What should YOU be eating in 2022?

New food trends can be great news for our health, and 2021 was no exception. Last year saw a sales boom in air fryers – a fat-free alternative to the deep-fat fryer; we rediscovered a love for heart-healthy canned fish, and barbecued watermelon became the must-have summer fruit. The ongoing pandemic meant we cooked more and plant-based diets continued to take centre stage. So what’s in store for 2022?

Last year saw a 25% increase in new products promising to support immunity – and the trend is set to continue in 2022. Mintel research shows that many companies are planning to launch new immune-friendly foods and drinks, with active botanicals (plant substances) taking the spotlight.

In truth, no individual food or supplement can improve immunity, but eating a healthy, varied diet provides immune-friendly nutrients, including vitamins A, B6, B12, C and D, as well as folate, iron, zinc, copper and selenium.

Move over probiotics and prebiotics – 2022 will introduce us to postbiotics. The new kid on the block in gut health, postbiotics are the byproducts and chemicals made when probiotics (the good bacteria in our gut) feed on prebiotics (mostly fibre-rich foods).

It’s thought postbiotics may explain the many health benefits of probiotics, which include keeping our gut and immune systems healthy.

More research is needed to confirm the effectiveness of postbiotic supplements, so you’d be better incorporating fermented foods such as kimchi, kefir and kombucha – big news last year – into your diet for now.

Blending animal and plant proteins helps us to eat better for the planet and our health – and it’s set to take off in 2022.

Early signs of the trend began last year. Sainsbury’s Halfest campaign recommended mixing half pulses with half meat, while The Laughing Cow launched its Blends Chickpea & Herbs Cheese Spread, combining dairy and plant in portion-controlled triangles. Nutritionists love the blend trend – it helps give a more complete range of nutrients. For example, chickpeas are packed with fibre, not found in dairy products, and are lower in saturated fat than cheese.

So adding chickpeas to cheese helps reduce the overall saturates content, while adding to the nutrients, such as calcium, already found in cheese spread.

Expect more blended proteins this year.

Vegan diets may have grabbed headlines in 2021, but bubbling beneath has been the rise of reductarianism. Another name for flexitarianism, one in five of us is thought to have adopted this way of eating – a mainly plant-based diet which allows for reduced amounts (see what they did there) of meat, fish or dairy occasionally. It’s the perfect compromise for those who want to eat a more plant-based diet but don’t want to give