Have you ever calculated how much money you spend on eating out over a year?
If you check, we’re sure the number is going to surprise you and show you you've been eating out a lot more than you actually thought. For most Americans, going out to dinner is a unique experience and they even see this as a treat.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics report published in December 2020, the average U.S. household spent an average of $3,526 on eating away from home in 2019.
For comparison, the average U.S. household spent on eating away from home in 2015 was an average of $2,678. This is a significant rise of 32% since 2012.
The number of Americans who prefer cooking at home is in a massive decline in the last few years, whereas the prevalence of food delivery startups shows growth.
In a Harvard Business Review study, researcher Eddie Yoon shares data he’s gathered over two decades working as a consultant for consumer packaged goods companies. He found that Americans fall into one of three groups:
15% of people said they love to cook
50% of people said they hate to cook
35% of people are ambivalent about cooking
He says that he did a similar study in the last couple of years and the numbers had shifted: Only 10% of consumers now love to cook, while 45% hate it and 45% are lukewarm about it. This says that 90% of Americans don’t like to cook and it’s costing them thousands each year.
These numbers combined with the fact that today there are more ways than ever to order food thanks to the development in the delivery industry, cause more people to prefer to eat out instead of cooking at home. This significant change in the Americans consumption habits could affect in a negative way on the grocery industry.
The household spent on eating away from home is going to grow even more in the next few years. The growth is going to be affected more than ever by the technologies that help restaurants cut down on lines. Technologies make life easier for all of us. Even people love to cook, find it easier to order their food with a few clicks. Today, People are more busy and have a lack of time. When they’re hungry they can easily order their food with a simple few clicks in the app while they stay at home, keep doing their tasks and meanwhile get the food they want faster and easier. It’s so much easier.
The Future of cooking at home Is in Your Hands
The growth of fast food in America seems to overlap with the growth of obesity in the United States. The Obesity Action Coalition (OAC) reports that the number of fast food restaurants in America has doubled since 1970. The number of obese Americans has also more than doubled. This increase shows high correlation between these two facts.
Convenience food is typically high in chemical additives, hormones, sugar, salt, fat, and calories.
It all starts with education. Eating out may cause obesity, heart disease, depression, affect central nervous system and have negative other effects on our body. We should educate ourselves and our families for healthy nutrition. There is nothing healthier more than cooking at home.
Today there are numerous kitchen gadgets that can make the cooking process much easier and faster such as vegetable slicers. These kitchen tools help you save a lot of time and effort when preparing your meals.
Cooking at home is also a great way to spend time with our family lovers and you don’t have to be a professional cook for that. There are so many food books and blogs teaching all kinds of recipes, so you can easily learn to prepare healthy meals that can have real benefits for your mental and physical health and more than that on your financial balance.
