Jamie Oliver and Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall are among a group of celebrity chefs and supermarkets spearheading a new campaign to double UK bean consumption by 2028.
There has been a long push for people to include more legumes in their diets – they are climate friendly and healthy. As the UK faces increasing disease related to poor diets as well as increasing food prices, and the campaigners argue that it is the correct time to launch a drive to “bang in some beans” to the nation’s meals.
Oliver said: “It’s no secret that I love beans. Not only are they delicious and affordable, they’re plant-based powerhouses that are packed with fibre, are a brilliant source of protein and live happily in your store cupboard for ages. If there’s anything we should be eating more of, it’s beans.”
Supermarkets supporting the Bang in Some Beans campaign include Lidl, which has pledged to increase volume sales for all bean products by 50% by 2028; Sainsbury’s, which is aiming to increase sales tonnage for beans and pulses by 2028; and M&S, who say they will increase volume sales for all ambient bean products by 15% by 2028. Waitrose and Ocado have also said they will advertise more legumes to customers.
Growing many types of bean fixes nitrogen into the soil, improving its health, and they are a useful replacement or supplement for more carbon-intensive proteins, such as meat. They are also high in fibre (only 4% of Britons get their recommended daily amount), and 4.5 times cheaper than other plant-based meat alternatives. A new report by the Food Foundation, supporting the campaign, has found that to meet the Eat-Lancet’s planetary health diet, UK bean consumption would need to increase sevenfold.
Food production is a big cause of climate breakdown, amounting to about a quarter of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. Three-fifths of those emissions come from meat production, leading many to argue for a shift towards a plant-based diet. On average it takes 15,400 litres of water to make 1kg of beef, but about 5,000 litres for the same amount of beans.
Fearnley-Whittingstall, another of the supporters of the campaign, said: “Beans are fantastic for your health and are packed full of fibre, protein and micro-nutrients. Put simply, we should all be eating more of them.
“The Bang in Some Beans campaign is bringing together chefs, influencers and food businesses so we can all get excited about trying new beany recipes, whether that’s exploring exciting dishes from all over the world, or simply banging some beans into family favourites to give them a brilliant boost.”
The Food Foundation has called for more chefs, retailers and restaurant chains to join the bean crusade to increase the marketing and selling of the legumes.
Rebecca Tobi, the head of food business transformation at the Food Foundation, said: “Beans are a win-win-win for our health, the environment and our wallets at a time when food prices continue to rise.
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“As an affordable, healthy and sustainable food, beans deserve to play a much bigger role than they currently do in helping us to eat better as a nation, with two-thirds of the population eating less than a single portion of beans a week. And we’re not just talking about baked beans – we want to get the UK exploring new recipes from chilis, stews, curries and dals to dips and salads.
“We’re now looking for more businesses to sign up and play their part in boosting bean consumption for both people and planet.”