50+ Consumer Survey Highlights Healthy Living and Diet Perceptions, Food Purchasing and Consumption Habits

Transcription

1 5+ Consumer Survey Highlights Healthy Living and Diet Perceptions, Food Purchasing and Consumption Habits In 216, commissioned a survey to gain insights into how the 5+ demographic makes eating decisions, perceives healthy diets and to understand consumption patterns related to nutritious food. strives to enhance timely, safe, appropriate and affordable nutritious food to the vulnerable 5+ community. This means not just getting food to the food insecure, but making sure that food is healthy, meets dietary needs and promotes a lifetime of wellness. We do this by redefining hunger as a health issue. As such, strives to: 1. Improve the nutritional quality, freshness and safety of consumed by the 5+ vulnerable population 2. Provide for efficient distribution systems that work to reduce cost and increase availability and to healthy, nutritious 3. Strengthen food knowledge to enhance buying power, purchasing habits and cooking skills that result in healthy, nutritious and age-appropriate meals Our research includes a deep dive into the 5+ consumer segment and a greater understanding around factors that contribute to the nutritional quality of one s diet and purchasing habits. The survey findings below reflect the results from a sample of 1,535 individuals aged 5+, stratified by age and income. It was conducted online using the nationally representative GfK KnowledgePanel. The summary of results is presented below in three sections: 1. Values; 2. Forms: Fresh, Frozen, Canned and; 3. Nutrition Information. 1

2 Values This section addresses the values and preferences individuals bring to their food and shopping choices. One of the most important values related to food choices is the desire to be healthy. Our survey shows that being healthy largely means what one might expect maintaining physical abilities and avoiding illnesses. In addition, the desire to live independently as an indicator of health increases with age, while the importance of a healthy weight declines. Being healthy means different things to different people. What do you think being healthy means? Maintaining appropriate weight Being able to do what you want physically Having no serious illnesses Having the ability to live independently Maintaining a nutritious diet Limiting unhealthy Limiting alcohol consumption Among older adults, being able to do what you want physically and having no serious illnesses aligned most closely with how one defined being healthy Maintaining appropriate weight Having the ability to live independently Age 5-59 Age 6-64 Age 65+ As we age, we think less about maintaining an appropriate weight and more about having the ability to live independently. Staying healthy and fueling your body are the prime reasons respondents give for eating. If forced to choose between taste or nutrition as the prime reason for food choices, taste is the overall preference among all respondents with clear gender and age differences women and those over 65 years old are more likely than men or those aged 5 to 59 to stress nutrition over taste. 2

3 How important are the following reasons to you for eating? To fuel your body To stay healthy To experience new To experience the I like The enjoyment of cooking The experience of eating with others Most older adults eat to fuel their body and to stay healthy. A significant number also eat to experience the food he/she likes. What is more important when considering the you purchase? Nutrition Taste Given the forced choice of nutrition or taste, most older adults value taste over nutrition. 8 6 Men Women Nutrition Taste Men Women When it comes to looking at this same forced choice by gender, more women value nutrition over taste while more men value taste over nutrition. 3

4 What is more important when considering the you purchase? Age 5-59 Age 6-64 Age Nutrition Taste As we get older, the importance of nutrition increases slightly while the importance of taste also drops slightly. The message about the benefits of fruits and vegetables has clearly gotten out since large majorities say these two food items are what they wish they could consume more often. However, cost is still the major barrier to greater consumption of fruits and vegetables. Do you wish you could consume the following more often? Fruits Vegetables Whole Grains Low-Fat Dairy Lean Protein The vast majority of older adults would like to consume more fruits and vegetables. More than half would also like to consume more whole grains and lean protein. For those you wished you could consume more often, what keeps you from eating those? Foods are too expensive Don't know how to prepare them Foods are not available where I shop I don't like the taste The cost of food is the largest barrier to consuming that individuals want more of. 4

5 Individuals over the age of 5 clearly link the choice of with maintaining a healthy lifestyle. While taste beats nutrition as the prime factor in food choice, age and gender influence this choice. The fact that persons over 65 show a growing interest in nutrition underscores how older adults link food selection to maintaining their health and remaining independent two prime concerns for older persons. Respondents are also aware that certain are to be consumed more often and many take steps to do so. But barriers remain with the cost of being most significant. Forms Fresh, Frozen, Canned This section addresses how consumers perceive the healthfulness of fresh, frozen and canned fruits, vegetables and beans. It also uncovers frequency of use for each form as well as reasons for use. In general, fresh is perceived as the healthiest form, followed by frozen and then canned. Use of fresh fruits and vegetables is the highest among all forms yet remains low when compared to overall dietary recommendations. Individuals tend to use fresh because of its health halo and because they like the taste. By contrast, individuals use both frozen and canned primarily because of their long shelf life and easy/quick preparation. Income also drives consumption of certain forms. Not surprisingly, the use of fresh fruits and vegetables rises with increased income; the converse is true for canned fruits, vegetables and beans. The frozen category is less income driven. How healthy do you think fresh are? Extremely healthy Very healthy Somewhat healthy Not healthy There is a strong health halo around fresh food, with 81 percent believing fresh are either extremely or very healthy. 5

