Can we say Millennials are foodies? Yes. According to market research firm NPD, USA Millennials are outspending all other population groups on restaurants: $96 billion on food per year. A study from Ypulse, a youth marketing research firm, recently surveyed how the young Americans approach food and found many differences how people ages 13 to 33 eat. The survey results show all Millennials foodie trends: such as tapas, food trucks, farm-to-table, quinoa, craft beer and artisan everything.
MEN AND WOMEN – Around 42% of young men and women say they’re foodies. They were equally likely to try a trendy food, but differed on the type of trendy food they were likely to try. Men were most likely to have tried trendy types of beer, such as craft beer, beer bars and beer pairings. Women picked more healthy trends, such as spiralized vegetables and quinoa. Aesthetically pleasing dishes – such as meals served in bowls and poké (a raw fish salad from Hawaii) – were best at garnering female interest. Maybe this is due to the hype those foods get on Instagram and Pinterest to their female fandom.
GEOGRAPHY AND RACE – There are even bigger differences when it comes to geography and race. People from the West and East Coasts, followed by those in the Midwest, have tried more food trends compared with Southerners. Eighty-eight percent of people from the West said they had tried at least one trendy food, compared with 79 percent of Southerners. And those on the coasts had eaten a lot more of what was listed. That’s probably because many of these trends originate in the coastal urban areas. Besides, Southern cuisine has its own distinct trends and style.
THE RACE GAP – When it comes to trying these food trends there’s also a large race gap . African Americans are less likely to try trendy foods than Millennials of other races. Nearly a third of them reported that they haven’t tried any of the listed trends, compared with 15 percent of whites and Hispanics and 18 percent of Asians. Despite that, more young African Americans consider themselves foodies compared with the other races. Asian millennials were most likely of all to say they had tried a new food trend, and that’s likely because many trendy foods come from Asian heritage. Take poké, which 26 percent of Asians have tried compared with 4 percent of other Millennials. Fusion cuisine often includes Asian flavors: it’s twice as popular among young Asian-Americans. That might be why Asian American millennials are least likely to think of themselves as foodies. Eating raw fish or an otherwise American dish with rice noodles is hardly an unusual cuisine for them.