Volume 3, Issue 10: February 12, 2016 FOOD DEMAND SURVEYagecon.okstate.edu/faculty/publications/5167.pdf · FooDS FOOD DEMAND SURVEY Volume 3, Issue 10: February 12, 2016 Food Demand

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FooDSFOOD DEMAND SURVEY

Volume 3, Issue 10: February 12, 2016

Food Demand Survey | Oklahoma State University | [email protected] Lusk | Regents Professor & Willard Sparks Endowed Chair | 405-744-7465

Susan Murray | Research Specialist | 405-744-4857This project is supported by a Willard Sparks Endowment, the Oklahoma Agricultural Experiment Station, and the

Agricultural and Food Research Initiative Competitive Program of the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture.

FooDS tracks consumer preferences and sentiments on the safety, quality, and price of food at home and away from home with particular focus on meat demand. FooDS is a monthly on-line survey with a sample size of at least 1,000 individuals, weighted to match the US population in terms of age, gender, education and region of residence. See the online technical document for more details.

About the Survey

Compared to last month, willingness-to-pay (WTP) for steak, deli ham, and chicken wings fell (note: the date of this month’s survey fell after the Super Bowl), and WTP increased for chicken breast and particularly hamburger and pork chops.

MEAT DEMAND

Expenditures on food eaten at home increased 1.12% from January to February and expenditures on food purchased away from home increased 2.18% relative to last month. There was a large change in price expectations; consumers expect lower meat prices than they did a month ago. Consumption expectations were stable. Plans for eating out increased slightly compared to last month.

FOOD EXPENDITURES

Willingness-to-Pay

Steak Chicken Breast

Hamburger Pork Chop Deli Ham Chicken Wing

Beans & Rice

Pasta

Last Year:February 2015

$7.92 $5.05 $4.54 $3.81 $2.78 $2.23 $2.31 $2.97

Last Month:January 2016

$7.43 $5.34 $4.36 $3.94 $2.67 $2.43 $2.50 $3.59

February 2016 $7.39 $5.36 $4.68 $4.20 $2.65 $2.27 $2.54 $3.54

% change(Jan. - Feb.)

-0.54% 0.37% 7.37% 6.60% -0.75% -6.58% 1.60% -1.39%

Current weekly at home

Current weekly away from home

Anticipated change in at home in next 2 weeks

Anticipated change away from home in next 2 weeks

February 2015 $94.57 $53.90 -0.08% -1.32%

January 2016 $97.48 $49.91 -0.63% -1.56%

February 2016 $98.57 $51.00 -0.30% -1.44%

% change(Jan. - Feb.)

1.12% 2.18% -------- --------

http://agecon.okstate.edu/files/Survey%20Info%20(pdf4556).pdf




Consumer Expectations FooDS Page 2

E. coli, Salmonella, and GMOs remained the most visible issues in the news over the past two weeks. The largest percent increase in awareness over the last month was for bird flu. Among the most visible issues, the largest percent decrease from January to February was for farm animal welfare and greenhouse gases. E. coli, Salmonella, and hormones were ranked as the top three concerns during February. The largest percent increase in concern was for greenhouse gas. The largest percent decrease in concern was for lean finely textured ground beef and pink slime, and for gestations crates and animal welfare.

AWARENESS & CONCERN TRACKING

Awareness of Food Issues




Concern for Food Issues FooDS Page 3

Taste, safety, and price remained consumers’ most important values when purchasing food this month. Consumer values remained similar to those in past months, with a decrease in perceived values of convenience and nutrition and an increase in perceived values of safety and appearance. Similar to previous months, consumers reported that their main challenge was finding affordable foods that fit within their budget. Finding time to cook at home and finding food children will eat remained the least pressing challenges. The challenge of finding convenient alternatives increased by 4.38% from one month ago. In February 4.43% of participants reported having food poisoning, a 3.02% increase from one month ago.

GENERAL FOOD VALUES

Consumer Challenges Consumer Values




FooDS Page 4

Several new questions were added to the survey this month. Some questions related to GMO safety beliefs were added, but they will be discussed separately.Given the busy election season, we asked respondents, “Who do you plan to vote for in the presidential primary election?” A list of 16 options was then provided. The majority of respondents replied “I don’t know”. Donald Trump (R) and Hilary Clinton (D) were the two candidates with the most planned votes, followed closely by Bernie Sanders and “I do not plan to vote.” After Trump, all other listed Republican candidates garnered a cumulative 16% of the anticipated vote.Just for fun, we took a look at how some of the answers to other survey questions varied with anticipated presidential voting (recognizing of course that the sample sizes are relatively small for each candidate, and thus the margins of errors wide). Donald Trump supporters had the highest concern for E. Coli and placed the lowest relative importance on the food values of naturalness and the environment; Trump supporters were the biggest beef, pork, and overall meat eaters (but ate the least chicken breast). Sanders supporters eat the least beef, pork, and total meat. Clinton and Sanders supporters placed the least relative importance on food prices. Clinton supporters were the most concerned about GMOs, and placed the highest relative importance on naturalness, nutrition, and environment when buying food.

AD HOC QUESTIONS

Presidential Candidate Support




FooDS Page 5AD HOC QUESTIONS

Means of Foods Issue Variables by Candidate Support

Documents

Volume 3, Issue 10: February 12, 2016 FOOD DEMAND SURVEYagecon.okstate.edu/faculty/publications/5167.pdf · FooDS FOOD DEMAND SURVEY Volume 3, Issue 10: February 12, 2016 Food Demand