, Kiran & Sima

Contributor: Saffron Locas

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Who we are:

If you’re looking for more resources on menu or food product development, we can help! Find more information at www. FoodVentureProgram.com or email us at info@foodventureprogram.com The Food Venture Gals are the founders of FoodVentureProgram. com; a leading organization in North American restaurant, food and beverage business development. We offer online programs to help food entrepreneurs turn their recipes into retail-ready products and help start-up innovators grow their food service establishments!