Snackers in the US and France love a bag of potato chips, while Chinese consumers prefer a sweeter treat Kantar

Medias Global TGI highlights global variations in the crisps and potato chips market
13 December 2012 New insight into how consumer snacking habits can differ from country to country has been revealed in research from Kantar Medias Global TGI (www.globaltgi.com), which highlights global variations in the crisps and potato chips market. While 86% of consumers throughout the USA and France consume potato crisps/potato chips, closely followed by 84% of GB consumers, China is at the far end of the scale with only 28% consumption.

This is not simply due to Chinese consumers snacking less overall. Data from Chinas TGI (CNRS) show that Chinese consumers snacked on other goods rather than crisps, such as biscuits (66%), candy (64%) and chocolate (44%), in the last year. The best-known potato crisp and potato chip brands are Western-owned brands such Kettle, Pringles, Lays and Walkers, which may explain their huge appeal to Western markets and lack of popularity in China, suggests Tracy Allnutt, Head of Commercial Development at Global TGI. Our research gives companies fast understanding of how peoples perception of brands drives behaviour, so they can use consumer opinion to inform their marketing strategies. Attitudes towards diet and health can also vary between markets. Only 25% of American consumers agree it is worth paying more for organic foods, in contrast to 60% of consumers in China. And whereas 46% of Chinese consumers agree that they always think of the calories in what I eat, there was a much lower level of agreement throughout the USA of 27%. Whats striking, however, is that 39% of consumers in both countries consider their diet to be very healthy, indicating that peoples perception of what they consider to be a healthy diet is likely to vary across markets. In this case Chinese consumers are much more consistent in their perceptions of healthy eating and what this constitutes.
This Factoid is one of a series produced by Kantar Medias Global TGI, designed to provide bite-sized pieced of information on topical issues for brand managers in between the more in-depth Dispatches reports undertaken by the company.

Appendix

Potato crisps/potato chips consumption per country: USA: 86% France: 86% GB: 84% Egypt: 72% Brazil: 51% South Africa: 43% China: 28%

% agreeing with the statement Its worth paying more for organic food:

China: 60% USA: 25%

% agreeing with the statement I always think of the calories in what I eat: China: 46% USA: 27%

% agreeing with the statement I consider my diet to be very healthy: China: 39% USA: 39%

Methodology: All Global TGI studies follow standardised guidelines and formats, with the flexibility to reflect local market needs and characteristics. In most countries information is collected face-to-face and via a self-completion questionnaire. Online is increasingly offered as an option for respondents. Most surveys have an annual release, with many providing options for either quarterly or six-monthly updates. Many countries sample individuals from age 15+, although some countries provide information on ages 10+ or 12+.

Sample sizes vary, with the largest being 93,000 in China through to 1,400 in Bahrain. The mean average sample size is almost 12,000. Fieldwork is either continuous or conducted in a couple of waves across the year.

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About Global TGI Global TGI is a network of single source market research surveys. Present in over 60 countries across 6 continents TGI provides invaluable consumer insights into the lifestyle and behaviour of over 1.5 billion consumers. http://globaltgi.com/ https://twitter.com/GlobalTGI

About Kantar Media Kantar Media provides strategic advice and competitive intelligence to the worlds leading brands, publishers, agencies and industry bodies, helping them navigate and succeed in a rapidly evolving media industry. This includes analysis of paid media opportunities; counsel on brand reputation, corporate management and consumer engagement through owned media; and, evaluating consumers reactions in earned media. Kantar Media provides clients with a broad range of insights, from audience research, competitive intelligence, vital consumer behaviour and digital insights, marketing effectiveness and online influence. Our experts currently work with 22,000 companies tracking 3 million brands in 50 countries. http://www.kantarmedia.com/ https://twitter.com/#/kantarmedia_uk

For more information, please contact: Global TGI: Mark Edwards T: +44 (0)20 8433 4059 E: mark.edwards@kantarmedia.com Eureka Communications: Teresa Horscroft T: +44 (0)1420 564346 E: teresa@eurekacomms.co.uk