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Consumer Concern Over Food Safety at Supermarkets Rises

In-store dining and restaurant-style takeout offerings trigger safety issues

The rise of the grocerant, defined as a supermarket that offers restaurant-style food, often with on-site dining, comes with greater consumer concern over food safety. The percentage of U.S. consumers who feel supermarket foods are safe has decreased over the last ten years, according to data from The NPD Group.

In 2006, 66 percent of U.S. consumers agreed with the statement that foods sold in supermarkets are safe. As of August 2016, only 58 percent of adults agreed with that statement.

In-store supermarket dining and prepared food takeout from grocers continues to grow. According to The NPD Group, more than 40 percent of the U.S. population purchases prepared food from grocery stores.

Darren Seifer, food and beverage industry analyst at The NPD Group, believes the decrease in consumer confidence has to do with consumers extending their concerns about the safety of foods served at restaurants to supermarkets. Consumers concern over the safety of food at restaurants has remained unchanged, hovering between 47 and 49 percent since 2006, according to The NPD Group’s Food Safety Monitor report.