Changing Cooking Behaviors & Attitudes: Beyond Convenience

Table of Contents

• CHAPTER 1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
  • Hot topic
  • The future decoded
    • Everyday meal occasions are still increasingly characterized by convenience
      • Consumers are time poor and suffering from limited cooking skills
      • Basic cooking tasks are now seen as difficult by many consumers
      • Cooking is a low priority in allocating free time
    • Consumers are increasingly keen to cook exciting, flavorful and interesting meals themselves
      • Consumers are seeking authenticity in their food
      • Scratch-cooked foods have strong comfort associations
    • Cooking behaviors and attitudes are affected by the conflicting convenience, health and sensory mega-trends
    • Home cooking is emerging as a "status skill"
    • Cooking behavior is influenced by occasion
    • Lifestage has a direct impact on cooking behaviors and attitudes
  • Action points
• CHAPTER 2 THE FUTURE DECODED
  • Introduction
  • Key findings
  • TREND: Everyday meal occasions continue to be increasingly characterized by convenience
    • The fragmentation of mealtimes continues to fuel the convenience trend
      • Mealtimes are being missed
      • Out-of-home meal consumption is increasingly common
  • TREND: Cooking from scratch occasions will decrease under pressure from more convenient options
    • European consumers still opt for scratch-cooking most frequently
    • Fully- and part-prepared meals now lead scratch-cooked in the US
    • Looking ahead, scratch-preparation will be pressured more in Europe than the US
    • Proliferating prepared premium options are making it easier to choose convenience at-home
  • Consumers place meal preparation low in terms of prioritizing their free time
    • Time-intensity and ease influence frequency of different cooking methods
    • Consumers would rather spend their time doing other things than cook
    • The value and role of mealtimes varies by region
  • Cooking skills have been eroded, promoting convenience options
    • European and US consumers experience similar problems in preparing gourmet-type meals at home
    • Culinary skills are not being passed down by generation
    • Basic cooking tasks are now perceived as difficult by many consumers
    • Lack of confidence in cooking may undermine healthy eating messages
    • Time is also seen as a barrier to healthy eating
  • TREND: Consumers are however increasingly keen to cook exciting, flavorful and interesting meals themselves
    • The home remains the central location for mealtimes
    • Scratch-prepared meals are still the most common meal-type
      • Scratch-prepared meals account for the majority share of dinners in Europe
      • Scratch meals hold the largest individual share in the US
    • Traditional cooking methods remain the most popular
      • Grilling leads based on ease, speed and health factors
    • Consumers are seeking more authentic foods and flavors
      • Home cooked foods offer that authenticity
      • Consumers are becoming more experimental
    • Home-cooked foods are a key source of comfort
    • Home-cooking can offer both economy and premiumization opportunities
    • At-home occasions are forecast to increase due to aging populations
  • TREND: Cooking behaviors and attitudes are affected by the conflicting convenience, health and sensory mega-trends
    • Consumers compromise between the three key mega-trends
      • Frequency of meal preparation by type shows the mega-trend compromise
      • "Top-up" shopping reflects the fragmentation of mealtimes and shift to convenience
    • Traditional mealtimes and food preparation choices are affected by reactions to stress
  • INSIGHT: Convenience is no longer a selling point on its own
  • INSIGHT: Home cooking is emerging as a "status skill"
    • The ability to home cook is increasingly valued based on its creativity, especially among younger consumers
      • Gender affects value of cooking as a status skill
  • INSIGHT: Cooking behavior is influenced by occasion
    • Entertaining at-home is widening in popularity
      • The dinner party market is strong
      • Young Adults are increasingly fueling the entertaining at-home trend
      • Family mealtimes built around home cooking are resurgent
      • Informal occasions still favor convenience options
  • INSIGHT: The kitchen is the heart of the home
    • The kitchen is a key social location
      • A new kitchen is inspirational in consumers' desire to cook
  • INSIGHT: home hygiene influences meal preparation choices
    • Food hygiene concerns can act as a countertrend to home hygiene improvements
