When I was a kid growing up, I didn’t know what yogurt was. Times change and so do people’s eating habits. According to Hoard’s Dairyman, “in the past decade, one food has risen to the top, experiencing the most growth in the American diet:YOGURT!”
The NPD Group’s National Eating Trends study tracks the eating habits of American families. The popularity of foods is measured by how many people consume a particular item at least once, every two weeks. Since 2004, people consuming yogurt at least once every two weeks rose by 12.5 percent. USDA data supports this trend with estimates that Americans are eating about 15 pounds of yogurt per year, up from 7 pounds in 2001.
Following in second place, in terms of growing popularity, was bottled water, up 10.7 percent. Meanwhile, third on the list is another plus for the dairy industry. The number of people eating pizza, at least once every two weeks, rose 9.6 percent. Other foods that experienced the most significant growth in the last decade were poultry sandwiches, Mexican foods, fresh fruit, snack bars, frozen sandwiches, chips, and pancakes.
In a society that seems more health conscious than ever, the report interestingly found a noticeable reduction in the consumption of products marked as lower calorie, reduced fat or with other similar health claims.
People are turning to their own kitchens rather than restaurants for food. Americans purchased 191 restaurant meals per person for the year ending in August 2014, which was the slowest pace of eating out since 1993. The latest numbers show consumers are now getting eight out of 10 meals from home, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they are cooking more.
Based on the foods that have grown in popularity, people are still looking for convenience and choosing items that take little preparation to make. It appears that America is trying to be more health conscious. It sure seems like someone can come up with a pill that will reduce my midsection!
