Copyright newsletter
Families here are being urged to ‘Bang in Some Beans’ as part of a UK-wide campaign to encourage greater consumption of beans, a major health focused initiative backed by leading food businesses, celebrity chefs and charities. They’ve joined forces to get the UK eating more beans as a new report finds diets low in beans are associated with up to 9,000 premature deaths every year. Taking the lead in Northern Ireland from the UK’s Food Foundation in the new dietary drive in favour fibre-rich beans is Food NI, the region’s primary food and drink promotion body. The Food Foundation is an independent charity that works to change food policy and business practices to ensure everyone can access a healthy, sustainable diet. It does this by conducting research, creating evidence, and advocating for change at the interface between academia, policymakers, and the public. The organization focuses on issues like food insecurity, childhood obesity, and the affordability and sustainability of food systems. The new ‘Bang in Some Beans’ campaign, aiming to get the UK eating more beans, pulses and legumes, has been launched with support from Jamie Oliver, Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall, Tom Kerridge and other celebrity chefs Lidl GB, Sainsbury’s, M&S, Ocado, Waitrose, Bidfood, ISS and Harvester are among the first food businesses to become ‘keen bean pledgers,’ making commitments to increase sales or servings of beans. Food NI’s Michele Shirlow says: “We are delighted to be supporting this important Food Foundation campaign here. "Beans are a real-life superfood and are a triple win for health, climate and affordability. “Beans are packed full of nutrients, are affordable and are sustainable to produce, meaning increasing their consumption at national level could help with each of these issues. “Beans are a high-fibre food rich in micronutrients like potassium, magnesium, iron, and zinc.. With only four percent of adults getting enough fibre and just 17 percent meeting their 5-a-day, increasing bean consumption could significantly improve UK diets. “Fibre supports digestion and lowers the risk of chronic diseases, such as bowel cancer. Health organisations all endorse the health benefits of beans. “Beans are also protein-rich and one of the few plant foods containing lysine, which aids calcium absorption and collagen production. They are cost-effective too – and the report finds they average 4.5 times cheaper per 100g than other plant-based meat alternatives,” adds Michele.
