20-Somethings Embrace Clean Living
Young adults seeking control in uncertain times find their fun in knitting, meditation, vegetables
Source: WSJ
By Ellen Byron
March 12, 2018
They drink less alcohol, eat more vegetables, cut back on meat, meditate often, enjoy knitting and make their own pour-over coffee. Meet the “clean lifers,” the young adults who revel in dodging the indulgences of their elders.
“In terms of living an objectively healthy lifestyle, this group is inspiring the older generations,” says Sam Calagione, chief executive and founder of Dogfish Head Craft Brewery Inc.
The brewery joins a host of other product makers targeting young adults who aspire to moderation but still might want to buy a beer, brownie pan or a packaged salad. Many young adults, having grown up during the recession, pursue healthful living as a way to find balance amid the global uncertainty that continues today.
Mr. Calagione, 48 years old, created SeaQuench Ale, a low-alcohol, low-calorie brew with middle-aged, slowing-metabolism drinkers like himself in mind. But sales took off among young, fitness-minded adults, propelling SeaQuench Ale to be Dogfish Head’s fastest growing beer. “We didn’t think it would be pulling in all these whippersnappers to the degree it has,” says Mr. Calagione.
‘Talking about how drunk you got the night before used to be a badge of honor, but this new generation would roll their eyes at that.’ -Michael Acton Smith, co-chief executive and co-founder of Calm.
This year, Dogfish Head plans to target the “après-yoga” moment with its Namaste White beer, a low-alcohol brew flavored with orange and lemongrass, by holding promotional events at yoga studios. The company this year started selling the beer-named after the respectful greeting used in yoga classes-in the 12-ounce cans that young adults prefer. “The portability of cans dovetails with their active lifestyle outside, hiking, boating or skiing-the pack-in, pack-out crushability of the can is a big factor with them,” says Mr. Calagione.
So-called clean lifers, typically educated 20- to 29-year-olds, pursue healthy living as a way of asserting control and finding comfort in an unstable world, says Alison Angus, an analyst for Euromonitor, a market-research firm, which this year identified the group as one of the top ten emerging forces shaping consumer behavior. “They feel they can make a difference, and this influences their spending choices,” Ms. Angus wrote in a research note. “This means more saying no: no to alcohol; no to unhealthy habits; no to animal-based products and, increasingly, no to unmeasured or uninformed spending.”
In the past people ages 35 to 50 were the biggest users of Calm.com Inc.’s meditation app, but recently those in their 20s have matched them in numbers. College students are the app’s most active users, with many turning to it three times a day, often for guided meditation in the morning, peaceful music selections during the day and a softly told “Sleep Story” at night. “This age group is influenced by their peers, especially on social media, and within that there’s this echo chamber continuously talking about meditation, mindfulness and healthy living,” says Michael Acton Smith, co-chief executive and co-founder of Calm. “Talking about how drunk you got the night before used to be a badge of honor, but this new generation would roll their eyes at that.”
Mondays and Tuesdays are usually off-limits for socializing, says Royal Brown, a 27-year-old in Dallas. “Those are my yoga nights,” she says. Ms. Brown, who works in sales in the publishing industry, says older colleagues sometimes rib her about ordering mocktails at work events and choosing healthy restaurants for meetings, making sure the menu has vegetarian appetizers, a selection of salads and some fish entrees. “You don’t want everything to be fried,” Ms. Brown says. “And fresh foods taste really good.”
Ms. Brown isn’t a vegetarian, but says she likes having the option and lately has asked friends for vegan cookbook recommendations. She visits farmers markets about twice a month for produce and regularly makes her own peanut butter. “It’s nothing too special, but it has less sugar and it tastes a little fresher,” she says.
Consumers aged 18 to 34 increased their annual per capita consumption of vegetables by 7% last year over the year before, according to market research firm NPD Group. Meanwhile consumers aged 55 to 64 decreased their vegetable consumption by 13% over the same period.
That doesn’t mean young adults expect their vegetables to be bland. Their preference for strong, creative flavors, multiple components and different textures drove the development of Earthbound Farm’s organic chopped salad line, introduced last year, says Alan Ediger, chief commercial officer for the company, a unit of DanoneWave. The Asian Style Chopped Salad Kit, for example, includes tahini dressing, tamari seeds, cilantro and wonton strips to sprinkle on top of the included red cabbage, Romaine lettuce and kale. “Certainly the more sophisticated preferences are led by the millennials,” says Mr. Ediger.
In recent years Earthbound Farm also expanded the recipe section of its website, trying to accommodate those determined to eat more vegetables but unsure of how to make them taste better. Young adults are in particular need because many of their parents didn’t cook meals from scratch, Mr. Ediger says. “They might not have learned recipes or how to follow recipes.”
Young adults now use pour-over coffeemakers at twice the rate of the general population and are replacing their electric-drip machines with the simple porcelain devices, says Chris Hillman, vice president of marketing for Melitta USA, a unit of Melitta Group. “There’s nothing more minimalist than a pour-over cone on top of a cup with a filter and coffee and pure water poured on top of it,” he says. “It’s a very Zen-like, ritualistic process.”
To attract more young adults, last year Melitta started rolling out pour-overs in new colors and materials, and recently introduced a “filmmaker series” of online videos highlighting how coffee made with a pour-over is easy, fast and handcrafted. “You’re controlling the process, and the personalization aspect of it is very important for millennials,” says Mr. Hillman.
Young knitters and crocheters, ages 18 to 34, are learning the craft at about twice the rate of those aged 35 to 54, according to a recent survey by the Craft Yarn Council, a trade group. “Young people are looking for community and yarn crafts provide that,” says Jenny Bessonette, executive director of the group. Most yarn crafters say it gives them a sense of accomplishment and helps them cope with stress, she says.
Young adults seeking to balance indulgence with portion control helped drive sales of Chicago Metallic’s Slice Solutions brownie pan set, which includes dividers to create 18 brownies. These consumers’ active, healthy lifestyles and desire for creativity means they can enjoy baking, says Tom Mirabile, senior vice president of global trend and design for Lifetime Brands Inc., which owns Chicago Metallic. “Millennials and Gen Zers have a much greater sense of balance, they’re less guilty about indulgences because they’re better to their bodies every day,” says Mr. Mirabile. “With boomers, we didn’t start working out until things started falling apart.”
Priya Desai, an executive assistant in Oklahoma City, has attended about five “wine and paint” classes, her term for gatherings at bars that involve painting a canvas with the help from an instructor. Ms. Desai, 31, says she has no more than two glasses of white wine at these events. “I cap myself to be on the safe side, but it does make you a little more creative,” she says.
When hanging out with friends, Ms. Desai prefers doing an activity, and has hung her completed artwork in her home. “There’s a sense of accomplishment when you have a good time and you complete something,” she says. Next week, she plans to go to a local bar for her first event with Plant Nite, an organization that teaches participants to make terrariums.