Someone, somewhere, has a hobby. And that hobby is working out which industries are in decline, then pointing the finger at ‘young people’. (Actually older Millennials are almost 40 now - Housing Minister Robert Jenrick was the first ever Millennial member of the cabinet - so not actually that young). In recent years the much maligned generation of Millennials have been accused of offing breakfast cereal, laundry detergent, diamonds, doorbells, beer, raisins, marmalade and golf. The latest in that line? Microwaves.
That's right, according to a new poll by cookware brand Pyrex, Millennials throw away the equivalent of 633 meals a year because they don't know how to reheat food aka use a microwave.
The research found that people aged 18 to 34 (so also some of Generation Z then), waste more than three times as much food as people over 34 with 23% of Millennials admitting they don't know how to deal with leftovers.
'These findings are a reflection of the fast-paced and sometimes unpredictable lives Millennials lead,' Pyrex spokesperson Alexandra Blyth said in a press release. 'It is arguable that Millennials' jobs and social lives can mean that finding quick options for food are often more appealing than planning in advance and ensuring that all food in the fridge is used up.'
'As they tend to be busy people their experience of easily available meals may mean more food is thrown away but it is easy to give life to leftovers,' she added.
But given that people up to the age of 25 would be considered Gen-Z and those aged over 34 would also be Millennial's until the age of 40, it seems this may be yet another sweeping generalisation of Millennial's that frankly, doesn't reflect the entire generation. Much like all of these other things Millennial's supposedly killed...
Tea
Despite the fact that spilling the tea is a popular Millennial hobby, we are apparently killing the tea industry. Or more specifically, the builder's tea industry. Predictably, the generation that made wellness into an industry and supported the creation of Goop, are more into fancy, unusual teas than they are into a standard cup of Yorkshire Gold, which means that sales of your basic black tea are waning. But not all herbal or fruit teas are safe either. Chamomile is also apparently on the way out. Sorry chamomile.
The full English breakfast
Earlier this year it transpired that one in five Millennials have never had a fry-up, suggesting that the full English breakfast is on the decline. Concerns about health were cited, as was the rise of veganism and vegetarianism. The occasional side-eye was thrown, suggesting that young ‘uns are turned off by the ‘English’ in full English breakfast, which seems very unlikely. Quite possibly the fact that fewer and fewer young people are drinking to excess might play into things. Afterall, a full English without a hangover isn’t a true full English.
More popular breakfast choices now include smoked salmon with scrambled eggs, avocado toast or porridge.
Greeting cards
You’d think it was a good thing that we’re increasingly less inclined to cut down trees in order to reassure the people in our lives that we love them, but no, we’re getting the blame once again. American card shop Papyrus has shut its doors, and according to Forbes, others will follow, as we send messages or ecards (really? Has anyone ever sent an ecard?) in lieu of actual physical cards. According to the Wall Street Journal{
The blame is split, apparently, between environmental concerns about the impact of sending said cards, and the fact that we no longer have to use the post to wish someone a happy birthday. The good news is that as sustainability becomes more and more widely held value, you can probably claim that you’re not spending money on stamps and cards anymore because you care about the planet, rather than that you’re tight.
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