New thrills on the grill
At a crossroads of foreign flavours and health-conscious eating, what do consumers want from the British barbecue in 2019?
Brits love a good barbecue. Warm weather and clear blue skies can be far and few between in the UK — so what better way to celebrate?
But tastes and eating habits are changing. With the explosion of the wellness craze and plant-based diets, consumers are increasingly more conscientious — while palates are also becoming more cosmopolitan.
So, in light of all this, how will this British institution fare? We spoke to 900 of our UK users — our bees — to find out what will be sizzling on their grills, in research that fired the Grocer’s latest special report .
The whole world on a plate
Brexit barbecue this summer? Think again — 8 in 10 Brits agree that borrowings from foreign cuisines make a barbecue more interesting. And this sentiment is felt strongest by those aged between 25 and 45 (millennials) — where this figure rises to 84%. Gen-Z (75%) and over-45s (76%) are less convinced.
But despite the popularity of the idea of foreign cuisines, consumers’ actual habits haven’t quite caught up yet — indeed, their BBQ favourites are still standard fare. When asked about their top three BBQ items, our bees cited beef burgers the most (66%), followed by sausages (64%) and chicken (51%).
And the sauces consumers are still in love with are the classics — ketchup (66%), BBQ sauce (50%) and mayo (40%) are the top picks.
However, that’s not to say Brits aren’t interested in pushing the boat out a bit…
It’s heating up
According to our bees, British consumers are looking for a bit of a kick when it comes to flavour, as barbecues look set to get spicier. Peri-peri, sweet chilli, hot sauce and spicy were, along with garlic mayo, among the most commonly cited flavours they would like to try next.
When it comes to meat, our bees are also after a bit of heat. Spicy and peri-peri featured prominently among the most popular flavours consumers would like to try next, as well as jerk.
And the demand for red meat on the grill, despite the healthy eating boom, is still there, ranging from the quotidian — lamb and steak — to the slightly more exotic, such as venison and ostrich.
Plant-based eating is growing on consumers
Our bees also told us that their veggie intake at barbecues is on the up. More than 1 in 3 (36%) say they have eaten more veg and plant-based food over the last year, compared to previously.
What’s more, Brits are embracing veganism — 52% told us that they would still attend a barbecue, even if it were completely plant-based. Men, however, are far less open to the idea (42%) compared to women (58%).
However, Brits don’t want to think about health concerns at a barbecue — suggesting they still want to see the whole event as a treat, even if there are more vegetables on offer than usual. Only 20% of men and 29% of women told us they would be concerned about healthy eating as an issue at a barbecue.
Going flat?
So what do we like to drink, and how are tastes changing?
Beer is the tipple of choice, but its popularity with younger drinkers is waning in favour of cider. For women aged over 35, 1 in 5 said beer was their favourite accompaniment at a barbecue, ahead of fizzy drinks (18%) and cider (15%). But among under-35s it loses the top spot to cider (20%), while beer (12%) falls to fourth, behind fizzy drinks and Pimm’s.
Meanwhile for men, beer remains overwhelmingly popular — roughly 1 in 2 cited it as their top pick, compared to 9% who say cider — except with Gen-Z. Only 1 in 3 under-25 men say they’d drink beer, while cider is again more popular (15%).
Flavour over wellness?
So now our bees have spoken, what can brands take away from this?
Brits are interested in sauces and foreign imports that can add a twist or complement their existing favourites, instead of trying to revolutionise the British barbecue.
Similarly, our bees’ approach to plant-based food shows that changes to summer eating will be evolutionary rather than revolutionary — new vegan treats such as plant-based burgers and grilled jackfruit will be eaten alongside beef burgers, chicken and sausages rather than replace them.
Furthermore, Brits want to let their hair down at barbecues — they’re not fussed about eating healthily. So plant-based options can be just that: there’s no real pressure for them to be better for us than current staples.
As for drink, tastes are certainly shifting, but again the popularity of alcohol and fizzy drinks shows it has little to do with health. Younger drinkers are turning to cider — fitting into the broader trend of consumers simply demanding more flavour at their barbecues this summer.
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A quick word on our methodology: The figures in the article are taken from Streetbees community members in the UK, carried out in Mar 2019. All of the data was collected by mobile and web surveys, and is accurate to within 5 percentage points 19 times out of 20.
