Our Top Eating Habits!

What foods are on the top of our shopping lists these days?

How do American's eat? How have our eating habits changed? Well, according to a new report, Americans are sourcing more meals from home than they have in years. The NPD Group just released its 29th annual Eating Patterns in America Report. And the biggest change for American's over the past 5 years was a decline in restaurant usage and an increase in meals from home.

It’s not a huge surprise that since the recession, the number of meals Americans bought at restaurants dropped significantly, and it seems that’s not changing.  According to NPD’s latest report, Americans purchased 191 meals per person for the year ending August 2014, the slowest pace of eating out since 1993. 

But guess what, while Americans are eating more at home, the resort also shows that this doesn't mean we’re cooking more.  Ease and convenience are still the name of the game. So what’s on our shopping list these days?  According to NPD's report, the Top 10 Items that have increased the most in the American diet: Yogurt, then Bottled Water, Pizza, Poultry Sandwiches, Mexican Food, Fresh Fruit, Bars, Frozen Sandwiches, Chips and finally? Pancakes! 

It seems, consumers still want the convenience of eating out without the price. Snack items and convenient meals like pizza seem to be go-to items. But Supermarkets can use this data for their own benefit when it comes to their own prepared food offerings. Prepared hot foods as well as prepared salads and displays with meal suggestions and grouped ingredients are all ways to appeal to the busy shopper, allowing them convenient ways to eat well at home.