FooDS FOOD DEMAND SURVEY Volume 5, Issue 12: April 16, 2018 About the Survey FooDS tracks consumer preferences and sentiments on the safety, quality, and price of food at home and away from home with particular focus on meat demand. FooDS is a monthly on-line survey with a sample size of at least 1,000 individuals, weighted to match the US population in terms of age, gender, education and region of residence. See the online technical document for more details. MEAT DEMAND Willingness-to- Pay Last Year: April 2017 Last Month: March 2018 Steak Chicken Breast Hamburger Pork Chop Deli Ham Chicken Wing Beans & Rice Pasta $6.21 $5.03 $4.26 $3.27 $2.04 $2.04 $2.18 $2.81 $7.78 $5.06 $4.34 $3.38 $2.15 $2.26 $2.24 $2.70 April 2018 $6.84 $5.47 $4.24 $3.83 $2.31 $2.76 $2.51 $3.09 % change -12.08% 8.1-2.3 13.31% 7.44% 22.12% 12.05% 14.44% (March - April) Compared to one month ago, willingness-to-pay (WTP) increased for all food products, except for steak and hamburger. WTP for chicken wings, followed by pork chops, saw the largest percent increase among meat products compared to one month ago. WTP for all meat products is higher than one year ago, except for hamburger. FOOD EXPENDITURES Current weekly Current weekly Anticipated change in at Anticipated change away from at home away from home home in next 2 weeks home in next 2 weeks April 2017 $91.93 $52.39-0.42% -1.12% March 2018 $94.13 $53.47-0.33% -1.02% April 2018 $95.13 $54.65-0.25% -1.66% % change (March - April) 1.06% 2.21% -------- -------- Expenditures on food eaten at home increased 1.06% from March to April and expenditures on food purchased away from home increased 2.21%. Consumers expect an increase in beef and pork prices compared to one month ago. Consumers plan to buy more beef, chicken, and pork compared to last month. Plans to eat out increased compared to last month.
0.5 Consumer Expectations Apr-17 Mar-18 Apr-18 FooDS Page 2 0.4 0.34 0.34 0.37 0.3 0.25 0.26 0.2 0.19 (Difference in Agree and Disagree) 0.1 0-0.1 I plan to buy more chicken 0.05 0.03 0.02-0.04-0.09-0.04 I plan to buy more beef I plan to buy more pork I plan to eat out more I expect higher beef prices 0.11 0.13 0.07 0.06 0.06 I expect higher chicken prices 0.11 I expect higher pork prices -0.2-0.3-0.28-0.33-0.29-0.4 AWARENESS & CONCERN TRACKING GMOs, Salmonella, and E. coli were the most visible issues in the news over the past two weeks. Awareness for all items increased relative to last month. The largest percent increase in awareness from March to April was for lean finely textured ground beef followed by beta-agonists. Salmonella, E. coli, and hormones ranked as the top three food safety concerns in April. The largest percent increase in concern from March to April was for greenhouse gas followed by mad cow disease. The largest percent decrease in concern from March to April was for pink slime followed by battery cages. Awareness of Food Issues Last Year: April 2017 Last Month: March 2018 Apr-18 % Change (March 2018 - April 2018) 3 9% 7.66 8% 6.70 6.74 6.86 7.06 7% (Ranking: 1 = Nothing; 5 = A Great Deal) 2 5.11 5.88 4.17 3.06 5.44 2.87 3.88 3.33 5.18 4.22 3.43 6.12 6% 5% 4% 3% % Change 2% 1.50 1% 1
Concern for Food Issues FooDS Page 3 Last Year: April 2017 Last Month: March 2018 Apr-18 % Change (March 2018 - April 2018) 4 4% 2.95 3% (Ranking: 1 = Very Unconcerned; 5 = Very Concerned) 3 2 0.57 0.88 1.61 0.91 1.33 1.19 0.70 0.76 1.77 1.15 0.71-1.17 0.27-1.04 0.67 0.34-0.67 2% 1% -1% % Change 1-2% GENERAL FOOD VALUES Taste, safety, and price were consumers most important values when purchasing food this month. Consumers food values remained similar to those in past months. Similar to last month, consumers reported that their main challenge was finding affordable foods that fit within their budget. Finding foods that fit within my budget was the challenge experiencing the largest percent increase, while losing weight was the challenge experiencing the largest