The majority of Americans are still shopping in grocery stores. That is according to a survey, which found 91 percent are still pushing a cart, despite the pandemic.
According to Breanna Ellison with the University of Illinois, “The other thing they did most often was ordering takeout from a restaurant. We saw 63.5 percent of people reported ordering takeout from a restaurant in the last two weeks. Things that were less common were eating at a restaurant sitting indoors. Eating at a restaurant sitting outdoors and shopping for groceries online. For each of those about a third of people reported doing them in the last two weeks.”
That last two weeks was back in September. Interestingly, because the survey was nationwide, a higher proportion of people in the Midwest and the south were far more likely to eat indoors at a restaurant. Although, that number was not very big.
“Then when it came to eating at a restaurant and sitting outdoors, we saw the largest share of people in the northeast region reported doing this in the last two weeks,” she adds.
Here are the takeaways Ellison pulled from the surveys
First people are generally following public health guidance, sticking to essential activities like grocery shopping and limiting non-essential things like going out to eat in restaurants. However, she says that Americans are still supporting the industry by ordering takeout, even if it is at a lower frequency than before the COVID-19 pandemic.