Healthy food delivery. It almost sounds like an oxymoron, doesn’t it? When you think about food delivery: you think about pizza, Chinese takeout, with a soda. At least, many people do. As we all know though – not too many industries have experienced a kind of reversal as much as the food industry. As millennials move away from fast-food and even upscale restaurants towards local and fresh food; we see that young adults care about their body more than possibly any other generation previously.
Of course; there is a good reason for this. Obesity is at an all-time high globally. The World Health Organization estimates that obesity has tripled globally since 1975, which is more than startling. As a result, it is no surprise that Whole Foods has been able to emerge as a dominant grocery chain and ultimately prove its worth to the point where Amazon had to acquire them. Casual dining has been replaced with fast casual – and while we all like something tasty, we also want to eat something fresh, without as little chemicals as possible in the modern world.
The emergence of Whole Foods – which was considerably more expensive – also proves that we are willing to pay MORE for healthy food. Another great example is Juice Press. Founded by Marcus Antebi; this chain offering smoothies, juices, soups, and salads, was able to open an astonishing sixty locations within six years – the majority all in New York City! Considering that New York City is a microcosm of ethnicity, age, and background – it is a testament to the diverse demographic that are all interested in eating healthier and changing their diet to improve their health. Mind you – the products there are not cheap, but the stores are incredibly successful. Even high-profile celebrities with massive social media followings, like Gigi Hadid, have co-signed the chain.
The start-up world has certainly taken note. Interestingly enough, in our ever-changing world that allows the individual to customize as much as possible – healthy food delivery has emerged in the form of startups such as Blue Apron: where items are delivered to you, all healthy, and tasty (or at least advertised as such) – while you chef up the food to your specificity. In case you thought it was a fluke – Blue Apron has quite the competition in other companies, such as HelloFresh, Plated, and Green Chef. Wall Street even got behind Blue Apron, as it recently had a successful IPO.
It is evident that while fast-food may stick around, and always be convenient – that we care, more than ever, what we put into our body. It’s as if the message finally got through: we are what we eat, and we want to eat better and be better.
