Dive Brief:
- According to a new survey conducted by Peapod and ORC International, 2017 will be the year of the home cook, with 72% of Americans reporting they already cook at home four nights a week on average.
- The report showed that 34% of consumers are expecting to cook dinner even more in 2017.The largest segment of these are millennials, who are twice as likely as baby boomers (49% compared to 24%) to follow through with this resolution in 2017.
- Consumers are mainly turning to home meal planning to save money (60%), eat healthier (59%) and waste less food (55%).
Dive Insight:
The Peapod and ORC International report showed that more than half of consumers would cook more at home if they had new ideas, so manufacturers should devote enough resources to ensure new recipes are available regularly.
Manufacturers can use tried-and-true methods by using labels to call attention to product health benefits, including corresponding recipe ideas on the package.
Additionally, manufacturers can target millennial and a digital-savvy consumers by offering weekly recipes for dinner ideas on their websites, then pushing those recipes to interested consumers through apps, texts or emails.
Some brands have even started recipe contests on social media where consumers post their own recipes. This brings more traffic to their websites, more coverage of the products and a greater interest among consumers.
Retailers can get on this trend as well, marketing to this growing class of consumers by showcasing recipes for at-home cooking next to their products and highlighting those products' health benefits.