The Thing Is

Your 30-second guide to everything

What: Black rice, purple sprouting broccoli, purple potatoes, purple carrots, golden beetroots. Basically any foodstuff we thought we knew, as long as it appears in a new and more colourful guise, and is likely to have your mother muttering suspiciously about ‘dangerous, unnatural GMfoods...’

Why: They’re so much more nutrient-dense. Apparently. The darker the colour of a food, the higher the antioxidant and nutrient contents will be (black rice knocks the socks off white or brown rice, with about six times more nutrients, it seems), and therefore the healthier the food. So bye-bye kale, spinach and cabbage, hello purple asparagus and corn (yes, really, and to hell with the air miles). The good news is, so nutrient-dense is this garish food, it might even allow us to condense our ‘10 a day’ back down to five.

Why Now: Because we need a new food trend, obviously, lest we all get bored and just start eating ‘a normal balanced diet’. And while we await something really big, like a food pyramid that shows most of our calories coming from cow’s blood and honey, this will do. Consider it an interval fad, a kind of holding trend; one to keep our hand in while we wait for the Next Big Foodie Thing.

How: Easy: Baked, boiled, stir-fried, fermented, raw, as ice cream (purple sweet-potato ice cream is actually a thing . . . ). And in smoothies, of course.

Who: The usual suspects. Joe Wicks Mr Lean-InFifteen — is a big fan of purple sprouting broccoli. Deliciously Ella raves about acai berries, and Mariah Carey swears by the purple diet.