Study: Millennials devote larger shares of grocery spending to prepared foods than other generations
The study found that Millennials, on average, devote less of their food budgets to grocery store (food at home) purchases and make fewer trips to the grocery store than the other generations examined.
Millennials—those born between 1981 and the mid-2000s—are now the largest living generation—surpassing Baby Boomers—in the United States. That’s why their purchasing behavior greatly influences the current retail landscape.
But, are the food shopping habits of Millennials different from other generations? A new study from Economic Research Service (ERS), Washington, D.C., analyzed a recent year of grocery store data to see how Millennials’ purchases differ from those of older shoppers. The study found that Millennials, on average, devote less of their food budgets to grocery store (food at home) purchases and make fewer trips to the grocery store than the other generations examined. Millennials are demanding healthier and fresher food—including fruits and vegetables—when making food-at-home purchases, and they place a higher preference on convenience than do other generations.