  • INSIGHT: Lifestage has a direct impact on cooking behaviors and attitudes
    • Cooking behavior variation by age group: gourmet versus quick-and-easy meals
      • Gourmet meals incidence diminishes with age in the US and UK but France bucks the trend
      • Quick-and-easy meals have widespread appeal
    • Younger consumers are looking to cook more creatively, bucking usual stereotypes
      • The young are still limited by weak cooking knowledge
    • Mid-lifers seek increased indulgence
      • Early- and late-Mid-lifers' attitudes vary
    • Seniors balance convenience and comfort in their cooking
      • Older consumers plan their food purchases more
  • INSIGHT: Ethnic consumers spend more time on meals and cooking
    • Ethnic influences impact on mainstream cooking culture
  • INSIGHT: Cooking attitudes and behaviors show gender variation
    • Women are still the primary cooks despite the erosion of skills
    • Confidence in cooking skills varies with gender
      • Differing tastes along gender lines influence cooking motivation
      • Women are embracing convenience despite stereotypes
      • Men are more likely to cook gourmet-style meals at home
  • INSIGHT: Household living arrangements have an impact on the propensity for cooking or convenience
    • Food purchasing and preparation remains heavily gender-defined in shared households
    • Family cooking patterns reflect the tension between health, comfort and convenience
    • Singles lack the motivation to scratch-cook
    • Multigenerational catering in the home is increasingly common and problematic (adding to mealtime fragmentation)
  • INSIGHT: "Kitchen performance anxiety" is a negative consequence of the home-cooking trend
  • Conclusions
• CHAPTER 3 ACTION POINTS
  • Assist consumers in acquiring status skills
    • Aid consumers in building confidence in the kitchen
      • Educate consumers through recipe promotions
      • Promoting skills development will aid in building position as a trusted helper
      • Cater for differing levels of cooking ability and offer scope for consumers to improve
  • Exploit the emergent meal assembly trend
    • Meal assembly can bridge key mega-trends
      • Offer single meal through to bulk-buying opportunities
      • Co-branding opportunities will become more common as the assembly kitchen concept proliferates
      • Develop bulk-buying opportunities in part-prepared and ready meals
      • Offer consumers choice in the degree of cooking input (offer variable levels of convenience)
  • Develop crossover potential in convenience meal solutions
    • Develop more options for sharing
    • Pursue solutions that leverage the convenience needs of party hosts
  • Promote convenience options that target the differing comfort needs of consumers
    • Pursue convenience options that target traditional/home-cooked preferences
      • Such products can appeal to all age groups
      • Target Seniors' particular comfort and convenience needs
• CHAPTER 4 APPENDIX
  • Supplementary data
    • At-home dinner occasions
    • Frequency of meal preparation by cooking method
    • Frequency of gourmet meal preparation by age group
    • Frequency of quick-and-easy meal preparation by age group
    • Prepared dinner occasions in Europe and the US
  • Definitions
  • Research methodology
  • Further readings
  • Report writing team
  • How to contact experts in your industry
  • List of Tables
    • Table 1: Number of skipped breakfast occasions per head, Europe and the US, 2006-2011
    • Table 2: Number of skipped lunch occasions per head, Europe and the US, 2006-2011
    • Table 3: Number of skipped dinner occasions per head, Europe and the US, 2006-2011
    • Table 4: Europe & US number of at-home dinner occasions (per head), by preparation type, 2006
    • Table 5: Europe & US forecast number of at-home dinner occasions (per head), by preparation type, 2011
    • Table 6: Europe & US growth in at-home dinner occasions (%), 2006-2011, by preparation type
    • Table 7: Europe & US share of dinners prepared at home versus out-of-home (%), 2006
    • Table 8: Ranking of cooking method by frequency, Europe and US
    • Table 9: Incidence of cooking type (%), Europe and US
    • Table 10: Europe & US number of at-home dinner occasions (millions), by preparation type, 2006
    • Table 11: Europe & US forecast number of at-home dinner occasions (millions), by preparation type, 2011
    • Table 12: Europe & US prepared dinners, by segment, per head, 2006
    • Table 13: Definitions of other terms
  • List of Figures
    • Figure 1: Pressures on mealtimes motivate continuation of the convenience trend in cooking behaviors
