Britain’s appetite for bananas has hit record highs, with sales of the tropical fruit surging as health-conscious consumers turn to homemade smoothies and milkshakes, stated a recent report.
According to the latest data from Kantar Worldpanel, 70 million more bananas were sold across the UK last year, pushing the total market value close to £700 million. That equates to more than 80 bananas per adult annually, firmly cementing the fruit’s status as the nation’s favourite.
Supermarket giant Tesco alone sold an additional 15 million bananas in the same period, The Times stated. Dan Bentley, banana buyer at Tesco, attributed the surge to rising awareness around the fruit’s nutritional profile and its versatility in everyday cooking.
“Bananas have never been more popular on account of their nutritional qualities and versatility in cooking, baking, and in making smoothies and milkshakes,” The Times quoted Bentley as saying.
The banana boom is closely tied to the UK's growing obsession with home blending.
Nearly £500 million was spent on blenders last year, with Britain now accounting for almost a third of the European market, according to Cognitive Market Research.
The firm expects UK blender sales to rise by over 10 per cent annually for the next five years, driven largely by “the popularity of smoothies, soups and sauces”.
Social media has played a powerful role in shaping banana demand.
A viral blueberry banana bread recipe from London-based nutritionist Emily English garnered more than 100 million views last year, while TikTok creator Smoothie_guy has racked up tens of millions of views with his banana-laden tutorials.
Other influencers like Carleigh Bodrug, Holly Jade and Birmingham’s Adina Akhmetova (aka VeganGirlBoss) frequently incorporate bananas into their recipes, with Akhmetova’s peanut butter caramelised banana toast video alone approaching two million views.
Meanwhile, food waste charity Wrap has claimed that more than one million bananas are binned daily in the UK largely due to bruising and over-ripening.
To tackle this, supermarket Tesco has even launched a “ripen at home” banana range, designed to extend shelf life by around four days. The fruit packets will be clearly labelled to help shoppers plan their consumption better.
