Millennials and Gen Z are increasingly ditching unhealthy foods for organic produce, a new study has found.
Non-organic pre-packed food items have long dominated UK supermarket aisles, with many shoppers opting for frozen snacks, tinned items, and ready meals to feed themselves.
It’s a way of living that the younger generations are reportedly turning their backs on, instead choosing organic produce with the hopes of boosting their health and happiness, as well as serving the environment.
Despite spiralling food bills, research from Soil Association Certification found nearly half of 25–34-year-olds in the UK feel happier when buying organic foods because they believe they are positively impacting the environment.
In addition, researchers found almost a quarter of all Britons feel healthier and happier when they choose sustainable options, such as organic foods.
A new study from Soil Association Certification found nearly half of 25–34-year-olds feel happier when buying organic foods, including TikTok content creator Donna Bartoli (pictured)
The findings are supported by an August YouGov poll that found 41 per cent of adults said environmental sustainability impacts their food purchases a fair amount.
After surveying over 2,000 UK adults, Soil Association researchers found that the younger generations, particularly those aged 18-34, are leading the change.
More than 20 per cent of 25-34-year-olds consider factors like health benefits, sustainability, and reduced packaging, as essential, rather than optional extras or ‘nice-to-haves,’ compared to just 9 per cent of those aged 65 and older.
While standards vary across the globe, organic food contains fewer pesticides, additives and artificial preservatives, and are produced using less antibiotics and no genetically modified ingredients.
Soil Association Certification’s Senior Organic Advisor, Niamh Noone, said: ‘It’s brilliant to see a growing commitment among younger generations to choose organic, for both their health and the planet.
‘Organic choices are playing an increasingly important part in helping people live healthier, more sustainable lives.’
The organic market has witnessed 12 years of consistent growth, with the market growing two per cent in 2023 ending the year at £3.2 billion, according to the Soil Association.
The topic of whether organic food is better for health is hotly debated, while some contend it includes more natural antioxidants that help combat inflammation in the body, others claim there is no evidence proving that organic food is any healthier than conventionally grown options.
Jade Carlyle (pictured) from London said she gets the ‘most excited’ when browsing the aisles of organic health food shops
Content creator Anna Wilson from Aberdeen showcased her ‘organic food haul’ (pictured) to her TikTok followers
The movement has garnered a mass following on TikTok, with millennials and Gen Z’ers keen to show off their weekly supermarket hauls filled with organic produce.
UK health and wellness influencer Donna Bartolo revealed her weekly shop before asking her followers: ‘What’s in your trolley this week?’
She said: ‘I eat a whole food, anti-inflammatory, sugar free diet. This week I did my food shopping at Sainsbury’s.’
‘They actually have a really good organic food section,’ she said before reeling off her purchases, including organic carrots, cucumbers and celery, but she added: ‘Sainsburys you really need to address your plastic packaging.
She also purchased additional items like kefir, ‘wild caught north Atlantic salmon’, organic butter beans, and cous cous.
Viewers took to the comment section to share their thoughts, with one saying ‘I love this content’ and another adding that the food shop ‘looks delicious’.
Meanwhile, influencer Anna Wilson from Aberdeen showcased her ‘organic food haul’ on TikTok, filled with organic fruits and vegetables.
Emma Robles (pictured) from California revealed the foods she would ‘never not buy organic’
A content creator who goes by Tonic Health (pictured) on TikTok and boasts over 300 thousand followers, shared the items he would buy organic
Elsewhere, content creator Jade Carlyle from London, recorded herself browsing a health food shop and asked her followers: ‘Where are my girls who get the most excited in organic food shops?’
She added in the caption: ‘Seriously though the excitement I get is unmatched.’
She wasn’t alone, with viewers saying: ‘100 per cent me! I’m a nutrition nerd and been trying to avoid harmful ingredients in food for over 15 years’ and ‘I could spend hours there’.
Emma Robles from California also shared a clip on TikTok about organic food, saying: ‘I know shopping all organic is so hard financially, so here are some things I always buy organic’. Her list included chickpeas, hummus, strawberries, celery, oats, and more.
Food health TikTok content creator who goes by Tonic Health and boasts over 300 thousand followers on the platform also explained the non-negotiable products shoppers should buy organic, including strawberries.
He also explained reasons why he believes shoppers can skip buying organic with other products, such as avocados – with the content creator arguing the fruits’ thick shell protects the inside from pesticides.
It comes after Professor Tim Spector, of King’s College London, admitted he once thought organic labels — signalling products are made without any pesticides or other additives — were little more than a savvy marketing ploy.
A major review of 200 studies in 2012 found organic food offered no extra nutritional benefit.
Yet Professor Spector, who has authored three books on nutrition and is co-founder of the health and diet firm Zoe, claimed this isn’t the whole story, and he has since changed his mind.
He pointed to a 2014 study in The British Journal of Nutrition, which revealed organic produce contained more polyphenols than non-organic versions.
Polyphenols are a type of natural antioxidant that helps combat inflammation in the body, which is linked to range of health problems.
Speaking on the Zoe Science and Nutrition podcast, Professor Spector explained that polyphenols are substances that naturally protect the plant against insects and environmental conditions.
And as non-organic fruit and vegetables can lean on growers protecting them with chemicals like pesticides, they don’t produce as many polyphenols.
‘It turns out organic ones raised in our sort of traditional ways have more,’ he said.
‘All our food has been primed for growth and size and to look good.
‘But when you look into the detail, you’re actually getting less of the things that you need.’
Speaking to Zoe CEO Jonathan Wolf, Professor Spector acknowledged that levels of additives like pesticides and herbicides in food are checked to ensure they don’t directly cause cancer.
But he claimed that whether the substances can more subtly harm our health over time is a different question.
Professor Spector explained that there have been minimal studies on humans which consider the longer-term harm such chemicals may do to the body.
But these scarce studies have tenuously linked them to serious health problems like cancer, infertility, and ADHD, although these relationships are far from proven.
Mr Wolf noted that buying organic can be ‘really expensive’ and not everyone has the luxury to afford it.
However, Professor Spector said going organic needn’t break the bank, and there are more affordable ways people can incorporate organic foods into their diet.
He said people can opt for just some organic foods in their regular shop or get organic tinned and frozen food as a cheaper alternative, as it won’t go off as quickly as fresh food.
Professor Spector also said the one thing he personally wouldn’t skip on was buying organic tomatoes as he eats them every day.
Breakfast cereals which contain oats should be skipped at all costs, he said, due to the high levels of chemical additives.
He said oats are often grown in damp countries and sprayed with artificial chemicals like glyphosate before they are harvested to dry out.
‘And because they’re wet, they absorb all that glyphosate. And so, their levels are five to 10 times more than many other grains,’ he added.
Professor Spector added there are also ways to make non-organic foods a bit better for you at home.
‘Washing helps, but it doesn’t get it down anywhere near to organic levels,’ he said.
Instead, he advised peeling the produce or adding baking soda to remove potentially harmful additives.
