Self-Care Through Food

After the recent pandemic and following on from a growing global focus, the self-care trend among Americans is increasing. What is self-care? Taking care of the body and the mind is increasingly essential to overall well-being, in contrast to an emphasis on career and progress at any cost.
 
Increased mental health awareness and de-stigmatization are emerging, as is an enhanced interest in and demand for healthier and more sustainable food ingredients. Also trending are more transparent labeling and organic, environmentally sound production methods.
 
Self-care is associated with various physical, emotional, and mental activities. These include regular exercise, adequate sleep, quality time with friends and family, stress reduction through meditation, mindfulness, or yoga practices, and following a clean, often plant-based, balanced diet. According to Food Insight reporting, the top consumer needs are following a specific eating pattern (52%), clean eating (16%), mindful eating (14%), and calorie restriction (13%)1.
 
Healthy Eating in Self-Care
Healthy eating trends include focusing on protein quality over quantity, prioritizing plant over animal consumption, and less refined sugar. Additional directions encompass the farm-to-table movement – choosing seasonal and locally grown food, maximizing mindfulness in eating, and minimizing waste.
 
The ethical food market emphasizes respect for the environment, community, farmer, worker, and animal rights, and it is growing. It has increased from USD 137 billion in 2024 to USD 182 billion in 2028 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.4%2.
 
There is also greater awareness of the brain-gut connection. Knowledge of this axis leads consumers to increase fiber in their diets, such as relying on complex carbohydrates to promote probiotic health through the consumption of prebiotics. Fermented foods offer additional probiotics, while organically grown products may assist with this, possibly due to increased bioactive metabolites and their active role as beneficial prebiotics.
 
Organic foodstuffs are also preferred as they potentially contain fewer unnatural toxins, have improved nutritional profiles, and, as a given, undergo more ethical practices. According to the Organic Trade Association (OTA), the USA is the global organic food market leader. Over two-thirds (68%) of individuals claim organic food purchases in the past four weeks3.
 
Our national 2022 sales exceeded $60 billion, with health-forward California dominating the market share . In response, certified operations and organic US cropland acres increased by 79% and over 90%, respectively, from 2011 to 20215.
 
Ethical and Organic
Choosing organic products tends to straddle demographics, demonstrating their broad appeal. The top sellers are fruit and vegetables, accounting for around 40% of organic food sales. Fresh produce is followed at a distance by eggs and dairy (13%), beverages (12%), grains and bread (11%), snacks (6%), condiments (5%), and meat, fish and poultry (4%)6.
 
Various specialist products are now available to satisfy the increased demand for foods with physical and mental health benefits and ethical, organic sourcing and production. These options include organically produced grains such as quinoa and buckwheat, and foods such as Lion’s Mane mushrooms.
 
For example, buckwheat – an ancient grain not related to wheat and gluten-free – has healthy amounts of fiber and amino acids. Notably, it offers a high-quality plant protein content. Another ancient grain – quinoa – also provides excellent-quality protein and minerals. It is vibrant in B vitamins and is considered a superfood.
 
For manufacturers incorporating these and other organic and ethical ingredients into their products, choose 100% natural, pure, and organic flavor and odor molecules and compounds from Advanced Biotech.
 
Embrace Organic and Demonstrate Ethics With Advanced Biotech
Our range of responsibly sourced and produced taste and aroma ingredients are EU-certified, rely on advanced, greener technology, and come well-documented for your and your consumer’s peace of mind. Browse our collection of concentrated, organic extracts, and contact us today to place your order for a kinder, healthier, and more sustainable future.


1,2 https://www.thebusinessresearchcompany.com/report/ethical-food-global-market-report
3,5,6 https://theconsciousinsider.com/organic-food-statistics-trends-market/
4 https://www.bioecoactual.com/en/2024/02/05/the-usa-the-worlds-leading-organic-food-market/