Romanians prefer to buy „on the go” products from modern trade respectively from the supermarket and hypermarket. The monthly budget allocated for the purchase of ‘on the go’ products is between 50-200 lei, according to a study conducted by Reveal Marketing Research.
The main results of the study showed that 80% of the Romanians who eat breakfast choose to have it at home and the remaining 20% choose to eat their first meal of the day at the office. Fruits, vegetables, dairy products and sweets are foods that Romanians consume most often.
According to the analysis, on average 14% of Romanians consume almost daily ‘on the go’ products and 21% of them said that they have an average consumption of ‘on the go’ products 1-2 times a week.
Only 5% of the respondents stated they never consume ‘on the go’ products. The product most avoided by respondents is packaged cooked food as 29% of them say that they do not go out to purchase this product. Individuals over the age of 55 have said the most about not buying packaged food that is pre-cooked, almost half (40%) of this age group have selected this option.
The study revealed that Romanians first options for breakfast are: coffee (75%), dairy products (62%), sandwiches (49%), and pastries (pretzels, pies, salty or sweet snacks – 40%). The ideal breakfast recommended by specialists should contain fruit or fruit juices, fibre and protein.
By age groups, the highest percentage of respondents (82%) who consume coffee or coffee-based drinks at breakfast is within the 55-60 age group.
Romanians chose to consume fresh vegetables 60% for lunch followed by fresh fruit (29%), pre-cooked packaged food (47%) and sweets that were included in the lunch menu by approximately 2% of the respondents.
For the second meal of the day Romanians preferred to have pretzels, pies, salty or sweet snacks and dried fruits as these products were consumed by one in ten Romanians. For dinner, 44% of Romanians eat vegetables, dairy products (34%), cooked food (26%), fruits (25%) and sweets (20%).
The study also indicates that fresh and healthy products are key factors that influence six out of ten respondents on the choice of ‘on the go’ products. These factors are key issues rather for women (75%) and, respectively, 61% of respondents claiming this factor.
Almost half of Romanians aged 25-34 years (47%) believe that it is important that the product provides the necessary caloric intake and that the products are made of natural ingredients and have an affordable price as well as being easy to consume.
More than half of Romanians (52%) said they would pay more for products that are healthy and with natural ingredients (48%) and only 7% said they would pay extra for a product ‘on the go’.
The collection method for the project was CAWI. The data was collected, between 12.05.21- 18.05.21, on a nationally representative sample (urban and rural), 803 interviews. The margin of error is +/- 3%.