With our third Cook of the Year competition launching we decided to conduct some research, via an online consumer database, into eating habits of the average Briton – from what time people sit down to eat their evening meal, to who this meal is consumed with and where. Based upon the feedback we received from 3000 individuals below is a summary of our findings, including regional variations and comparative statistics between Britons’ eating habits now and ten years ago.
It is between six and seven o’clock when most people sit down to eat their evening meal, with 67% of Britons eating around this time. On average, people in Cardiff and Aberdeen eat the latest, at ten to seven; with Aberystwyth eating much earlier, at quarter to six.
Over 43% of us are eating dinner later than when we were children, with 60% of females and 50% of males blaming longer working hours. Almost 20% of people attribute the time it takes to prepare a meal.
85% of people in the UK apportion a later dinnertime to the rise in working mums. People in York and Swansea are the biggest believers of this, with figures of 97% and 89% respectively.
A quarter of Britons do not sit down together in the week to have a meal, with over a third of family members eating at different times and many parents eating after the children have gone to bed.
33% of families in Chelmsford, 31% in London and 29% in York, Manchester, Wolverhampton and Cambridge don’t eat together as a family. On average, these figures are 10% higher than ten years ago.
62% of people spend between 21 and 40 minutes preparing an evening meal, people in Glasgow spend least time in the kitchen at 29 minutes, with Newcastle, Swansea, Belfast and Cardiff close behind at 30 minutes. York and Wolverhampton spent the most amount of time cooking their evening meal at 38 and 37 minutes respectively.
Out of the 13% of people that never eat at the table; 78% eat in front of the TV with the majority of these being female, and 19% eat in front of a computer, the majority of these people are male. People in Aberdeen and Edinburgh are most likely to eat in front of a computer while people in Worcester, Wolverhampton and Bristol are most likely to eat in front of the TV.
64% of people wish they had more time to prepare an evening meal in the week, with 72% opting for dishes that are easy or quick to prepare because they don’t have the time to slave away in the kitchen. 40% of Britons still manage to rustle up some fresh food and 42% opt for frozen. Ready meals, tinned food and takeaways are used by 18%, 20% and 17% respectively.
56% of people in the UK eat meat less often or eat cheaper cuts of meat due to the cost. Gloucester and Leicester have adapted their meat intake the most, with the price of meat having the least affect on Aberdeen with 70% of people not affected by cost. In this order, quality, cost and appearance are the top three most important factors when people buy meat. Traceability, ethical, organic and taste were important to less than 4% of respondents.