It’s officially 2026 and with the new year comes new trends that are set to define the way we eat in the coming months – and this year is all about eating your way to tip-top shape.
M&S has once again identified the top health and wellbeing food trends that will be steering consumers’ dinner table choices this year.
The retailer forecasted that social media trends such as ‘fibremaxxing’ are set to take over from the obsession with protein, while shoppers’ appetite for products that break out of the ultra-processed foods (UPF) mould continues to grow.
M&S is also introducing more than 90 new products to meet demand from customers for products that make it easier to opt for the healthier choice, developed alongside the British Nutrition Foundation.
A new high-fibre Nutrient Dense range designed with people taking weight-loss medication such as Mounjaro in mind will lead the supermarket’s additions.
There will also be new products in the Protein and Good Gut ranges, including high-protein and collagen ‘shots’ for ‘small, everyday convenience wins’.
Customers looking to cut UPFs from their diet will also enjoy an expanded range of Only Ingredients products.
Here are the top healthy food trends for 2026:
Fibremaxxing
M&S has revealed the food and wellbeing trends that will dominate 2026, including high-fibre foods, products designed for people on weight loss medications, and minimal ingredients
While protein was the buzzword of 2025, this year will be all about fibre, according to M&S.
Fibremaxxing began gaining traction on TikTok amongst people who wanted to increase the amount of fibre they eat, delighting health experts everywhere.
Eating a fibre-rich diet has been linked to a lower risk of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and bowel cancer, so experts are keen for Brits to eat more fibre – especially as the most recent data from the National Diet and Nutrition Survey showed the UK is still failing to meet basic dietary guidelines.
The survey, published last July, revealed that only four per cent of British adults were meeting the recommended daily intake of 30g of fibre per day and the average person consuming just 16g per day.
But M&S is aiming to change that by introducing high-fibre ingredients into its new Nutrient Dense range, including baobab tree pulp and artichoke fibre.
Louisa Brunt, M&S Senior Nutritionist, said it is ‘all about adding more of the good stuff to meals, rather than restricting or cutting things out – and we have created some fantastic products to help everyone do that in delicious ways’.
The Nutrient Dense range includes products that are all high in fibre and micronutrients like vitamin D, iron, folate and vitamin B12, as well as calorie-controlled.
For example, two slices of Nutrient Dense Super Seeded Oaty Bread with peanut butter already adds up to 15g of fibre, whilst the Nutrient Dense Roasted Butternut and Almond Grains Pot for lunch adds another 13g of fibre to a single day of eating.
M&S is also introducing the Nutrient Dense H5O shot made with coconut water, cold-pressed ginger juice, fruit and vegetable fibres and sea moss, as well as a combination of botanicals including ginseng, Japanese honeysuckle, yellow passionfruit, and green cardamom.
The shot was developed with the help of scientists at the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew, who selected the botanicals, and also includes 4g of fibre from baobab and Jerusalem artichoke.
Biohacking
Shoppers can turn to a range of juice shots and snack balls, as well as sprinkles and toppers to add to their meals to ‘biohack’ their way to wellness
Many people may be familiar with the word ‘biohacking’ thanks to youth-obsessed billionaire Bryan Johnson, 48, who became known for putting his body through a huge number of experimental tests and treatments in a bid to ‘live forever’.
But while most people wouldn’t be willing or have the means to undergo the same processes, interest in making changes to lifestyle and diet in order to optimise health, physical performance and mental function remains high.
M&S is leaning into the biohacking movement and introducing products that are aimed at helping customers make small dietary changes to benefit their health, especially in the long term.
Shoppers can now pick up a range of juice shots and snack balls, as well as sprinkles and toppers to add to their meals.
‘We know from the huge sales of our gut health shots how much customers like easy hacks to help their health, and now we have a whole host of similar “one and done” products that are so simple to use,’ said Claire Richardson, M&S Food Head of Product.
‘Our customers are also telling us that healthy eating should feel good, not hard, so our new biohacking shots and snack ranges, featuring the latest on-trend ingredients, from collagen to sea moss, it couldn’t be easier to hack your health.’
Kathryn Turner, M&S Product Development Director, added: ‘The slow ageing movement is also having an impact on what we eat.
‘People are looking at ways to prevent illnesses and live healthily now to impact on their health as they get older.’
‘Biohacking comes into this, in that it helps people make small changes now to hopefully reap the benefits later,’ she explained, adding that Gen Z are the ones who brought demand for functional foods and drinks to the mainstream.
Protein for all
Protein might not be centre stage anymore, but it certainly hasn’t been forgotten, with over a quarter of M&S customers actively seeking out high-protein choices in their food shop.
The retailer’s research also revealed that Ocado searches for ‘high protein’ are more than three times higher compared to this time last year.
However, the focus is now on eating a wide variety of proteins including plant-based proteins like lentils, nuts, seeds and beans, and not just meat, eggs, and cheese.
Last year, M&S introduced its High Protein range and found that one particular product flew off the shelves.
The Chicken Arrabbiata, featuring succulent chicken chunks in a fiery tomato sauce with roasted vegetables and spinach was a hit among protein-chasers as it contained 44g of protein per serving, one of the highest amounts in the range.
M&S Head of Food Trends Annette Peters said: ‘We understand now, more than ever, that we have agency over our health and food has power, so let’s help ourselves and the planet by upping our plant-based protein intake.
‘Protein is essential for so many things, one of which is helping to support the ageing process – for example, older people understand they need to eat protein to maintain muscle mass.’
Gut health
The craze for gut health is going nowhere, with over a quarter of M&S customers actively looking for ways to support their digestive system.
The supermarket’s Good Gut range was launched at the start of 2025 and was developed with Professor Tim Spector, professor of epidemiology at King’s College London and co-founder of the wildly popular nutrition programme ZOE.
Together, they launched the M&S x ZOE Gut Shot that is a fermented milk drink with live cultures, fibre and fruit.
Now M&S has expanded the range and introduced 16 new or upgraded products that feature the retailer’s new, unique to M&S Trimarks Blend, a blend of fibre, live cultures and trademarked PlentiBiotic that is ‘formulated to support gut health’.
Some of the new products in the range include Good Gut Mango and Passion Fruit Kefir Drinks, Good Gut Honey and Ginger Kefir Drink, a kefir yogurt multipack with mango and passion fruit and strawberry flavours, and a Mango and Apple Granola that contains wholegrain oats, spelt and barley flakes as well as holden linseeds, pumpkin and hemp seeds.
Minimal ingredients
M&S has introduced new products to its Only Ingredients range to meet demand for products with fewer additives and preservatives
Join the debate
Are health food trends like fibremaxxing and biohacking really helping us, or just marketing hype?
Brits’ awareness of the negative impact UPFs may be having on our health is growing and with it, demand for simpler ingredient lists that have more recognisable foods in them.
Avoiding additives and preservatives is now a top priority for a growing number of people, with nearly 19 million Britons saying they are steering clear of UPFs due to health concerns, an increase of almost 15 per cent compared to the year before.
According to Food Navigator, a further nine million said they want to make changes to their diet to limit UPF consumption.
M&S first launched its Only Ingredients range last year in response to these concerns and to bring new versions of everyday foods made with minimal ingredients.
This included corn flakes with just one ingredient (corn) and avocado oil crisps with just three ingredients (potatoes, avocado oil and sea salt).
The supermarket is adding new products to the range like the Tomato Ketchup and Olive Oil Mayonnaise, as well as Three-Ingredient Meatballs, Sliced White Toasting Bread and Bran Flakes.
More products are expected to be added to the range in the coming months, including ‘plans for fish fingers, baked beans, biscuits’ and more.