It took many years for vegan to become ‘mainstream’ in the UK but it appears that keto will out-perform the rate of growth achieved by the switch to flexitarian, vegetarian and vegan foods.
The interest in protein shakes as diet supplements of the last decade is now translating to real foods with boosted protein and less carbs.
Concerns over general health, diabetes and obesity in particular have accelerated significantly since the start of COVID and many individuals have relooked at their lifestyle and their eating habits.
And of course the massive reduction in commuting has reshaped the eating behaviour of the nation with urban spend moving to local spend, accompanied by a new style of sustenance, aided by people finding time to eat properly rather than snack on something from the nearest store.
In the U.S. keto has long been tipped as the trend to watch with almost a doubling of market value to US$17.8bn by 2026 – an average annual growth of just over 7%.
But what is particularly interesting about keto is that it has very positive health associations although of course animal proteins, as well as vegetable proteins are fundamental components of the diet.
So what has changed?
For many years both the US and European governments health advisors had advocated low fat, high carb diets.
But it is now understood that this type of diet is not only unhealthy but dangerous to our health.
Numerous illnesses are becoming increasingly linked to a high carb, low fat diet – and by fats I mean healthy fats. Indeed, these should account for 70% of a keto diet,
High carbs is the main proponent behind diabetes and its associated health problems.
And illnesses such as dementia and arthritis are increasing being linked to diets low in the right fats and proteins.
Indeed, the benefits for health and weight management via a keto diet are significant. For example the diet switch can put type 2 diabetes into remission within a week or two, but the support of a GP will otherwise be needed to manage the reduction through medication.
And some of our pioneering, health-focused retailers have already dedicated shelf space to keto brands in store as well as online.
And amongst these pioneering brands is one of my clients, No Guilt Bakes.
Their product innovation in baked treats has seen them become a much called for brand.
Co-founder Taeya Abdel-Majeed said, “We want to keep pushing the boundaries but so far we have been replicating standard cakes etc. As we grow we’re looking at new product ideas are really excited by our line-up of new treats as our customer base continues to grow.”
Last Updated on 06/02/2021 by Eddie Stableford
