Celebrities from Halle Berry to Megan Fox to members of the Kardashian clan have been talking about the ketogenic diet, and Google Trends data indicates that general search interest in the weight loss approach has grown significantly.
ABC News wrote today about five coworkers at a Sprouts Farmers Market in Texas who have lost a combined 200 pounds on keto. At that store, two or three people each day talk with employees about keto, and the grocery manager has been advocating for a keto section, according to the article.
You know where we are headed with all of this — you need to be prepared to talk with shoppers about what items in your produce department will work for them as they try out this trendy diet.
If a guest asks for advice on going keto, you can direct him or her to any number of options – anything green is golden in the keto kingdom, and the fresh-cut section may have many of those options in a faster format, from Brussels sprouts to asparagus to squash to bell peppers.
Suggested prepared meal options can also be a big help to your shopper. Skewers with chicken or steak paired with vegetables are a perfect match for keto.
Talking with the shopper trying to follow keto is probably not the moment to defend the honor of all fruits and vegetables, as silly as we may think it is for someone to mostly deprive himself or herself of fruit and potatoes.
Keto is not the first low-carb diet to catch fire, and it will not be the last, but such programs are difficult to keep and not intended as long-term solutions anyway.
Support your shoppers as they experiment, and they should support you in return.