Dive Brief:
- Chocolate makers have made an effort to align with common millennial concerns, such as sustainable sourcing and organic ingredients. But when it comes to chocolate, millennials may not be as concerned with these issues, according to a study published in the journal Food Quality and Preference earlier this year.
- These issues are generally important to this generation. But when it comes to private chocolate purchases, younger millennials (ages 18 to 20) were more focused on flavor and labels with ingredients they recognized rather than advertisements for ethical sourcing. Older millennials, however, were concerned with whether chocolate was organic, fair trade, GMO-free, and environmentally sustainable.
- Hershey funded the study, which was conducted by Kansas State University researchers.
Dive Insight:
Environmental sustainability and social responsibility do tend to be important to millennials, more so than older generations. But this study suggests once again that millennials — or any generation — shouldn't be targeted as one massive group because their interests, concerns, and preferences are too varied.
This study also demonstrates that what consumers demand or discuss on social media does not always reflect their purchase decisions. The 2015 Sweetener360 report confirmed this disconnect. Among millennials, nearly half said it was worth it to pay more for better-for-you sweetened products, more than any other age group. But millennials made up about 22% of consumers who buy high fructose corn syrup-sweetened foods and 21.2% of all products sweetened with sugar.
Another more recent study showed that a smaller percentage of millennials agreed they "ate healthy all day yesterday" compared to Gen X, baby boomers, and Traditionalists. A larger percentage of Gen X and baby boomers in the study also said they ate at least five servings of fruits and vegetables for four out of the past seven days compared to millennials.
Despite millennials driving health-related changes in the food and beverage industry, their attitudes toward health and wellness are not always reflected in their purchases or eating habits.
While this study was funded by Hershey, it hasn't raised the same red flags as other recent industry-funded research. The study's results don't directly promote chocolate sales and don't draw conclusions about the nutritional benefits of chocolate.