Most consumers appear to prefer brand-name beverages over generic or store-brand beverages. That’s according to the September 2023 Consumer Food Insights Report.
The Purdue University report further indicates that consumers make this choice even when presented with a sizable price discount on generic or store brand names. In contrast, most survey respondents said they weren’t willing to pay a premium for brand-name meat, fruits, or vegetables. Not surprisingly, households making less than $50,000 a year were more price sensitive when presented with two generic or store-brand discounts. The survey also shows the consumer food inflation estimate of 6.3 percent continues to diverge from the government’s consumer price index of food inflation at 4.3 percent.
While consumers with the lowest incomes already choose more generic brands over name brands, this disparity tends to grow quickly when the discount on generic or store-brand foods is doubled from 15 percent to 30 percent.