    • Figure 2: At-home breakfasts fall as more occasions are missed or take place out-of-home
    • Figure 3: Lunches are meal occasion with the highest incidence of out-of-home consumption
    • Figure 4: Dinners remain predominantly at-home occasions but are under pressure
    • Figure 5: Microwaveable meals account for multiple occasions per week in both the US and Europe
    • Figure 6: Time intensive roasting and broiling are reserved for infrequent occasions
    • Figure 7: Consumers grill cook either very often or hardly ever
    • Figure 8: European and US consumers experience the same difficulties in scratch-preparing gourmet-style meals at home
    • Figure 9: Scratch-prepared meals account for the largest single shares of at-home dinners in both Europe and the US in 2006
    • Figure 10: Gourmet meals are prepared at home infrequently in the US and Europe
    • Figure 11: US and European consumers opt for convenient and quick meal options several times a week
    • Figure 12: US & European consumers aim to maximize healthy eating occasions
    • Figure 13: Convenience and mealtime fragmentation fuels the "top-up" shopping trend
    • Figure 14: Stress is a major factor responsible for convenience food sales along with busy lifestyles, but it also fuels an increased desire for comfort foods
    • Figure 15: Complete meal solutions can offer traditional comfort and convenience
    • Figure 16: The kitchen can influence consumers' cooking behaviors
    • Figure 17: Younger consumers in the US prepare gourmet meals most frequently
    • Figure 18: UK propensity for gourmet meal preparation is lower across all age groups
    • Figure 19: French consumers, in contrast, cook more gourmet meals with age
    • Figure 20: Quick-and-easy meal preparation is more consistent across the age divide in the US
    • Figure 21: Younger UK consumers prepare the most quick-and-easy meals
    • Figure 22: French consumers prepare quick-and-easy meals very frequently
    • Figure 23: Female consumers prepare healthy meals more frequently than males
    • Figure 24: Microwave cooking incidence is closely comparable between males and females
    • Figure 25: Women are less likely to prepare gourmet meals than men
    • Figure 26: US and European female consumers also opt for quick meal options more regularly than men
    • Figure 27: A number of factors are responsible for driving convenient approaches to food preparation and undermining scratch-cooking
    • Figure 28: Old El Paso ' Summer Sensations' recipe book emphasizes the brand' s versatility and that creativity can be fun and easy
    • Figure 29: The meal assembly model allows close alignment between convenience and premium quality attributes
    • Figure 30: Variety packs for prepared meals may allow companies to tap into the emergent bulk-buying trend
    • Figure 31: Stop N Shop ' Meals Made Easy' sort their product range by convenience/skill level
    • Figure 32: Sharing is a key trend emerging in convenience meal options
    • Figure 33: Convenience and comfort can be married in ready meal offerings
    • Figure 34: Europe & US frequency of meal preparation involving baking
    • Figure 35: Europe & US frequency of meal preparation involving boiling
    • Figure 36: Europe & US frequency of meal preparation involving frying
    • Figure 37: Europe & US frequency of meal preparation involving roasting/broiling
    • Figure 38: Europe & US frequency of meal preparation involving grilling
    • Figure 39: Europe & US frequency of meal preparation involving steaming
    • Figure 40: Europe & US frequency of oven use
    • Figure 41: Europe & US frequency of meal preparation involving outdoor cooking
    • Figure 42: Germany: frequency of gourmet meal preparation, by age group, 2006
    • Figure 43: Italy: frequency of gourmet meal preparation, by age group, 2006
    • Figure 44: Italy: frequency of gourmet meal preparation, by age group, 2006
    • Figure 45: Netherlands: frequency of gourmet meal preparation, by age group, 2006
    • Figure 46: Spain: frequency of gourmet meal preparation, by age group, 2006
    • Figure 47: Sweden: frequency of gourmet meal preparation, by age group, 2006
    • Figure 48: Germany: frequency of quick-and-easy meal preparation, by age group, 2006
    • Figure 49: Italy: frequency of quick-and-easy meal preparation, by age group, 2006
    • Figure 50: Netherlands: frequency of quick-and-easy meal preparation, by age group, 2006
    • Figure 51: Spain: frequency of quick-and-easy meal preparation, by age group, 2006
    • Figure 52: Sweden: frequency of quick-and-easy meal preparation, by age group, 2006