|
Can't stay away from the cheese casseroles
or salty chips? It's not just you. According to data collected
by Information Resources Inc. (IRI), a company that monitors
spending at more than 30,000 supermarkets across the country,
sales of comfort foods have jumped in recent weeks, tracking
the public response to terror attacks and anthrax.
"We saw a definite spike in sales
after Sept. 11," said Ed Kuehnle, IRI's group president
for North America. "Categories like snack foods that
were flat to stable for the past few years showed an increase."
For Sept. 9 through Oct. 7, sales
of frozen appetizers and snack rolls -- frozen pizza puffs,
egg rolls and other bite-sized goodies -- were up 35 percent
from the same time last year. Oreo cookies jumped nearly 18
percent -- and, no, that's not just consumers' excited response
to a new chocolate-filling variety; IRI compared sales of
only the original vanilla creme version.
Other products people turned to: Instant
potatoes and General Mills Cheerios (both up about 11 percent),
frozen pizza (up almost 8 percent), Kraft dry macaroni and
cheese (nearly 7 percent), Jif creamy peanut butter (up 6).
In the sweet treats category, ice cream sales rose by 8 percent.
Pastries, doughnuts, salty snacks (including potato chips
and tortilla chips) and soups all increased by 4 percent.
Dietitians say there's no mystery to
the spike in junk and comfort food sales. "People
are seeking comfort and trying to bring back good or safe
memories," said Roxanne Moore, registered
Baltimore dietitian and spokeswoman for the American Dietetic
Association. "In some cases, one way to relieve the tension
is to turn to food, especially sweet or salty foods."
Goulda Downer, a registered dietitian
practicing in Washington, says she's seen firsthand the effect
of the slacking off of good dietary habits. Over the last
few weeks, several of her dieting clients lost their momentum
and some even put on a pound or two. Most of the damage was
done "at home in the evening," said Downer. "My
patients were celebrating with food the fact that they made
it home safely."
Washington
Post November 20, 2001; Page HE03
| 