percent decrease. In April, about 8.1% of participants reported having food poisoning, a 13.5% decrease from last month. About 5.1% of respondents reported being vegetarian or vegan. Consumer Challenges Consumer Values March April % Change March April 6 8% 0.8 6.57 5 6% 0.6 4.14 (Ranking: 1 = Least; 7 = Most) 4 3 2-3.35 0.09-3.34 2.73 4% 2% -2% -4% % Change 0.4 0.2 0-0.2 1-5.91-6% -0.4 0 Finding affordable foods that fit within my budget Avoiding certain nutrients or ingredients Finding convenient alternatives Losing weight Finding time to cook at home Avoiding Finding foods my pesticides, added children will eat hormones and antibiotics -8% -0.6-0.8
AD HOC QUESTIONS FooDS Page 4 Several new ad hoc questions were added to the survey this month relating to people s preference for insects and food. Half of the participants answered a series of questions with pictures and the other half of participants answered the same questions without pictures. The first question stated: I am willing to try cookies made with cricket flour at least once. Participants were asked to rank their preference on a seven point scale, where 1 = strongly disagree and 7 = strongly agree. Half of the participants were given a description of cricket flour cookies with text and a picture and the other half saw only text. Of the participants who were given a picture of cricket flour cookies, about 42% stated they would be willing to try them at least once, whereas 48% stated they would not try them. Those participants who were given a text only description of cricket flour cookies about one third of participants stated they would try them once and 57% stated they would not try them. I am willing to try cookies made with cricket flour at least once. With Picture Without Picture 7 6 57.4% 5 47.9% Percent of Respondents 4 3 42.4% 33.5% 2 1 9.7% 9.1% Agree Neither agree nor disagree Disagree
AD HOC QUESTIONS FooDS Page 5 The second question stated: I am willing to try a milkshake made with cricket flour at least once. Participants were asked to rank there preference on a seven point scale, where 1 = strongly disagree and 7 = strongly agree. Half of the participants were given a description of a milkshake made with cricket flour with text and a picture and the other half saw only text. In both scenarios, over half of the participants stated they would not be willing to try a milkshake made with cricket flour. About 39% of participants who saw a picture of a milkshake made with cricket flour, agreed they would try it at least once. About one-third of those given the text only description would be willing to try a milkshake made with cricket flour. I am willing to try a milkshake made with cricket flour at least once. With Picture Without Picture 6 55.7% 51.3% 5 4 39.1% Percent of Respondents 3 2 32.9% 1 9.6% 11.4% Agree Neither agree nor disagree Disagree
AD HOC QUESTIONS FooDS Page 6 The third question stated: I am willing to taste oysters least once. Participants were asked to rank there preference on a seven point scale, where 1 = strongly disagree and 7 = strongly agree. People think of eating insects as something that is distasteful or uncommon. The same is often heard in regards to eating oysters. Oysters were added to the set of questions to show differences in people s opinions on eating oysters versus insects. Half of the participants were given a description of oysters with text and a picture and the other half saw only text. The majority of participants in both categories agreed they would be willing to try an oyster at least once. About 29% of participants who saw a picture of an oyster stated they would not be willing to try an oyster, where as 35% of participants with text only stated they would not be willing to try and oyster. I am willing to taste oysters at least once. With Picture Without Picture 7 61.7% 6 57.1% 5 Percent of Respondents 4 3 28.7% 35. 2 1 9.6% 7.9% Agree Neither agree nor disagree Disagree