Wednesday, January 21, 2004

Research study bites into ‘What America Eats’

By Lillian Vernon

Based on the old expression “You are what you eat,” America is a melting pot of cereal, sandwiches, pizza and chocolate.

That’s just a morsel of information from Parade magazine’s biennial “What America Eats” research study. The survey of adults 18 to 65 was designed to identify key trends in the food marketplace and the American kitchen, and the implications for product development.

Among some of the survey's key findings are:

• Over the past 10 years, time spent in the kitchen for meal preparation has dropped from 49 minutes to 29 minutes.

• Nearly one in three American adults (31 percent) claim to be “on a diet” at any given time.

• Italian cuisine remains the most popular ethnic food to cook/ eat (85 percent), but Mexican is a very close runner-up (81 percent).

• Today, 91 percent of consumers use “convenience foods,” compared to just 69 percent of consumers in 1993.

• Compared to two years ago, 41 percent of consumers are eating more chicken and 29 percent are eating less beef.

Breakfast

The survey found that 66 percent of Americans eat breakfast during the week, compared to 71 percent who eat breakfast on Sunday. An estimated 76 percent of people eat breakfast at home during the week, with cold cereal ranking as the top breakfast choice, followed by a bagel, roll, muffin or toast.

Lunch

While the number of options are plentiful, ranging from salad bars and new fast foods to gourmet wraps and convenience foods, the sandwich remains the favorite lunch choice among Americans-more than twice as popular as fast food, the #2 choice.

Snacking

The majority of adults snack in the evening, while kids tend to snack in the afternoon. Chips (either alone, or with salsa or dip) are the favorite snack of both groups-and have been for the past 10 years. However, popcorn is close behind.

Comfort food

Not surprisingly, pizza ranks as the #1 answer to the question “If you were stranded on a desert island, which one food could you not live without?” However, it is only the #3 choice for “favorite comfort food,” following chocolate and ice cream. As for guilty pleasures, more adults would head to the bakery for a sweet treat, rather than reaching for the ice cream or chocolate.

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