When it comes to food, Americans have much warmer feelings for farmers than they do for retailers or restaurants.
Gallup released its annual Work and Education consumer survey in mid-September asking Americans their feelings about U.S. industries, and then it compares the results to last year.
Farming/agriculture ranks the highest at 64 percent favorability, up 5 percentage points from 2023.
The restaurant industry ranks third overall, but it dropped 9 percentage points from 2023 to 2024, the largest drop of any industry.
Grocery falls in the middle of the pack, but also had a significant fall of 8 percentage points from 2023 to 2024.
It’s clear that Americans are fed up with higher food prices driven by inflation. When it comes to blame, they hold retailers and restaurants more accountable than farmers. They also hold the federal government responsible, justifiably, but its favorability actually rose 5 percentage points this year (from 21 to 26 percent).
Considering that much of the food they sell comes from farms, retailers and restaurants ought to make that connection clearer to their customers. Clever retailers have been highlighting in store the farmers who grow the fruits and vegetables for years, and more retailers should follow the trend.
Some produce marketers also highlight farmers and/or farmworkers on produce packaging, which is a wise move.
Restaurants are in a tough spot with costs rising and the labor market tightening, which results in their customers paying more for a worse experience. Could they bring some better vibes through a connection to the farm that supplies their dishes?
Outside our food world, the industry with the greatest gain from 2023 to 2024 was sports. Gallup points to a successful Olympic games this summer, but there are many other factors that contribute to sports’ positive feelings, from the Taylor Swift effect in the NFL to baseball games’ pitch clock lowering game times to a general emphasis away from politics and divisiveness to entertainment.
The two industries tied for the bottom spot were advertising/PR and pharmaceutical.
Clearly Americans are fed up with the Pfizer commercials during their football games.
