American habits surrounding cooking, dining out, and buying groceries are as diverse as the people living there. America embraces a world of cuisine and is home to some of the most renowned restaurants in the world. But America also faces some unique struggles in the areas of health and food security. These facts aim to provide a complete picture of the state of food in America today.
8 Cooking and Grocery Facts
1. 78% of Americans say they are eating at home more often due to rising food costs. (Source)
Inflation significantly impacts food prices, driving up the cost of eating at restaurants, which leads many Americans to prefer home cooking. But are families simply changing where the extra expense goes? Many report increased spending on online grocery shopping and delivery.
2. Experts project that Americans will spend more money on food in the next five years. (Source)
Inflation definitely plays a major role, but since food is one of our greatest necessities, consumers must spend what they need to get a square meal. Busy families are willing to pay more on increasing convenience options like meal kits and grocery delivery.
3. Only 5 of the top 15 American grocers are supermarkets. (Source)
Supermarkets used to dominate the grocery market, but today there are more options. Discount stores like Aldi and Trader Joe’s are climbing the charts, and online grocery shopping is pushing Amazon to become the fourth-largest grocery seller.
4. America wastes about 120 billion pounds of food every year. (Source)
That’s about 40% of the American food supply and 325 pounds of waste per person. Food is taking up the most space in U.S. landfills, a tragedy when many people in the U.S. live with food insecurity.
5. “Best by,” “sell by,” and “use by” dates don’t indicate that a food has expired. (Source).
These labels show shoppers the date range that offers the best taste and quality. Food eaten after that date isn’t necessarily spoiled, but it may not taste as fresh as it could.
6. Women spend an average of 54.7 minutes per day preparing food. (Source)
This is compared to men who spend 39.4 minutes a day on food preparation. Overall, men spend more time preparing food than they did ten years ago. In fact, Americans as a whole now devote more time to food-related activities than they did a few years ago.
7. Cooking and drink-mixing are the second most popular pastimes in America. (Source)
Americans spend more time watching TV than they do cooking, but cooking ranks higher than socializing, reading, playing games, gardening, exercising, and volunteering.
8. 52% of Americans reported that doing taxes is easier than figuring out how to eat healthy. (Source)
Americans seem to lack quality nutritional education. Overall, many people eat fast food too often, but they save their healthiest choices for breakfast.
Featured image photo credit: Jack Sparrow
