Hispanic Expenditures on Food and Beverages

Hispanics spend more on dairy products, meat, produce, flour, rice, sugar, beverages and fats and oils than non-Hispanics.

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DAIRY

• On average, Hispanics spend $377 per household member annually on dairy products compared to $317 per household member for non-Hispanics - that’s 19% more! [1]
• On average, Hispanics spend $168 per household member annually on fresh milk compared to $114 per household member for non-Hispanics- that’s 47% more! [2]
• On average, Hispanics spend $62.41 per household member annually on eggs compared to $30.23 per household member for non-Hispanics- that’s 100% more! [3]
• While Hispanic households in total spent 36% more on yogurt, the Spanish-only/preferred households spent twice as much on yogurt. [4]
• Hispanics shop the dairy case on average 2.2 times per week and 91% consider cheese a good source of calcium for their families. [5]
• 62% of Hispanics often put cheese in sandwiches, 42% often use cheese as an ingredient in cooking, and 40% often snack on cheese. [6]

MEAT

• On average, Hispanics spend $120.56 per household member annually on ground beef compared to $84.47 per household member for non-Hispanics - that’s 43% more!
• [7] On average, Hispanics spend $136.73 per household member annually on steaks compared to $86.84 per household member for non-Hispanics - that’s 57% more! [8]
• On average, Hispanics spend $229.30 per household member annually on pork compared to $156.00 per household member for non-Hispanics - that’s 47% more! [9]
• On average, Hispanics spend $204.51 per household member annually on poultry compared to $137.65 per household member for non-Hispanics - that’s 49% more! [10]
• The top five deli products purchased by Hispanics are ham, turkey, chicken, salami and roast beef! [11]

PRODUCE

• On average, Hispanics spend $202 per household member annually on fresh fruit compared to $144 for non-Hispanics - that’s 40% more! [12]
• On average, Hispanics spend $185 per household member annually on fresh vegetables compared to $137 per household member for non-Hispanics - that’s 35% more! [13]
• The California Latino 5 a Day Campaign is a statewide, bilingual public health initiative led by the California Department of Health Services and administered by the Public Health Institute in cooperation with the National 5 A Day Program. The Campaign was created in 1994 to encourage Latinos to consume 5 or more servings of fruits and vegetables every day as part of a healthy lifestyle to reduce the risk of diet-related chronic diseases, especially cancer and heart disease. The Campaign has established specific benchmarks to measure the success of its program:
  • By the year 2003, 60% of California Latino adults will be aware that they should eat 5 or more servings of fruits and vegetables every day for good health.
  • By the year 2003, 60% of California Latino adults will consume a minimum of 5 servings of fruits and vegetables every day as part of a healthy lifestyle.

FLOUR

• On average, Hispanics spend $18.78 per household member annually on flour compared to $8.42 for non-Hispanics - that’s 120% more! [14]

RICE

• On average, Hispanics spend $18.78 per household member annually on flour compared to $8.42 for non-Hispanics - that’s 120% more! [14]

SUGAR

• On average, Hispanics spend $30.71 per household member annually on sugar compared to $17.44 for non-Hispanics - that’s 76% more! [16]

BEVERAGES

• An ACNielsen study of Los Angeles Hispanics found that while Hispanic households in total spent 67% more on carbonated soft drinks than non-Hispanic households, those where Spanish is the only or preferred language spent 108% more on carbonated soft drinks. [17]
• The Hispanic population consumes more Scotch on an index level than the general market. Both rum and Scotch consumption index higher, especially among Caribbean Hispanics. [18]
• Canned or bottled juices and drinks, carbonated soft drinks, fresh milk and apple juice are high penetration/high buying rate categories among Hispanic consumers, according to an ACNielsen study. [19]

FATS & OILS

• On average, Hispanics spend $112.73 per household member annually on fats and oils compared to $82.22 for non-Hispanics - that’s 37% more! [20]

OTHER HISPANIC MARKET FACTS

• Hispanics tend to have larger households - 3.5 people per household on average compared to 2.84. [21]
• On average, Hispanics spend 17.5% of their income on food compared to 13.7% for non-Hispanics. Larger households, more home-cooked meals and more celebratory events that feature food are the main factors in their higher food spending habits. [22]
• Of the 35 million Hispanics living in the US, California is home to 11 million (1/3 of California's population) with 4 million living in Los Angeles. In 2015, 31 million Hispanics will live in California and 50 million in the US. [23]

SOURCES

[1] Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey, 1999
[2] Food Marketing Institute “Profile of the US Hispanic Grocery Shopper
[3] Food Marketing Institute “Profile of the US Hispanic Grocery Shopper”
[4] ACNielsen, “Third Annual Consumer Market Trends Report”, August 1999
[5] The Specialty Cheese Market, October, 2001, Prepared for the North Central Initiative for Small Farm Profitability
[6] The Specialty Cheese Market, October, 2001, Prepared for the North Central Initiative for Small Farm Profitability
[7] Food Marketing Institute “Profile of the US Hispanic Grocery Shopper”
[8] Food Marketing Institute “Profile of the US Hispanic Grocery Shopper”
[9] Food Marketing Institute “Profile of the US Hispanic Grocery Shopper”
[10] Food Marketing Institute “Profile of the US Hispanic Grocery Shopper”
[11] Rosita Thomas, Ph.D., President of Thomas Opinion Research reporting on research on the purchase behavior and attitudes of the Hispanic marketplace in an American Meat Institute Chat, 6/18/2001.
[12] Food Marketing Institute “Profile of the US Hispanic Grocery Shopper”
[13] Food Marketing Institute “Profile of the US Hispanic Grocery Shopper”
[14] Food Marketing Institute “Profile of the US Hispanic Grocery Shopper”
[15] Food Marketing Institute “Profile of the US Hispanic Grocery Shopper”
[16] Food Marketing Institute “Profile of the US Hispanic Grocery Shopper”
[17] ACNielsen, “Third Annual Consumer Market Trends Report”, August 1999
[18] Beverage Industry, 9/01/01
[19] ACNielsen, “Acculturation Counts”, December 2000
[20] Food Marketing Institute “Profile of the US Hispanic Grocery Shopper”
[21] Strategy Resource Group
[22] Source: Hispanic Ethnic Food Market Potential, Oregon State University
[23] Source: 2000 Census

[OTHER] Expo Comida Latina - www.expo-comida-latina.com International Trade Information, 23241 Ventura Blvd., Suite 308, Woodland Hills, CA 91364 Tel.: 818-591-2265

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