Whole Foods, Headspace provide mindful cooking tips

Whole Foods Market has recipes to brighten your mood, and the retailer is sharing them through a new digital project.

Recently, the retailer has been hosting digital recipe events and virtual classes that promote its store brands while connecting with shoppers over cooking. The latest initiative is an IGTV series called “Food for Mood,” featuring chef and food advocate Sophia Roe cooking up foods that inspire a happier mood, while also discussing ways to connect mindfulness with food, leaning on author and Harvard nutritional psychiatrist Dr. Uma Naidoo.

There will be four episodes being presented throughout the month of March on the Whole Foods IGTV page.

The videos are launching as part of a broader collaboration between Whole Foods Market and Headspace, an app dedicated to mindfulness and mental training. The retailer has a Headspace page where shoppers can go and redeem a one-month trial of the app. There are also three meditations on mindful shopping, cooking and eating listed on the page, as well as a link and info about the IGTV videos. There’s also additional content on mindfulness subjects.

“After a year of dramatically shifting routines and priorities, we know customers are eager to reprioritize well-being, and the beginning of spring is a great time to reset your meals and renew your mind,” said Kylie Bentley, registered dietitian and team leader for nutrition and compliance at Whole Foods Market. “Whole Foods Market is a well-known destination for nutritious food that inspires wholesome meals. Now, together with Headspace, we are able to provide exciting tools for mindfulness.”

A survey conducted by The Harris Poll on behalf of the retailer found that 85% of respondents would like to take steps to improve their overall well-being around health and happiness — both physically and mentally. Additionally, 79% of consumers said they want to learn to eat more mindfully. By teaming with Headspace, a leader in meditation and mindfulness, Whole Foods said it wanted to help provide the tools to help shoppers as well as become a one-stop destination for holistic, total body well-being needs.

“Mindful eating is so much more than just paying attention to our food — it encompasses finding joy and inspiration in our shopping, being present and intentional with our meal preparation, savoring what’s on our plate and developing a greater awareness of how it makes us feel or contributes to our well-being,” said Eve Lewis, Headspace director of meditation. “Our goal at Headspace is to improve the health and happiness of the world, and we’re thrilled to work with Whole Foods Market to spark more inspiration and refresh our mindset around our daily routines and experiences with food.”