6 For each of the following, is it a reason for you to use fresh? to frozen to canned Long shelf life Like the taste of fresh Lower price than canned or frozen Fresh are healthier Correct portion size Less waste Easy/quick preparation Fresh are used for a number of reasons, but the two primary factors are taste and healthfulness. How healthy do you think canned are? Extremely healthy 1 Very healthy Somewhat healthy Not healthy There is a mixed health perception of canned, with 65 percent believing they are somewhat healthy and over one-quarter believing they are not healthy. For each of the following, is it a reason for you to use canned? to fresh 18 to frozen Long shelf life 37 Like the taste of canned Lower price than fresh or frozen Canned are healthier Correct portion size 44 Less waste Easy/quick preparation Canned are used for a number of reasons, but the two factors that stand out are long shelf life and easy/quick preparation. 6

7 How healthy do you think frozen are? Extremely healthy Very healthy Somewhat healthy 3 Not healthy The health perception of frozen is better than canned but not as strong as fresh. Slightly more than half feel that frozen are somewhat healthy; only three percent feel that frozen aren t healthy. For each of the following, is it a reason for you to use frozen? to fresh to canned Long shelf life Like the taste of frozen Lower price than fresh or canned Frozen are healthier Correct portion size Less waste Easy/quick preparation Frozen are used for a number of reasons, but long shelf life and easy/quick preparation stand out as the primary factors. Roughly half of those surveyed noted that the taste and reduced waste are also reasons to use frozen. How often do you use these types of in preparing meals? Canned vegetables daily or a few times a week Frozen vegetables daily or a few times a week Fresh vegetables daily or a few times a week Canned fruits daily or a few times a week Frozen fruits daily or a few times a week Fresh fruits daily or a few times a week <$4k $4k-$59.9k $6k-$84.9k $85k-$124.9k $125k+ The type of form used to prepare meals is largely income driven for both canned and fresh. Canned food use decreases as income increases whereas fresh food use increases as income rises. 7

8 Consumption of fruits and vegetables remains significantly below daily recommendations. More nutrition education is needed about the healthfulness of all forms of. In addition, fruit and vegetable incentive programs can be promoted alongside sales, discounts and other offers to make these ible to more people. Particularly since a majority of individuals interviewed want to consume more fruits and vegetables, different avenues and programs should be pursued to ensure greater affordability of these. Recipes to enhance the taste of canned and frozen fruits and vegetables may also prove helpful in increasing fruit and vegetable intake. Nutrition Information This section addresses the information individuals seek and use when making food choices. For most shoppers, the primary resource for understanding the content of their is the nutrition facts panel on many food items. About two-thirds read this panel sometimes or always, with women more likely than men to always or most of the time read the panel. Only 3 percent consider the nutrition facts panel very easy to understand, while half of the sample considers the panel somewhat easy to understand. Understanding rises with income but declines with age and presents a challenge for organizations dedicated to advancing the wellbeing of older adults. How frequently do you look at the nutrition facts panel when you are shopping for food? All or most of the time Sometimes Once in a while Never Nearly 7 percent of those surveyed state that they look at the nutrition facts panel all, most or sometimes when shopping for food. 8

9 How easy is it to understand the nutrition facts panel? Very or somewhat easy <$4k $4k-$59.9k $6k-$84.9k $85k-$124.9k $125k+ Lower income individuals find it more difficult to understand the nutrition facts panel. How easy is it to understand the nutrition facts panel? Very Very or or somewhat somewhat easy easy Age Age Age Age Age Age Those 6+ find it more difficult to understand the nutrition facts panel compared to 5-59 demographic. 9

10 Do you seek out that are the following? Low fat Low Low calorie Low sodium cholesterol Low carb Low sugar High fiber High protein Majorities seek lower in sodium, fat, calories, cholesterol, sugars, and higher in fiber and protein. It is encouraging that seeking out lower sodium, lower fat, and lower cholesterol increases with age. Do you seek out that are the following? Low fat Low sodium Low cholesterol Age 5-59 Age 6-64 Age 65+ Those in the older age bracket 65+ are more likely to seek out that are lower in fat, sodium and cholesterol compared to those in both the 5-59 and 6-64 demographic. Large majorities use the nutrition facts panel to make purchasing decisions. While older persons are the group least likely to understand the information on the nutrition fact panel, they are the most likely to say they want to make food choices that reflect lower sodium, lower fat, and lower cholesterol. This disconnect means that the group most likely to want the information on the facts panel are the ones least likely to understand it. For more information please visit aarpfoundation.org/ecurity works to ensure that low-income older adults have nutritious food, safe and affordable housing, a steady income, and strong and sustaining social bonds. We collaborate with individuals and organizations who share our commitment to innovation and our passion for problem-solving. Supported by vigorous legal advocacy, we create and advance effective solutions that help struggling older adults transform their lives. is the charitable affiliate of AARP. Learn more at aarpfoundation.org