FMI Launches 2025 U.S. Grocery Shopper Trends Series and a National Poll on the SNAP Shopper
American consumers continue to enjoy grocery shopping and have kept their shopping habits remarkably consistent despite persistent economic challenges, according to the latest annual survey by FMI – The Food Industry Association, conducted by The Hartman Group. The analysis, which kicks off FMI’s 2025 series, U.S. Grocery Shopper Trends: The Logic of Food Shopping, offers timely insights into consumer grocery shopping behaviors and shoppers’ logic behind food budgets and shopping decisions.
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FMI's U.S. Grocery Shopper Trends report offers timely insights into consumer grocery shopping behaviors and shoppers’ logic behind food budgets and shopping decisions.
FMI found that despite several years of economic uncertainty, shoppers’ attitudes and habits around grocery shopping have remained stable. To better understand this dynamic, FMI explored shopper aspirations to “eat well,” an outlook that forms the foundation for how shoppers think about value and shapes their choices about what food to buy, how to cook and where to shop.
“Despite the economic pressures they face, consumers overwhelmingly tell us they enjoy grocery shopping and that they are willing and able to budget in order to ‘eat well’ based on their specific values and needs,” said Leslie G. Sarasin, president and CEO of FMI. “In fact, our U.S. Grocery Shopper Sentiment Index is currently holding steady at 72 out of 100. While individual needs vary, by and large, most shoppers prioritize four things when shopping for food: health, entertainment, exploration and convenience. Satisfying these key needs are important to shoppers, and they tailor their overall budgets and food spending behaviors to ensure they ‘eat well’.”
Still, several factors are weighing on consumers. Most Americans (70%) say they are extremely or very worried about rising grocery prices, and 78% said they are at least somewhat concerned about the impact of tariffs on the cost of imported food and ingredients.
The analysis revealed a silver lining: most consumers (75%) report feeling in control over their grocery spending. However, that confidence has declined in recent months; 85% of consumers expressed confidence in control over food spending in September 2024. In response, shoppers report using various strategies to stretch their food budget further. Traditional methods like list-making (83%), taking household inventory (79%), meal planning (69%), and seeking out coupons or discounts (60%) remain the most common.
Sarasin emphasized, “Our latest grocery shopper research underscores a critical opportunity for the industry to meet their customers where they are—navigating rising costs and economic uncertainty—while reinforcing the importance of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, SNAP, a vital anti-hunger program that provides just $6 a day to those most in need.”
“The American public is clear on this: 70% support SNAP, and a majority oppose any effort to reduce its funding, according to an FMI national survey by leading pollster, Fabrizio, Lee & Associates. The future strength of this program isn’t just a policy issue—it’s a moral imperative and an economic necessity.”
For Media:
- Members of the media may contact FMI for a gratis copy of the U.S. Grocery Shopper Trends 2025: The Logic of Food Shopping report. Learn more and find related resources at www.FMI.org/GroceryTrends.
- Access the Fabrizio, Lee & Associates survey commissioned by FMI via FactsAboutSNAP.org
Methodologies:
- FMI’s U.S. Grocery Shopping Trends 2025 study consists of qualitative and quantitative research among a representative mix of 2,019 shoppers across the country. The research is designed to provide insights into the who, what, where, how, and most importantly, the why of grocery shopper behavior. With a representative sample of shoppers, we are able to look at these behaviors and attitudes by a range of demographics, household structures, income levels, orientations to food and cooking, shopping habits, and geographic areas across the U.S. The findings further FMI’s 51 years of year-over-year shopper research.
- On behalf of FMI, Fabrizio, Lee & Associates conducted a national survey of 1,000 registered voters from April 21-23, 2025. The interviews were split 35% live-operator cell phone/25% live-operator landline/40% SMS to web. Gender, age, race/ethnicity, party registration/affiliation, and education were matched to demographic profiles of registered voters based on voter file data and census data on registered voters. Respondents were randomly selected from lists of registered voters. The margin of sampling error at the 95% confidence interval is ±3.1%.
About FMI
As The Food Industry Association, FMI works with and on behalf of the entire industry to advance a safer, healthier, and more efficient consumer food supply chain. FMI brings together a wide range of members across the value chain — from retailers to producers to companies supplying critical services — to amplify the collective work of the industry. www.FMI.org
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Our U.S. Grocery Shopper Sentiment Index is currently holding steady at 72 out of 100.
Contacts
Heather Garlich, media@fmi.org, 703-209-1829
