As Covid restrictions end and life in the UK returns to normal, Mindful Chef, the healthy recipe box service, has taken this moment to recognise some of the good that came from lockdown – the rise in family dining. To ensure family mealtimes are not forgotten, they have captured this moment in a unique museum exhibition.

The recipe box service has researched the dining habits of 2,000 UK adults to find a third of Brits have dined together more as a family over the past year than pre-Covid. During the same period, Mindful Chef has also seen the number of customers choosing its family meals increase by 682%, as more households used this time to eat together*.

The research also reveals that sharing a meal is more significant than you’d imagine. Over half of us (53%) believe the most important aspect of family dining is to enjoy the one time of the day that everyone can be with each other.

Beyond this, 49% of people also state that it gives them time to talk about important matters and 38% of us also see it as an opportunity to get more involved in the lives of our loved ones. A third (33%) of family members have also said eating together allows children to feel more connected to their parents or caregivers. Making the rise in family mealtimes all the more important.

However, as quickly as dining together rose, it will also decline, with 41% of UK families reporting the trend of eating together will likely change back to how it was before Covid. The reason being is that 32% of people say their daily routines mean there is less time to eat with the whole family.

In a bid to encourage families not to forget mealtimes, Mindful Chef has exhibited a typical family dinner at The Estorick Museum. The family is on display having their meal as a visual reminder to people of the importance of dining together.

Giles Humphries, co-founder of Mindful Chef, comments,

 “Lockdown has been difficult for many of us, but one positive has been the increase in mealtimes spent together. It’s clear from our research that eating dinner as a family is more than just sharing a meal. It’s the one time of day that we can take a moment to sit together, share food as a family and reconnect in the midst of our busy lives."

 "We’re proud to have captured the family mealtime through our display at The Estorick Museum. As we all begin to enjoy the ease of lockdown and the freedom that this offers us, Mindful Chef wants to make sure that we’re not leaving the rediscovered significance of family mealtimes behind – it is after all, one of the positives that have come from the last year.”

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