Heat shifts BBQ timing and rewards easy-to-cook meat formats

Extreme heat did not remove barbecue occasions from the UK summer of 2026; it shifted cooking times and strengthened demand for easy formats. That is the finding of an AHDB analysis using Worldpanel by Numerator data for the 16 weeks to 6 September. There were 69.5 million scratch-cooked barbecue occasions. During heatwave periods, 46.1% of barbecue consumption took place after 7 pm, compared with 28.3% across the summer as a whole.

The signal matters for assortment planning. Average spend on a barbecue main meal reached £5.10, against £2.71 for an average main meal. The share of occasions involving four or more people also rose from 32.3% in 2025 to 38.1% in 2026. Barbecues remained a higher-value social occasion, even as demand adapted to timing and temperature.

Results differed by protein. Summer beef-cut volumes rose 11.5%, with beef burgers an important driver. Pig-meat volumes fell 2.5%, while added-value products—especially steaks and marinades—performed more resiliently than sausages. Lamb declined overall, but lamb kebabs grew 27.5%. Chicken wings, legs and thighs also expanded.