We looked at reformulating a classic breakfast, improving nutrient profile, cost, and environmental impact. Read on for a round-up of the results.
Here’s what we changed:
- Two thick sausages that were fried in vegetable oil were replaced with one thick sausage that was grilled.
- Three bacon rashers that were fried in corn oil were replaced with two reduced salt bacon rashers that were grilled.
- Two fried eggs were swapped out for one poached egg.
- The black and white puddings were removed and replaced with grilled tomatoes.
- The number of grilled mushrooms was increased from 63g to 100g.
- A large hash brown originally 84g was replaced with a smaller version weighing 40g.
- 1 slice of sourdough bread was swapped for two slices of wholemeal bread.
- The butter was removed from the recipe.
Reformulation results: nutritional profile
The reformulated dish had under half the number of calories, with just 714 rather than the original 1,886. This reduction of 1,172 calories is equivalent to 4 x 100ml chocolate-coated ice creams! At the same time, overall fat dropped from 120g to 31g, and saturated fat from 34g to 9.5g. Salt content fell from 10.2g to 3.5g.
Reformulation results: sustainability
We also saw stark results in the environmental impact of the dish. Greenhouse gas emissions dropped from 2.78kg to 1.19kg, changing the Foodprint sustainability score from an E to a D. The CO2 saved would have taken a tree 26.49 days to absorb — equivalent to traveling 0.41km on the London underground.
In addition, the water saved per serving was reduced from a whopping 3,018L to 1,350L — a saving equivalent to spending 111 minutes in the shower.
Reformulation results: production cost
Once again, we were pleasantly surprised by the cost savings per portion. The original Full English cost €3.37* per portion, compared to the reformulated version with a much lower cost of €2.02. Assuming 50 covers per day, this saving of €1.35 per portion adds up to a monthly saving of €2,025.