October 10, 2003 Recent News
Eating that first meal can be first step in shedding pounds
C-store snack attack: marketing, packaging innovations continue to drive sales
USA: Children spend $10bn on food annually
Wealth changes Brit’s eating habits
Bill would prevent obesity lawsuits
UK: Government-backed GM debate reveals public skepticism
Eating that first meal can be first step in shedding pounds
People who eat breakfast can be less likely to become overweight, according to a study conducted by the University of Massachusetts Medical School published in the July issue of the American Journal Epidemiology. Eating breakfast helps to raise your metabolism and helps you to burn body fat. People who do not eat breakfast lower their blood sugar, which can often lead to overeating later in the day. Eating breakfast also improves your energy level and cognitive skills. According to Julie Walenta, a registered dietician, " a balanced breakfast should consist of protein, a carbohydrate, such as oatmeal or whole grain cereal, and a piece of fruit. A survey conducted in March, by Harris Interactive showed that only 38% of the 3,925 adults eat breakfast every day, yet 79% know the benefits of a good breakfast. The National Weight Control Registry, which tracks 3,000 people who have lost an average of 60 pounds and kept it off for more than six years, 80 % of this group eats a morning meal.
(Extracted from the Wilmington News Journal, 9/24/2003)
C-store snack attack: marketing, packaging innovations continue to drive sales
According to the 2003 Convenience Store News Industry Report, convenience store (c-store) sales of snacks have been growing at 6.5%, compared to a 4.8% growth in the overall snack market. By 2004, the c-store industry's share of the overall snack market is expected to reach 22%. Among innovative products are some packaged to fit in car cup holders, single serve sizes and Hispanic market targeted.
(Extracted from Convenience Store News, 8/25/2003)
USA: Children spend $10bn on food annually
According to research from Mintel, kids in the US account for $10 billion of the food market. Children receive allowances and money for chores, and they tend to be impulse shoppers buying foods and beverages that provide instant satisfaction, such as snacks. Almost 50 % of children snack after school and another 15% snack after dinner. Boys are more likely to snack after dinner and roughly 9% of children of either sex snack when they are bored. This shows that snacking is often not a response to hunger, but a desire for a particular taste sensation or as an activity. Active children are less likely to snack, simply because they have fewer opportunities to snack. Snacks are also purchased at school, 27% of children buy snacks at school through the cafeteria and 16% purchase snacks through vending machines at school. Most children accompany their parents to the grocery store and 75% purchase snacks while at the grocery store. Gas stations and convenience stores account for another 42% and 33% of snack purchases according to the Mintel survey.
(Extracted from just-food.com, 10/2/03)
Wealth changes Brit’s eating habits
According to a new report from Datamonitor, UK Consumer Trends: A UK-specific New Consumer Insight, people in the UK have been enjoying rising incomes over the past five years and this trend should continue. These consumers have high expectations about the quality of their life and the products they purchase. In the food and beverage segments consumers in the UK spent 3.8 billion pounds on gourmet and specialty foods, this number should rise to 5 billion pounds by 2007. Many British consumers also have health concerns, because they are eating and drinking more and the number of overweight Britons is on the rise. As of 2002, 28% of Britons are overweight and that number is predicted to rise to 30% by 2007. Over 22 percent of children under the age of 18 were either overweight or obese in 2002 or 2.8 million children and this number is expected to reach 3.1 million by 2007. However, UK consumers are becoming more health conscious and are spending more on vitamins, minerals and supplements. Purchases of these supplements have grown 250% from 340 million pounds in 1997 to 1.2 billion in 2002 and the sales of functional food and drinks grew to 429 billion pounds in 2002 up from 324 million in 1997. Changes in lifestyle have also changed eating patterns. Fewer people eat three meals a day at set times in their homes. Eating between meals is on the rise as well and Britons are eating on average 4.5 times a day. Snack consumption currently represents 42% of eating occasions. Thirty-two percent of all eating occasions occur outside of the home and this number is expected to rise to 35.5 % by 2007. Eating in the workplace is increasing as well. As people spend more time at work and have more flexible schedules, breakfast, snacks and early evening meal supplements eaten at work are increasing. Food consumption at work was valued at 10.1 billion pounds in 2002 and by 2007 this market is expected to reach 11.5 billion by 2007.
(Extracted from FoodProductionDaily.com, 10/3/03)
Bill would prevent obesity lawsuits
Restaurant owners say they are not to blame for the nation's obesity epidemic, and proposed legislation in the state of Wisconsin would shield them from any lawsuits that try to make that claim. The bill would also protect food distributors, manufacturers, packers and sellers from such claims, as well as marketers and advertisers. The leading supporter of the legislation is the Wisconsin Restaurant Association, and the bill is similar to federal legislation the National Restaurant Association is pushing before Congress.
(Extracted from The Capital Times & Wisconsin State Journal/AP, 10/6/03)
UK: Government-backed GM debate reveals public skepticism
A national debate sponsored by the UK Government demonstrates that many citizens do not trust the technology. The six-week long debate found that the more people learned about the technology, the more concerned they became. More that 50% of the participants were opposed to growing GM crops at all. And 86% did not want to eat GM food, while only 2% had no concerns about eating GM food. "There is little support for early commercialization of GM crops," according to the report. "They (the participants) seek varying periods of delay so that new information, test or research can identify and eliminate, or at least reduce to an acceptable level, the potential risk, " concluded the report. Margaret Becker, the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs says she will not ignore the findings in the report.
(Extracted from Just-food.com, 9/24/2003)
