Inspired to eat at home.

Most of our shoppers agree that "simple food that's fresh is the best food of all" and that "cooking at home is usually healthier than takeout foods or eating out." That doesn't mean that they want to deal with the mess of home cooking all the time, but it does indicate receptivity to stores and promotions that encourage and facilitate home cooking, especially home cooking that is sure to be healthy.

One of our Philadelphia shoppers is doing most of her shopping across the river at the new Wegmans in Cherry Hill, New Jersey because it inspires her to cook. "The $3.00 bridge toll bothers my husband a little, but shopping at Wegmans inspires us to cook, and we're actually fixing more meals at home and eating out somewhat less because we shop there."

Looking at the adjacent list of statements and the percentages of our shoppers agreeing with each of them suggests, at very least, a wish to return to the basics of cooking good-for-you foods at home, if only we had time. A large majority (85%) of our shoppers believe they are "savvy when it comes to finding good buys and satisfying needs." But less than half (48%) agree that "It's getting easier to find foods that taste good and are good for you."

Making it easier to spot foods that are good for you should address that distinction and possibly inspire shoppers to have more of those healthy meals at home. Hannaford's newly announced program ranking 27,000 of the products on its shelves with stars indicating their nutrition value bears watching--enough shoppers may find the stars helpful to result in a better shopping experience that pays off in increased loyalty. In the Hannaford program, which is called Guiding Stars, shredded wheat gets 3 stars, baked beans, 1 star, and Doritos, no stars.

One of our shoppers told us that she finds "most food packages annoying because they don't tell me what I need to know, which is whether or not it's good for me." What Hannaford is doing would give this shopper a synthesis of the nutrition label, which she doesn't know enough or care enough to do for herself. Male shoppers may be even more in need of educational labels than females: A currently single male shopper in his 50s told us, "I want fast-tasty-healthy but need some education on the box. Why do I have to do all the research? Printing too small. Cholesterol 60 mg, sodium 620 mg. What does this mean?"

Food marketers have resisted providing this kind of synthesis, whether it happens in the form of a report card or stars, even though they have done a great job of making meal-fixing easier and faster, and food packaging easier to open and close. Hannaford is expecting high levels of shopper acceptance. They report that research with their shoppers showed that 84 percent will use the stars fairly often or very often. The actual use, of course, remains to be seen.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS:

* "Except in the winter when we have to use California products, many grocers here in the Midwest are including local farmers' produce directly. Our local farmer's markets are mainly organic. Our government needs to help organic farmers, like Germany and Europe help theirs."

* "I really would like to know who and from what source organic fertilizers can be obtained today. Since all food grown for the last 2/3 century has been primarily grown with chemicals, this includes foods that are grown from agriculture, cattle, pigs, chickens, etc. I believe it would take at least a century to clean the chemicals out of the air, soils, animals, humans, and water."

* "I believe global warming is already happening because of how high temperatures are now, with long periods of no rain. Even more, our winters don't seem bad until February, when in the past it seemed more spread out, especially December."

* "As I get older, I have noticed that food that I used to be able to eat I can't now. I am looking for more healthy low-fat foods. I am cooking at home more and drinking more natural juices and more water."

* "I don't see how lowering meat consumption is good for the planet. Human diets need meat or a way to compensate for it."

* "Cooking and eating at home are good things. When you eat out, especially fast food, you are usually doing this at the expense of your health. If you want to look at environmental problems, look at the total grease as well as the trans-fats at fast food chains."

* "Too many people just grab what they can when they can. Look at vending machines and fast food restaurants. This has led to the obesity crisis facing Americans today." Statement (Shoppers asked to agree/disagree using 5-point Percent scale) agreeing I'm a savvy shopper when it comes to finding good buys and 85% satisfying needs. Simple food that's fresh is usually the best food of all. 82% Cooking at home is usually healthier than takeout foods or 78% eating out. Low fat is no excuse for lousy food. 67% I believe that eating less meat would be healthier for me. 65% Low salt is no excuse for bad food. 63% Low sugar is no excuse for bad food. 62% There is more respect for cooking than there was 10 years ago. 60% Reducing our consumption of meat 56% It's getting easier to find foods that taste good and are good 48% for you. I believe I know more about food and health than I did two 38% years ago. I'm not so savvy when it comes to the environmental impact of 31% my shopping. I'm doing more to eat healthy than I am to be an eco-friendly 30% consumer. It's not so easy to find foods that taste good and are good 26% for the environment or the planet.