Eating at Home is Here to Stay. NewsWire

NewsWire: 5/27/21

• A new study suggests that most Americans are going to stick to eating meals at home post-pandemic. Both adults and children are eating more meals at home, and families are eating more meals together. (Supermarket News)
• NH: Eating at home instead of dining out has been one of the biggest shifts of the pandemic. (See “Is Covid-19 Making Us Eat Healthier?”) And according to this Acosta study, it’s going to persist even after life returns to normal.
• Since the lockdowns started, nearly two-thirds of respondents (65%) said that they cook at home more and are eating “far more” meals at home. This shift spans breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and applies to both adults and children. The shares of adults and kids who eat lunch at home have risen 14 and 15 percentage points, respectively, since the pandemic began. Meanwhile, the share of families who eat dinner at home every day has nearly doubled from 18% to 31%.

• Over the past year, the vast majority of families plan to continue eating together at home at least as often--or more often--as they do now. Fully 72% said that their household’s current meal routine will stay the same, while 20% said they expect to eat together more. Similarly, 68% plan to cook the same number of meals at home, while 19% plan to cook at home more.

• Eating at home, of course, is not synonymous with cooking. Some respondents who say they’re eating at home may be referring to takeout meals or delivered meals or meal kits. These findings don’t necessarily spell doom for the restaurant industry. That said, 42% of respondents said that they don’t plan to return to dine-in restaurants for at least four months or are not sure when they’ll come back. A slightly smaller share (40%) said they want to dine out within the next month.
• People’s reasons for eating at home also vary widely. Those who switched due to pandemic-related safety concerns may be ready to resume their old habits--but those who say they like eating at home for health, convenience, or family reasons are less likely to switch back. These are the Americans that supermarkets are hoping to hold onto as reopenings continue.