Clean Eatz Kitchen, a restaurant chain with a prepped frozen meal delivery platform, shared some of its insights on where it projects market dynamics will shift when it comes to consumers’ overall eating patterns for the year 2022, based on feedback and communication with its customer base.
 
Firstly, the company said that there has been declining interest in the keto diet, and consumers are looking at a high-protein, low-carb diet more favorably. “The ketogenesis diet, which focuses on high fat, low carbs, and low protein, putting your body into a state of ketosis, maxed out around 2019. It held steady into 2020 but began to fade over 2021. The science that the keto diet is based on is a bit rocky and adhering to a strict keto diet is generally not fun from a consumption standpoint. “ However, high-protein and low-carb patterns seem to be rising in lieu of this declining interest. “We are seeing people gravitate to what we feel is a long-term, sustainable, healthy diet – meals with higher protein and fat counts that still include small servings of carbohydrates.”
 
Overall, there seems to be more interest in a flexitarian diet, while there hasn’t been much growth in vegetarian and vegan eating patterns, the company said. The introduction of several meat alternatives is certainly helping to serve an underserved market, the company said, but most people are tending to opt for plant-based foods while allowing for meat consumption.
 
By and large, the meal kit marketplace has begun to stabilize, the company said. “After booming introductions from Blue Apron and Hello Fresh in 2016, the market was awash and the novelty wore off. Welcome COVID restrictions […] Even with all the competition, the industry has seemed to have found its niche. It’s not as big as initially anticipated but repeat consumer trends have stabilized. In addition, new entrants have focused on smaller niches […] to serve more specific customers.”
 
According to the company, the fact that 70% of the world’s population has some degree of lactose malabsorption is hitting home, and milk alternatives will continue to rise, sourced from materials including almond, oat, hemp, cashew, and more. “Essentially, squeezing foods that have fat and fiber in them and mixing them with water creates a gastronomically similar product as cow’s milk. While more expensive and arguably worse for the environment, milk alternatives are here to stay.
 
Consumers are losing interest in juicing – after juicing chains saw a rise throughout the 2010s, consumers are no longer willing to take in their veggies and fruits at a premium, and these chains have had to diversify to include smoothies, bowls, and other options. “The problem with juicing is it’s not sustainable – its’ an expensive, calorie-deficit crash diet. So while juice cleanses were all the rage for a while, most followers have awoken to the idea they were paying $12 for 100 calories of pressed veggies.”