Convenience and Nonconvenience Food Use in Single‐Person and Multi‐Person Households

Abstract

Households surveyed in the 1977–78 USDA Nationwide Food Consumption Survey were classified as either single‐person or multi‐person households, and the use of convenience and nonconvenience foods by each household size was studied. Trends in food use, based on share of the home food dollar spent on different types of foods, were similar for single‐person and for larger households. Both groups allocated the largest share of the home food dollar, slightly over half, to nonconvenience foods. Major demographic factors affecting convenience and nonconvenience food use were similar for the different household sizes. Nonconvenience foods contributed more nutrients than convenience foods for both single‐person and larger households, and levels of most nutrients were positively associated with the share of the home food dollar allocated to non convenience foods. In many cases nutrient levels were negatively associated with the share of the home food dollar spent on convenience foods.

Consumers' convenience orientation towards meal preparation: conceptualization and measurement

“…Convenience is conceptualized as consisting of not only time saving, but also energy saving and the transference of culinary skills. These aspects also appear in definitions of so-called basic and complex convenience food (Richardson et al, 1985). The distinction between basic and complex convenience food is that in basic convenience food only time and energy is invested, whereas in complex convenience food also culinary expertise is invested.…”

“…A popular definition is the one given by Traub and Odland (1979) (see e.g. Capps et al, 1985;Richardson et al, 1985). They defined convenience foods as``Any fully or partially prepared foods in which significant preparation time, culinary skills, or energy inputs have been transferred from the home kitchen to the food processor and distributor''.…”

Convenience as a Factor in Meal Preparation Among Health‐Conscious Adults

“…However, the way in which meal preparation is made more convenient may vary from redivision of labor among members to eating away from home or using &dquo;time-saving durables&dquo; (e.g., a microwave oven) (Reilly, 1982). Richardson et al (1985) reported that single-person households spent more of the food dollar on basic convenience foods, whereas larger households used more complex and manufactured items. The Richardson et al study did not differentiate multiperson households with children from those without children.…”

“…Numerous studies (Capps, Jr., Tedford, & Havlicek, 1983;Pearson, Capps, )r., Ã xelson, 1986;Pearson, Walters, Axelson, & Capps, Jr., 1986;Richardson, Pearson, & Capps, Jr., 1985) have used the 1977-78 U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Nationwide Food Consumption Survey data to determine the influence of household characteristics on expenditures for convenience and nonconvenience foods. Compared to larger households, single-person households spend a greater proportion of the home food dollar on basic convenience foods, or those products for which processing is more related to preservation than convenience in preparation (Richardson et al, 1985). However, larger households spend more of the home food dollar on complex and manufactured convenience foods, which have a high time-saving and/or energy-saving value (Richardson et al, 1985).…”

“…Compared to larger households, single-person households spend a greater proportion of the home food dollar on basic convenience foods, or those products for which processing is more related to preservation than convenience in preparation (Richardson et al, 1985). However, larger households spend more of the home food dollar on complex and manufactured convenience foods, which have a high time-saving and/or energy-saving value (Richardson et al, 1985). In addition, the age and sex of the household food preparer significantly affect convenience-food expenditures (Capps, Jr., et al, 1983), with male preparers spending more on complex and manufactured convenience foods compared to female preparers .…”