So what is JERF?  JERF stands for Just Eat Real Food, and it’s all about going back to a grassroots way of eating un-mucked-with produce that our great-grandparents would recognise as food. Sarah Wilson, founder of I Quit Sugar, says: “It gets us back to eating the way our grandparents ate, before the onset of modern metabolic disease.”

Why it’s the simplest way to eat well

By necessity, Just Eating Real Food pretty much rules out everything that comes in a packet or box. And by “crowding out” your plate with vegetables, proteins and quality fats, you replace sugary, processed food with nutrient-dense sources of energy.

How to JERF

Not sure where to start? Here are the top four tips for those interested in JERFing

1. KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid): Go back to basics and choose food with the least number of ingredients. Simplify and focus on quality not quantity. Shop at farmers markets. As well as loading up on real superfoods (broccoli! asparagus! zucchini!) this means you will be buying local and in-season produce. While you’re at it, make every attempt to avoid waste by using all parts of your produce.
2. Eat what you can see and name. Don’t recognise the number on the label? Don’t eat it. Keep it simple when dining out and order foods that you can identify. For example, grilled fish and veg, or the weekly roast at the pub (there it is – meat and vegetables and potatoes, no mystery!).
3. Eat like it’s 1934. Go back to the way your grandparents used to eat. Meat and three veg, real butter, the whole egg, chicken skin.
4. Make it yourself: Cooking is the best way to JERF. Sarah says, “Learning to cook is not negotiable”. It means you know what’s going into your food and it’s a skill you will keep for a lifetime.