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- US Cooking In America/Meal Planning and Preparation Consumer Report 2024
Enthusiasm for cooking at home is back on the rise after wearing thin in the late stages of the pandemic. Cooking frequency, enjoyment and interest in skill improvement have all notched increases over the last two years. Elevated prices and lingering financial uncertainty make the economics of cooking at home more appealing, but a number of other factors, including the efforts of grocery retailers and marketers, have helped to make cooking less of a chore and more of an adventure. Social media is also playing an increasingly important role in exposing home cooks to new ideas, tips and tricks.
While enthusiasm for cooking is on the rise, skill levels exist across a spectrum. Still most cooks at all skill levels express interest in improving their skills. The opportunity for retailers and marketers lies in meeting cooks wherever they are and taking them to the next level, whether that’s simplifying the steps it takes to make a few favorites or exploring the possibilities of new ingredients and cuisines.
This report looks at the following areas:
- Cooking motivation and frequency
- Cooking skills and desire to improve
- Change in cooking-related behaviors in the past year
- Reasons for choosing cooking at home over foodservice
- Reasons for choosing foodservice over cooking at home
- Sources for recipes and cooking ideas
- Attitudes toward cooking
Enthusiasm for cooking and interest in skill improvement are back on the rise, creating opportunities for marketers that can help take home cooks to the next level.
John Owen, Associate Director – Food and Retail
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Executive Summary
- What you need to know
- What consumers want & why
- Opportunities
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Market Dynamics
- Market context
- Market drivers
- Consumers remain uneasy about their finances, motivating many to look for ways to save on food
- Graph 1: assessment of personal financial situation, 2022-24
- Inflation easing faster on food at home than on foodservice
- Graph 2: percentage of total food spending, at home vs away from home 2020-24
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Cooking segments
- Segment factors
- Cooking segments
- Graph 3: cooking segments, 2024
- Enthusiastic cooks grow as unenthusiastic and avoidant cooks decline
- Graph 4: cooking segments, 2020-24
- Cooking segment demographics
- Enthusiastic cooks
- Aspiring cooks
- Unenthusiastic cooks
- Avoidant cooks
- Conflicted cooks
- Content cooks
- Non-cooks
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Consumer Insights
- Consumer fast facts
- Cooking frequency
- Most Americans cook, but many don't do it daily
- Graph 5: cooking frequency, 2024
- Cooking frequency is on the rise
- Graph 6: cooking frequency, 2021-24
- Women more likely to report frequent cooking
- Graph 7: cooking frequency, by gender and age, 2024
- Cooking sentiment and skill
- Most have a positive attitude toward cooking
- Positive view of cooking regains momentum
- Graph 8: attitude towards cooking, 2020-2024
- Enthusiasm highest among young adults
- Graph 9: attitude toward cooking – love or like a lot, by gender and age, 2024
- Ample opportunity to help home cooks improve their skills or just make things a little easier
- Most cooks aspire to skills improvement
- Graph 10: interest in improving cooking skills, 2020-24
- Interest in improvement cuts across age and skill levels
- Graph 11: interest in improving cooking skills, by age, 2024
- Graph 12: interest in improving cooking skills, by cooking skill, 2024
- Changes in cooking behavior
- A positive view of cooking translates to increases in most cooking behaviors
- Emphasize both practicality and food enjoyment to connect with younger adults
- Graph 13: changes in cooking-related behaviors, by age, 2024
- Motivations for cooking at home instead of dining/ordering out
- Most common motivations are practical, but many cook because they enjoy it
- Graph 14: motivations for cooking at home instead of dining/ordering out, 2024
- Older cooks especially likely to cite practical motivations
- Graph 15: motivations for cooking at home instead of dining/ordering out, by age, 2024
- For enthusiastic cooks, health can be as important as enjoyment
- Graph 16: motivations for cooking at home instead of dining/ordering out, by cooking segments, 2024
- Motivations for dining/ordering out instead of cooking at home
- Eating out is about enjoyment
- Graph 17: motivations for dining/ordering out instead of cooking at home, 2024
- Unenthusiastic cooks enjoy dining out, including the no-cooking and no-cleanup parts
- Graph 18: motivations for dining/ordering out instead of cooking at home, by cooking segments, 2024
- Sources for cooking inspiration/new recipes
- Traditional sources are still important, but social media is on the rise
- Graph 19: sources for cooking inspiration/new recipes, 2021-2024
- Young cooks drive the shift to social media as social media, in turn, helps to drive engagement among young cooks
- Graph 20: sources for cooking inspiration/new recipes, by age, 2024
- Aspiring and enthusiastic cooks look to a wider array of sources
- Graph 21: sources for cooking inspiration/new recipes, by cooking segments, 2024
- Attitudes toward cooking
- Strong emotions drive aspiring and enthusiastic cooks
- Graph 22: attitudes toward cooking, by cooking segments, 2024
- Younger cooks open to meal planning ideas and advice
- Graph 23: attitudes toward cooking, by age, 2024
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Innovation and Marketing strategies
- Launch activity and innovation
- Kroger launches Mercado, appealing to both tradition and cuisine exploration
- Value-added fresh products make home cooking a little easier
- Wegmans simplifies fresh cooking
- Marketing and advertising
- Making prepared foods a partner in home cooking
- The promise and challenges of social media for grocery retailers
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Appendix
- Segmentation definitions
- Consumer research questions
- Consumer research methodology
- Generations
- Abbreviations and terms
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