Men Doing More Food Shopping Than Ever: Study

The fourth “How Men Shop for Food Study” from Men’s Health magazine has found that men are taking more responsibility for grocery shopping and cooking than ever, with 84 percent of them identifying themselves as the primary grocery shoppers in their households – a 19 percentage point increase over the past decade. The Rodale Inc. publication conducted the study online with Harris Poll among U.S. adult men to gauge their attitudes and behaviors in regard to grocery shopping, eating healthfully, preparing meals for themselves and others, and influence over purchasing decisions.

“The study’s results continue to challenge many gender stereotypes related to food shopping and cooking,” noted Men’s Health VP/Publisher Chris Peel. “Men have an active role in each stage of the food purchasing process –before getting to the store, while there and when cooking the food they’ve bought. Food retailers are uniquely positioned to appeal to men throughout this cycle and to evolve their marketing plans based on this compelling data.”

According to the study, men are not only taking more control of food shopping, but two-thirds (66 percent) of them are also deciding what to buy before arriving at the store. Thirty-five percent have been influenced by an online ad to try a new food or beverage, and 13 percent added specific brands to their shopping lists, up nine percentage points from 2010. Two-thirds (66 percent) of men who are married or living with a partner make use of grocery lists often or all the time, a 15-percentage-point increase from 2010, and almost all (98 percent) have input into the list.

Compared with a decade ago, more men are buying large groups of items at once, and by themselves. 70 percent are primary shoppers for big food trips (16 or more items), and 43 percent are making those trips alone. Guys are taking on pet food shopping, too, with 71 percent of male dog owners and 73 percent of male cat owners buying pet food at least once a month.

An increasing number of men are cooking, too, with 93 percent preparing meals for themselves and 77 percent making meals for others. Male consumption of online cooking videos is up significantly since 2010, the study found: Nearly half (48 percent) viewed such videos in the past 12 months, and 46 percent of those men watched on social media, up a whopping 39 percentage points from 2010. More men are trying out new food brands as well, with 86 percent having done so in the past 12 months.

Conducted online in the United States by Harris Poll on behalf of Men’s Health in March 2017 among 1,021 men ages 18 and older, the survey previously ran in 2013, 2010 and 2007, employing a similar online methodology and sample size.