Veggie Options Become Less Popular, but NZ Remains Health Conscious
Nationwide, Vegetarian Orders Have Dropped Significantly
In 2021, HelloFresh shipped notably fewer veggie dishes across the nation. However, residents may look to strike a balance when it comes to their meat intake as we approach 2022, as searches for 'pescetarian diet' grew by 150% in the past month according to Google Trends.
Healthy Plates Remain A Priority. NZ residents are still pursuing healthier options though, with balanced meals recognised as the nation's preferred way of eating. Tortillas and pasta-based meals also make the top 10, perhaps inspired by the viral TikTok variants of each dish type - from feta pasta, to the popular tortilla wrap hack, these dishes pack healthy, delicious flavours into an easy lunchtime meal.
Starters Triumph Over Desserts. Starters were preferred over desserts, furthering suggesting that households are looking for balanced options and reducing treats!
NZ’s Favourite Meal Type by Number of Meals Ordered in 2021
- Balanced Recipes - 601,461
- Bowl - 392,303
- Tortilla - 247,460
- Pasta -181,866
- Burger - 103,638
- Curry - 103,594
- Salad - 103,144
- Stir Fry - 93,936
- Pie - 74,674
- Meatballs - 34,632
New Zealand's Food Preferences Are Wide & Varied
NZ’s Favourite Protein by number of Meals Ordered in 2021
- Chicken: 2,171,034
- Beef: 1,548,422
- Pork: 1,113,631
- Vegetarian: 590,354
- Lamb: 144,756
- Venison: 54,134
- Salmon: 37,439
- Duck: 2,774
Future of Food Trends
HelloFresh has researched 505 respondents across New Zealand to understand their approach to cooking, eating and selecting food to reveal how home-cooking is changing.
- Over the past decade, just over half of Kiwis have cooked more at home with a greater variety of ingredients.
- Starting next year, more Kiwis have said they are more motivated to choose more balanced meals (24%), and are also wanting to spend more time enjoying meals with their family and friends (26%).
- Looking at the next decade, sustainability is at the front of the mind for Kiwis: 22% want to minimise food waste, and 18% want to introduce more vegetables into their diet.
What are recipe developers saying?
What recipes are you most excited about over the coming months?
I'm really excited about a few different recipes that we have coming up. Some examples are our Custom recipes that allow customers to swap ingredients to suit their tastes and dietary preferences.
One is our Indian Coconut Beef & Garlic Rice Bowl with Cucumber Raita & Tomato Salsa, which has the option to swap basmati rice for cauliflower rice. Our BBQ Cherry Glazed Steak with All-American Fries & Apple Salad offers a similar swap, from potato to courgette, beetroot & parsnip fries. This is part of our increased Carb Smart offering, with additional options to swap certain sides for lower carb options.
These Custom recipes represent the lastest way that HelloFresh is innovating to change the way that people cook for the better. By providing more flexibility, the option for customisation opens up a new aspect of the HelloFresh menu, enabling us to better tailor it to our customers' exact needs.
-Hannah Gilbert, Director Culinary Innovation & Operations
What predictions do you have to share about home cooking in 2022 and beyond?
- Home-cooking in 2022 and beyond will definitely be impacted by the unpredictable last two years for Kiwis. I think that home cooking has become the new normal, especially with the help of HelloFresh.
- What people will be looking for is convenience, like short-cuts to make meals faster and easier.
- Making an occasion out of meals has become and will continue to be more important, with many prioritising coming together with family to eat.
- There will also be a growing focus on healthy, sustainable eaiting and incorporating a flexitarian lifestyle as we look towards eating more veggies and plant-based meals.
-Hannah Gilbert, Director Culinary Innovation & Operations
Methodology
