David Saunders
Gen Z are skipping breakfast more than any other age group, dodging the first meal of the day twice a week on average — a modern ritual of running late, juggling screens, and generally pretending mornings don’t exist. And they’re not alone. Britain, it turns out, is sprinting straight past the cereal bowl at full tilt.
The national pace is absurd. The average Brit squeezes breakfast into a measly 13 minutes, and one in seven (14%) stuff it into five minutes or less — a performance best described as “Olympic eating while already halfway out the front door.” A new study of 2,000 UK adults, commissioned by UFIT, shows that while 44% of us still believe breakfast is essential, reality has other ideas. Most simply don’t have the time, the appetite, or the willpower.
Only 7% of Gen Z say they never skip breakfast. Compare that with the 27% of the wider population who manage to eat it most days, and you start to see how the younger generation’s morning routine has become a negotiation between sleep, screen time, skincare, and the faint hope of nourishment.
UFIT, expanding beyond its protein shake roots with the launch of its new Protein Cereal, wanted to know what mornings really look like across the country. The answer: chaos, caffeine, and digital distraction. In short, skipping breakfast has become a national habit — or a national hazard, depending how hungry you are.
Scrolling Instead of Scrambled Eggs
Breakfast al-desko is no longer a shameful admission; it’s a standard operating procedure. Roughly one in four Gen Z (26%) eat at their desk, compared with around one in five adults overall. The desk has become the breakfast table, the phone is now the placemat.
And for many, the first bite of the day isn’t food. It’s TikTok. Gen Z are trading toast for timelines: 19% choose extra sleep, 18% stay in bed scrolling, 15% faff about with outfits, and 11% focus on skincare. The morning routine has turned into a miniature spa session with a side of blue light.
Millennials aren’t far behind either — 17% of them also prioritise skincare over eating anything substantial. Once upon a time, people washed their faces and ate toast. Now we have serums and under-eye patches taking precedence over porridge.
A lack of appetite only makes matters worse. For over a fifth (22%) of Gen Z, breakfast “doesn’t feel worth the effort,” and for 20%, it’s just a chore. When you’re tired, hungry, late, and convinced you can survive on vibes alone, skipping breakfast starts to seem almost logical.
What We Do Eat When We Can Be Bothered
Given the time pressure, Britons are clinging to the old reliables. UFIT’s research revealed the country’s top picks:
| # | Breakfast |
|---|---|
| 1 | Cereal |
| 2 | Toast with butter or jam |
| 3 | Porridge / oats |
| 4 | Fruit |
| 5 | Eggs on toast |
| 6 | Bacon sandwich |
| 7 | Granola |
| 8 | Boiled egg and soldiers |
| 9 | Smoothie |
| 10 | French toast |
Simple, familiar, fast — the sort of food you can shovel down while praying the bus waits 10 more seconds.
UFIT Steps In With Faster Fuel
Angie Turner, Head of Marketing at UFIT, doesn’t mince words: “Just because you’re busy doesn’t mean you need to miss breakfast. We know mornings can feel rushed, especially for younger people balancing sleep, commute, routine and wellbeing habits, but your first meal is what sets up your focus and energy for the day.
“We know the likes of cereals and porridge are top picks for Brits at breakfast, so we created UFIT Protein Cereals and Porridge, as well as Breakfast Shakes, for exactly those mornings. They’re quick, tasty and packed with protein. So, if you only have five minutes to eat in the morning, or you’re running out the door, you don’t need to skip the most important meal of the day.”
It’s a fair point. If we’re going to keep skipping breakfast, we may as well have something we can drink faster than we can doom-scroll.
To make mornings easier, the brand has now launched its new UFIT Brekkie Shakes — a literal “breakfast in a bottle.
Quick, portable, and — crucially — possible to consume while running for public transport. For a generation that treats mornings like a competitive sport, it might just be the compromise that gets breakfast back in play.
