Men Make Up One in Four Primary Grocery Shoppers

CHICAGO — More men are taking an active role in their households when it comes to grocery shopping, but many of them don't enjoy the experience, according to new research from The NPD Group.

While men now represent 41 percent of all primary grocery shoppers, they make up more than their fair share of people who say grocery shopping is "a chore."

Males who are single, never married before and aged 18 to 34 are the most likely to feel that grocery shopping is a chore.

These grumpy young male shoppers are more likely to have increased their household responsibility over the past five years due to being on their own for the first time or having money to spend on items they want. They are less likely to do all or most of the grocery shopping compared to older consumers.

Even though they're not happy about having to do the shopping, men who say it is a chore still take the task seriously. They don’t impulse buy and spend about 56 minutes shopping -- just four minutes short of those female and male shoppers who are "food enthusiasts" and enjoy shopping.

The New Grocery Shopper report from NPD also revealed a discrepancy between what males and females think about their shared grocery shopping responsibility. More than half of males feel the shared responsibility is evenly split, while more than 60 percent of females feel they do most of the grocery shopping when the responsibility is shared.

“With more men taking on the role as the primary grocery shopper, manufacturers and retailers need to come together and develop strategies intended to transform the shopping experience to meet men’s unique needs and make it a more enjoyable experience,” said Darren Seifer, food and beverage industry analyst at Chicago-based NPD. “They also need to keep in mind that women, contrary to what male shoppers may think, still do the bulk of the grocery shopping.”