45 Per Cent Of The Nation Reckon They Eat Together Less As Now Than A Decade Ago

An orchestra stopped commuters in their tracks as they played a tune entirely from vegetables and kitchen utensils – with Strictly Come Dancing's La Voix on vocals.

The 'home grown' instruments included carrot recorders, potato flutes and butternut squash horns, with the unique ensemble performing a jingle urging people to go home for the day and to make time for dinner.

The orchestra performed the tune at 5pm on the dot, signalling home time and more importantly, dinner time.

The performance by the 'HelloFresh Kitchen Orchestra' took place on London's South Bank, as commuters made their way to London Waterloo.

It comes after a poll, also commissioned by the meal-kid brand, found 45 per cent reckon they eat dinner together as a family less now than a decade ago.

The poll of 2,000 adults found 35 per cent reckon mealtimes are also happening later than they used to.

This is due to time spent planning what to eat, waiting for family members to get home, or work commitments leading into the evening.

With a fifth of workers saying they only leave their job on time for dinner twice a week or less.

It also emerged the perfect dinnertime would be 6:28pm, but only 40 per cent manage this on a daily basis.

And people typically eat alone on two days a week – for 17 per cent this is a daily occurrence – while families manage four evenings around the table together.

Mimi Morley, senior recipe development manager for the meal kit brand said: "They say breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but they're all vital.

“When you've had a long day of work, parenting or anything else, a proper meal at the end of it is often what keeps a lot of people going.

“But there are barriers to not only how often we eat together as families, but the times we get to do so.”

Despite many not eating with others as often as they would like, 47 per cent think doing so can build stronger relationships and bonds.

While 39 per cent believe it can make meals more enjoyable, and less routine, with people to talk to over them.

And 84 per cent believe it's important for people to eat together with others, be they family, friends or flatmates.

As 31 per cent typically feel stressed about finding the time to cook and eat on a weeknight, according to the OnePoll figures.

Mimi Morely added:“Nobody should get stressed when trying to get a meal on the table, whenever that might be.

“Little changes like meal planning, meal preparation earlier in the week or even quicker solutions can help resolve some of these issues.

“It's important not to let meals start to feel like routine, so people can truly enjoy what they're eating, and who they're eating it with.”

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