Through the Consumer Food Insight, CFDAS surveys 1,200 households from across the United States every month and tracks trends and changes in consumer food demand and other food sustainability behaviors.
The CFI was established in January 2022. Since then, we’ve surveyed more than 50,000 American adults nationwide on a monthly basis. Our mission is to deliver timely insights into consumer perceptions, behaviors and preferences related to current events and the agri-food system.
Consumer Food Insights
Many consumers who rate their diet poorly acknowledge the need for change. However, only 1 in 4 consumers who say their diet needs improvement have made a health-related dietary change in the past month, according to the July Consumer Food Insights Report (CFI).
The public’s familiarity with the term “food insecurity” and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is mixed, with approximately 40% of Americans reporting they are only “slightly familiar” or “not at all familiar” with the concept and program, according to June’s Consumer Food Insights Report (CFI).
In this edition, we explore what consumers think about healthy diets and examine responses by self-rated diet quality. Additional questions explore consumer perceptions of and preferences for healthy food. What does “healthy food” mean to the consumer? What do they look for at the store? Do they believe in the connection between a good diet and a healthy life?
In this edition, we explore the last three years of CFI data disaggregated by U.S. Census region: (1) Northeast, (2) Midwest, (3) South and (4) West. Additional questions this month measure consumer perceptions of seed oils, which have come into the spotlight in recent months.
New questions this month explore consumer experiences with food prices and home food production. How do consumers describe current grocery prices? How are they adapting? Are they producing their own food? The report also includes urban-rural classification as part of its demographic analysis this month.
New questions this month explore consumer perceptions of processed foods. Do they know what they are? Are people concerned about their healthfulness? Why do they think people might choose them over unprocessed or minimally processed alternatives?
The new Consumer Food Insights results from Purdue University shows stress levels due to grocery prices are mixed, and most consumers are at least somewhat familiar with the concept of tariffs.
The new Consumer Food Insights results from Purdue University focus on consumer trends in 2024 and ahead to consumer diets and plans for 2025.
The new Consumer Food Insights results from Purdue University focus on changes in consumer food behavior and spending due to the recent natural disasters in the U.S.
The new Consumer Food Insights results from Purdue University explore “shrinkflation” at the grocery store.