Why Bad Economic News Is Good News for Snack Sales

A new University of Miami study suggests that people seek higher-calorie foods when there's a perception of tough times.

January 24, 2013

CORAL GABLES, Fla. - Even, or especially, when there is a perception of difficult economic times, people seek high-calorie foods that reaffirm a "live for today" impulse, according to a new study conducted by the University of Miami School of Business Administration.

Published in the February edition of Psychological Science, the study reveals people consumed nearly 40% more food when primed with dire messages compared to a control group primed with neutral words.

"The findings of this study come at a time when our country is slowly recovering from the onslaught of negative presidential campaign ads chalked with topics such as the weak economy, gun violence, war, deep political divides, just to name a few problem areas," said Juliano Laran, an assistant professor of marketing at the University of Miami School of Business Administration. "Now that we know this sort of messaging causes people to seek out more calories out of a survival instinct, it would be wise for those looking to kick off a healthier new year to tune out news for a while."

During the study, when the group primed with "tough times" messaging was then told the food they were consuming was low-calorie, they ate roughly 25% less of the food, behavior that the researchers attributed to people placing a higher value on higher-calorie foods when food resources are scarce.

During the course of the study, the researchers found that those who were primed to consider struggle and adversity consumed nearly 70% more snacks that were perceived as higher-calorie compared with those primed with neutral words.

"It is clear from the studies that taste was not what caused the reactions, it was a longing for calories," continued Laran. "And, certainly beware of savvy food marketers bearing bad news."

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