Research published by UK company Premier Foods, based on data collected in the UK by Kantar Worldpanel, has found that the traditional British Sunday roast lunch is increasingly popular as a family dinner, with a quick sandwich taking the place of the midday meal.
Chicken has become the most popular meat, used in 40.8% of Sunday roasts, followed by beef (21.3%), pork (17.4%), lamb (11%) and turkey (3.5%).
Ninety-five percent of all roasts are served with vegetables. Broccoli has increased the most in popularity, by 5% - followed by onions (2%), peas (2%) and carrots (1%). Going out of fashion are Brussel sprouts, decreasing by 10%, followed by cauliflower (8%), beans and pulses (3%), cabbage (2%) and potatoes (2%).
Almost a third of the Sunday lunch meals now consist of sandwiches (26.6%) or eggs, or beans, on toast (4.1%) - with pasta, pizza and world cuisine making up around 9% of British Sunday lunches.
"Sunday has been transformed from, arguably, the least active day of the week to the most. Families still want to find time for communal eating on Sundays but they’re having to be increasingly flexible about when and how to achieve it," commented Paul Chapman, director of insight & business analytics at Premier Foods.
© 2016 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Martha Sparrius. To subscribe to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine, click here.
