Get Ireland Cooking
Tue May 17 2016
Can’t Cook? Won’t Cook? Young adults in danger of becoming a “Take-Away” generation. SuperValu’s Good Food Karma Project set to ‘Get Ireland Cooking’.
In 2015, SuperValu launched Good Food Karma, a campaign that helped the nation to cook and spend more quality time together. In 2016 Ireland’s leading retailer is taking this a step further. The Good Food Karma Project wants to ensure that wholesome, delicious food is a force for future proofing the health and wellness of the next generation.
Central to this is inspiring and helping the nation to get healthier and happier by cooking more meals from scratch. Recent research, compiled by RED C, reported that as a nation we really believe in the benefits of cooking from scratch, however, busy and squeezed lives (particularly younger Irish adults – under the age of 45), lack of inspiration and cooking skills are still cited as the real deterrent.
SuperValu is working with an army of foodies including celebrity chefs Kevin Dundon, Martin Shanahan and Sharon Hearne Smith, athletes David Gillick, Bernard Brogan and Anna Geary, The Happy Pear, Daniel Davey and Inspiring Foodies Conor Bereen, Marc Bereen, Duncan Maguire, Federico Riezzo and Ciaran McGonagle. This super-team has created a series of recipes, videos and blog posts, all available at supervalu.ie, to inspire Ireland to get eating less processed and more nutritious food. What’s more, they will also be hitting the road this summer to visit communities around the country giving demonstrations and helping people to improve their culinary skills. So watch this space to see if they are coming to a town near you!
The Good Food Karma Project will focus on four key food moments – healthy breakfast, healthy mid-week meal, Friday night in and the backbone of every Irish family, the Sunday roast. As a nation we believe in the health benefits of cooking from scratch and what better way to get the family together than to gather in the kitchen to try out some new recipes for any of these key meals.
The SuperValu “Home Truths” II Report, which was developed in conjunction with Dr. Mary McCreery, consultant dietician nutritionist at Blackrock Clinic, Dublin, is an in-depth, annual report. It was carried out by RED C with a random representative of over 1,000 adults aged 18+.
Report highlights:
- As a nation we are big supporters of cooking from scratch, believing that it is the healthiest option; with 9 out of 10 of us saying it gives us control over what we eat
- Yet 37% of under 34 years olds say they don’t cook from scratch out of pure laziness, 31% say they lack inspiration and 16% say they just don’t know how
- 1 in 10 Irish adults never involve their children in cooking at home which is a concern, given the importance of cooking as a life skill as they grow into teenagers and adulthood
- The report shows a real age divide when it comes to meal options and behaviour – with 18-24 year olds having above average weekly consumption of take-aways and fast food while over half of us have a takeaway at home at least weekly
- Two thirds of Irish adults still sit together for dinner on a weekly basis and the Sunday Roast remains the weekly get together for 2 in 5
- The second annual SuperValu Home Truths II Report contains some encouraging and convincing evidence that, as a nation we really believe in the benefits of cooking from scratch, with virtually everyone saying that it gives them control over what is purchased, cooked and eaten, however, time and cooking skills are still cited as the deterrent for most of us.
To get you started here are 2 really easy recipes you can make from scratch:
Lamb lollipops with minted pea dip and hedgehog potatoes by Sharon Hearne Smith
