According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the Asian segment of the U.S. population grew much faster from 2000 to 2007 than did the population as a whole. This may positively influence the American diet: The literature suggests that Asian consumers in America generally eat more healthful foods than do otherwise similar consumers. However, by focusing on Asian consumers as a whole, studies have missed substantial variation within this community, perhaps yielding misleading results.
This study briefly compares food expenditures by U.S. Asians as a whole with those of U.S. non-Asian groups (i.e., whites, blacks, and Hispanics) to find similarities and differences; however, its focus is to compare U.S. Asians of different ethnic origin (e.g., Chinese, Filipino, and Asian Indian) to identify and better understand differences in their food expenditures.
DATA/METHODS
The data analyzed are from the two-week Diary component of the Consumer Expenditure Survey, the largest source of these data collected directly from consumers by the Federal government. The survey collects detailed information about food expenditures and demographics, including ethnicity.
Weekly expenditures (levels, percent purchasing, and budget shares) for detailed food items (e.g., rice; ground beef; ice cream) are tested for statistically significant differences. Logistic regressions are used to test whether predicted probabilities of purchase differ by ethnicity for Asian consumers.
RESULTS
Preliminary results show many significant differences among Asians of different ethnicities in the U.S., which have been missed in past studies of U.S. Asians as a whole. For example, they show that Asian consumers spend smaller shares of their food budgets on sweets (candy and gum, pastry, etc.) than non-Asians spend; however, Japanese consumers spend a larger share than non-Asians.