In its inaugural Snack Down Survey, Supervalu found that nearly 90 percent of American football fans say they "never" or only "sometimes" feel guilty about what they eat when watching football games. Unsurprisingly, 81 percent admit to eating "none" or just "a few" healthy or better-for-you foods during a game.
Among the fans surveyed, 89 percent planned to watch one or more of the NFL playoff games or the Super Bowl in their homes. About 78 percent plan to spend about the same amount as previous years, with 12 percent saying they will spend more.
The survey shows that chips or other salty snacks, such as peanuts, popcorn and pretzels, are by far the favorite game-day snacks among football fans. But nearly 40 percent of fans surveyed had a special food or snack tradition associated with their favorite NFL or college football team. In Philadelphia, for example, chicken wings were tied with dips/spreads for use with chips, crackers or veggies as Philadelphia fans' favorite game-day snacks but it was the only market that mentioned cheese steaks as a top game-day snack tradition.
Other unique game-day traditions by market included Chicago-style hot dogs and deep dish pizza in Chicago; New England clam chowder and Boston baked beans in Boston; chili in Cincinnati; baked and stuffed Idaho potatoes in Boise; and cheese (dips, logs, balls, etc.) in Minneapolis/St. Paul.
Other Super Bowl food facts...
- According to the American Institute of Food Distribution, Super Bowl Sunday is the second-biggest food consumption day of the year, after Thanksgiving.
- The Calorie Control Council estimates the average stay-at-home fan will consume 1,200 calories and 50 grams of fat on Super Bowl Sunday from snacks.
- According to the Nielsen Company, Super Bowl Sunday is the most important snack purchasing day of the year, followed by the day before the big game. Among snacks, potato chips enjoyed the largest dollar and volume sales during the Super Bowl period in 2009. Tortilla chips, however, had the largest incremental dollar sales gains, while dip mixes and canned dips saw the biggest percentage increases in sales.
Discussion Questions: How does the food opportunity around the Super Bowl differ from other holidays? What marketing and merchandising opportunities might food retailers be missing around football's big day that they can use next year?