• by Karlene Lukovitz , August 7, 2009

While there's no denying that junk food remains a staple for many children, this apparently doesn't mean that they're not absorbing messages about what food choices constitute healthful eating.

In fact, kids show a growing awareness of nutrition, according to survey findings included in a new "Kids & Moms Consumer Trend Report" from food service consultant Technomic and children-focused brand marketing agency C3. The survey of 1,500 mothers and 1,200 children between the ages of six and 12 was conducted in May of this year.

Asked to identify which foods are healthy, nearly nine out of 10 kids surveyed cited fresh vegetables and fresh whole fruits, 78% cited salad, 76% cited steamed vegetables, and 72% cited eggs. At least half cited fish, cheese, chicken and peanut butter as healthy.

Kids' growing "health savvy" as a result of exposure to nutritional information "will impact their choices as consumers," and for restaurants and other food service businesses, that translates to a need for accelerated emphasis on providing healthy choices, points out Technomic EVP Darren Tristano.

The report, which also includes analysis of kids' menus for the top 250 and emerging chain restaurants, derived from Technomic's MenuMonitor database and industry data, confirms that this focus is already underway. Salads are now among the leading entrée items on kids' menus in the top 250, and in addition to increasing selections of healthier side items and beverages, they are offering more items described as organic and natural.

The survey also found that older kids ages 10 to 12 have different meal preferences than younger children. For instance, given the opportunity to "build a meal," older kids are far more likely than younger ones to choose steak, seafood and salads. Children age nine and under prefer chicken fingers, pizza and French fries.

Among mothers, quick-service restaurants as a whole are perceived as more kid-friendly than fast-casual and family-style restaurants. Chick-fil-A and McDonald's were rated excellent in regard to most kid-related attributes. Fuddrucker's was the only fast-casual restaurant considered to be kid-friendly by more than half of moms surveyed, and Applebee's was perceived as the most kid-friendly restaurant within the family-style format.

For mothers, the key elements in the brand decision across all restaurant segments were consistent food quality, restaurant cleanliness, value, and consistently good service.