How adventurous are you when it comes to picking your lunch each day?

What do you plan on having for lunch today?

Published 13th Feb 2017
Last updated 13th Feb 2017

It seems 4 out of 5 of us are bored of what we eat in the middle of the day, with millions of office workers opting to eat the same lunch every single day!

That’s according to a new study commissioned by New Covent Garden Soup.

It found over three quarters (77%) of us have the same lunch on repeat, with lack of inspiration, convenience and costs cited as the main reasons for sticking to the same old fare.

Over half of us say we’ve been doing this for as long as we can remember, with the humble ham sandwich topping the list of most commonly repeated lunch, followed by cheese and chicken sandwiches, salads and baguettes.

Egg sandwiches, pasta and jacket potatoes are also lunchtime staples.

Top 5 most common repeat lunches

  1. Ham Sandwich
  2. Cheese Sandwich
  3. Chicken Sandwich
  4. Salad
  5. Baguette

Our affair with uninspiring lunches is not helped by the fact that during the working week Brits take a lunch break on only 3 out of the 5 working days. Even when we take a break it lasts just an average of 32 minutes, with almost half of all workers eating lunch at their desk.

Top 5 reasons for having the same lunch:

  1. It's easy
  2. It's cheap / cost effective
  3. It's just habit
  4. It's healthy
  5. I don't know what else to have

72 per cent of people say they have the same meals time and time again because it’s easier, while another 45 per cent think it works out cheaper or more cost effective than mixing it up. Others put the same lunches down it being habit (37%), healthy (19%) or simply having no idea what else to have (19%).