What are the real trends and traditions in the American diet? How are U.S. demographics changing and how will they impact food consumption? How do consumers view food product attributes, packaging, advertising, and brands? What can economics tell us about the changing consumer?

Drawing from deomgraphic data, marketing and economic theory, and consumer behavior and lifestyle research, Food Trends examines the underlying forces that influence these aspects of food production and the resulting implications for the entire food industry--from producer to retailer.

Professionals, educators, and researchers throughout the food industry will find Food Trends a ready resource for information on food consumption patterns, consumer behavior, and the food industry.

Contents:

1. Introduction: Major Trends in a Consumer-Driven Food System
   • Demographic Factors, Lifestyles, and Market Segmentation
   • Working Women and Convenience
   • Changing Eating Patterns
   • Food Safety, Nutrition, and Health
   • Food Retailing Changes
   • Attributes, Packaging, Advertising, and Brands
   • Agricultural Production
   • A Glance at the Other Chapters

2. Trends and Traditions in the American Diet
   • Long-Run Trends
   • Diet and Health
   • Trends that Affect Eating Behavior
   • Global Food Trends
   • General Implications
   • Appendix

3. Demographic Trends Foretell Food Trends
   • Projected Changes in Food Expenditures
   • Population Growth
   • Ethnic Diversity
   • Regional Differences
   • Household Composition
   • An Aging Population
   • Education
   • Income Trends
   • Labor Force Participation
   • General Implications

4. Disparate Lifestyles
   • General Classification Systems
   • Specific Classification Systems
   • General Implications

5. Food Economics: Insightful and Not So Arcane
   • Engl's Insights: Income and Food Consumption
   • The Role of Prices
   • General Implications

6. The Food Consumer: New Economic Perspectives
   • Becker's Theory: The Importance of Convenience
   • Lancaster's Model: Foods as Bundles of Characteristics
   • Being Informed: Valuable but Costly
   • General Implications

7. Data: Where We Get the Facts
   • Time-Series Food Consumption and Expenditure Data
   • Cross-Sectional Data and Food Consumption and Expenditures
   • Sources of Cross-Sectional Data
   • General Implications

8. Older Americans and Their Food Habits
   • A Profile of the Elderly
   • Old Food Habits Meet New Food Needs
   • Help the Needy
   • General Implications

9. The Forgotten Poor and Their Food Problems
   • Hunger and Poverty
   • Nutrition and Health Problems of the Poor
   • Food Assistance Programs
   • General Implications

10. Food Safety: A Growing Concern
    • Various Perspectives on Food Safety
    • Food Safety Regulation and the Policy Process
    • Deciding What is Safe
    • Perceptions of Risk
    • The Issue of Confidence and Trust
    • Consumer Information as a Remedy
    • Current Food Safety Issues
    • General Implications

11. The Food Industry: An Overview and Implications of Consumer Trends
    • A Brief Overview of the Food System
    • Farming
    • Food Processing and Manufacturing
    • Food Wholesaling
    • Food Retailing
    • A Historical Perspective

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ORDER NOW Food Trends and the Changing Consumer by Ben Senauer, Elaine Asp, and Jean Kinsey 385 pages • $98.00 + shipping Texas residents please add 7 % sales tax