Consumers Balance Time and Money in Purchasing Convenience Foods

by Ilya Rahkovsky, Young Jo, and Andrea Carlson

ERS study examines how consumers' financial resources, time constraints, prices, and the food environment in which they live influence their purchases of restaurant meals and food from grocery stores.

See related Amber Waves article: Higher Incomes and Greater Time Constraints Lead to Purchasing More Convenience Foods

Keywords: ready-to-eat foods, convenience food, food expenditures, meal preparation, fast food, restaurant, consumer demand, SNAP, food access, FoodAPS, National Household Food Acquisition and Purchase Survey, time constraints, prices

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