Teenagers know they need to eat more fruit and vegetables to stay healthy, but they are not in a hurry to do it, new research from the Institute of Grocery Distribution (IGD) has found.
The survey The Teenage Diet Now and in the Future was unveiled at the IGD's annual convention yesterday and looked at how teenagers feel about food and grocery.
"Teenagers may know the basics of good nutrition, but they're not always in a hurry to put them into practice and think diet is something to worry about later, perhaps at 25," said IGD ceo Joanne Denney-Finch. "Nagging away is their concern that healthy eating really means cooking from scratch, but few think they have the cooking skills and in many cases neither do their parents have those skills, and few know how to resolve this dilemma."
The IGD's research carried out among teenage focus groups and through a nation-wide survey found that as well as being aware of healthy-eating messages, the youngsters in the 13-17 age bracket are also highly brand-conscious and demand quality. Surprisingly, thought fair trade, business ethics or genetic modification were important. Eating UK produce or organics were important to only 38 and 28 per cent respectively.
However, Denney-Finch said that the food-service and ready-meals sector has much to gain from teenagers for two reasons: "Their lack of cooking skills and their wish for instant satisfaction," she said. She also indicated that home-shopping had much to gain with new adults seeing it as a natural way to shop.
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