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The Food Marketing Institute (FMI) has recently published their 2009 U.S. Grocery Shopper Trends report. Here are some interesting tidbits:

1. A three stage behavior in cutting back on food spending:

stage 1 – switching from sit down fare to fast food restaurants.
stage 2 – supermarket strategies – coupons, private brands, basic ingredients, shopping lists.
stage 3 – switching store formats to super centers and warehouse clubs.

2. There are less impulse buys. People preparing shopping lists in advance. (Reminder: previous research has shown that 60-75% of the products purchased in a supermarket are unplanned.)

3. Over half the people surveyed cook more meals at home this year compared to last. 92% claim they eat healthier at home than they would outside. Still,   over half believe they could eat even healthier.

4. Consumers are still seeking time saving and affordable solutions for home: half are interested in easy to make recipes.

5. Retailers are providing tools and information online and in stores to help customers make healthy choices at the supermarket, including nutrition and health information (71%) and even in-store nutritionists (6%).

6. Despite the recent food safety crises (salmonella, swine flue, and the likes) over 80% of shoppers are confident of the safety of food in the supermarket. Most would like to see safety improve, though. Consumers are twice as  comfortable with food from the United States compared to imports.

7. Local and sustainable are still strong trends, despite the recession.

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