General Mills
Corporate News Release
September 28, 2005

Host With The Most: National Study Illustrates Differences In How Women From Different Generations Express Themselves In The Kitchen

Betty Crocker Launches SeekYourThing.com to Help Women Find Their Personal Cooking and Entertaining Style for the Upcoming Holiday Season

MINNEAPOLIS – ‘Tis the season for nesting, and with the holidays quickly approaching, women of all generations will be preparing for some of the biggest social gatherings of the year. “How America Cooks II,” a recent national consumer study from the Betty Crocker Kitchens, provides some food for thought regarding how women in their 20s and 40s express themselves in the kitchen. Overall, women in their 20s report they don’t have as much confidence in the kitchen compared to women in their 40s.  Further, women in their 20s don’t consider themselves as very creative cooks.  Yet, don’t discount younger cooks -- they are more apt to lean toward home-baked sweets and entertain more often than their older counterparts.  And, a majority of younger cooks want to improve their cooking skills.

More than Enough Cooks in the Kitchen
The majority of women in their 20s and 40s entertain at home during the year (70 percent versus 66 percent), with 48 percent of female 20-somethings entertaining once per month or more, compared to 39 percent of women in their 40s. While the study shows that younger women entertain more frequently and spontaneously, particularly with friends, that doesn’t mean the 40-somethings are taking a back seat in the kitchen – quite the contrary. These women are more likely to serve “the works” when entertaining, including appetizers, the main course and desserts, along with finishing touches such as table decorations, candles and flowers, compared to women in their 20s.

“We’re seeing more and more women taking the liberty to express themselves while cooking, baking and entertaining, no matter what their age,“ said Maggie Gilbert, manager and culinary expert of the Betty Crocker Kitchens. “Adding a personal touch to every cooking and entertaining occasion helps build confidence and show creative style. And these personal touches create memorable traditions that can last a lifetime.”

Serving It Up
During social gatherings, female 40-somethings often serve dinner buffet style (34 percent versus 28 percent) or family style (36 percent versus 26 percent) compared to female 20-somethings. Women in their 20s vary as to how they serve dinner when entertaining.  About 1 in 5 don’t serve dinner at all during evening social gatherings.  Among those 20-somethings who do serve dinner, 1/3 of them serve dinner plated style, 1/3 buffet style, and 1/3 family style.  When it comes to the main course, women in their 40s are far more confident roasting a whole turkey, making homemade meatloaf and whipping up gravy from scratch than their younger counterparts.

“Baking” a Sweat in the Kitchen
Even though younger women see themselves as less creative in the kitchen, that isn’t stopping them from satisfying their sweet tooth.  Nearly 70% of women in both age groups like to bake.  Yet 20-somethings have more of a bent toward home-baked sweets, preferring home-baked cakes and cookies over store-bought baked goods, compared to their older counterparts (cakes: 62 percent versus 52 percent, respectively; cookies: 48 percent versus 39 percent, respectively).

It’s a Family Tradition
Sixty-four percent of women in their 20s had mothers that worked full-time, outside the home, during their childhood, versus thirty-eight percent of 40-somethings – resulting in some key differences in how women in the two groups view cooking and family meals. Additionally, although many women still learn to cook from their mothers, significantly more women in their 20s have learned to cook from their fathers, the Internet/television chefs, or just by doing it compared to 40-somethings who learned primarily from their mothers, in school or scouts/4H.

It’s no secret that food and family go hand-in-hand.  More women in their 40s (73 percent) than women in their 20s (61 percent) recall special family meals and traditions from childhood, including Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, birthdays and Sunday dinners. 

When it comes to food prepared outside of the home, 70 percent of women in their 20s ate out at restaurants/fast food establishments or had food delivered at least one night per week while growing up, compared to only 32 percent of 40-somethings. And, when the younger women were eating dinner at home as children, their fare was often different compared to their older counterparts, with more pizza, pasta and chicken and less “meat and potatoes” meals, lending insight into 20-somethings’ desire to take advantage of time-saving recipes and convenience foods.

Betty Crocker: Reaching Out to 20-Somethings
The Betty Crocker brand already does much to reach out to these younger women, using a tone that’s relevant and communications channels that are efficient and fun. “While part of the role of Betty is to teach, we can’t talk down to this educated and savvy generation of women, “ said Gilbert. “We’ve adapted our marketing tools to include everything from e-newsletters to a branded blog in an effort to speak to this audience in a way that’s relevant.”  BettyCrocker.com now features fun, instructional sections such as “Baking Basics” and “Dessert of the Month.” As always, all communications are designed to reinforce that it’s more than easy cooking that’s important to today’s home cooks – Betty Crocker makes cooking and entertaining “Easy Wow.”

Discover Your Cooking Personality on SeekYourThing.com
Based on the study’s findings related to technology, the Betty Crocker brand is launching a new interactive quiz designed to pique the interest of longtime Betty fans as well as younger women who are just learning about the Betty legacy.  Compared to their 40s counterparts, technology is a key creative outlet for women in their 20s – with this group indicating they rely on technology and the Internet to express themselves and stay informed. Given this key learning, coupled with the fact that young women are interested in learning how to improve their cooking skills, the Betty Crocker Kitchens is launching SeekYourThing.com. This new interactive Web site gives consumers the ability to identify their own style by participating in a short lifestyle quiz. According to their answers, quiz-takers are defined as a “Modern Gem,” “Natural Beauty,” “Urban Chic” or “Classic Contemporary.” The site then directs members of each category to tailored recipes, tips and entertaining ideas based on the specific quiz results. SeekYourThing.com will help women of all ages learn how to express themselves through cooking, baking and entertaining, no matter what the time of the year.

About the “How America Cooks II” Study
For complete survey results or questions, contact Pam Becker at (763) 764-2470. The “How America Cooks II” online consumer study was conducted to uncover differences in cooking and entertaining attitudes and behaviors between women in their 20s and 40s. The survey, conducted by Digital Research, Inc. on behalf of the Betty Crocker Kitchens, polled a representative sample of 1,553 women with a +/- 2.5 percent margin of error at the 95 percent confidence level. Approximately half of the women were between the ages of 20 to 29 and the other half were ages 40 to 49.

About the Betty Crocker Kitchens
The Betty Crocker Kitchens, ”America’s Most Trusted Kitchens” for more than 80 years, is committed to bringing easy ways to “make every day homemade” to households across the country. More than 50,000 recipes are tested each year to create the very best in food products, cookbooks, recipe magazines, catalogs, newsletters, licensed products and content on BettyCrocker.com.