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ERS tracks the supply of food available for consumption in the United States and examines consumer food preferences by age, income, region, race, whether people eat at home or away, and other characteristics. Descriptive statistics of commodity consumption help to inform growers about who consumes their commodities, how and where their commodities are used, and how much is consumed. The information enables the food and agriculture industry to improve its promotion strategies, and USDA used it to complete a regulatory analysis for nutrition labeling on beef.
Descriptive studies of food consumption
ERS has conducted a series of analyses describing food consumption by age, income, region, race, and eating location. For a complete list of publications related to this topic, see
Who Eats What, Where, and How Much.
Factors affecting food commodity consumption
To better understand the factors affecting food consumption as well as to predict consumption, ERS conducted regression analyses. This effort was integral to a comprehensive study of U.S. food and commodity consumption (see Food and Agricultural Commodity Consumption in the United States: Looking Ahead to 2020).
ERS has published separate analyses of consumption of potato products, pork products, and grain products in journals. Contact Biing-Hwan Lin for reprints.
Future research
Analyses of food commodity consumption were based on data from the Continuing Survey of Food Intakes by Individuals (CSFII) conducted by USDA during 1994-96 and 1998. ERS researchers have continued analyzing this dataset to establish a baseline for tracking U.S. food and commodity consumption.
The CSFII has been integrated into the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Work is underway to develop a Food Commodity Economic Database using survey data being collected since 1999, that will aid in further studies of food and commodity consumption.
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