• by Karlene Lukovitz  @KLmarketdaily, December 2, 2010

Confirming the increasingly crucial need for food/beverage brands and retailers to influence consumers before they leave home for grocery shopping trips, a new report from The NPD Group shows large percentages of U.S. households pre-planning the day's three main meals.

Fully 71% of households plan at least some dinners in advance, and nearly one-quarter (24%) plan nearly all dinners, according to "Before the Store," a report on grocery-shopper behaviors ranging from meal planning and preparation to shopping and eating habits.

On the lunch and breakfast fronts, 53% and 51%, respectively, report planning at least some of these two daily meals in advance, and 13% and 26%, respectively, say they plan almost all of these meals.

Given that so many meal purchasing decisions are being made before consumers hit grocery stores, retailers and manufacturers have a significant opportunity to become "ingrained" in the planning and shopping cycle by helping consumers address meal-planning challenges, stresses Ann Hanson, NPD executive director of product development and author of the report.

Not surprisingly, the biggest challenges cited by the women who continue to be the primary grocery shoppers/meal preparers are finding new ideas for main meals -- particularly quick-to-make meals -- and staying within a budget.

One conclusion: Providing consumers with recipes that fit those bills (34% of households use recipes weekly, and 69% use them at least monthly) is more important than ever.

However, at the same time, focus on in-store strategies to capture impulse purchases remains key. While seeing an item on sale is the biggest impulse-purchase driver, prepared foods, in particular, are likely to be purchased on impulse when shoppers find themselves stumped for meal ideas while in the store, confirms NPD.

Overall, the findings underscore that food manufacturers and retailers that shape strategies that respond to consumers' cost, variety and convenience challenges -- within the context of an understanding of planning, shopping and preparation behaviors -- stand to increase brand loyalty, trip frequency and basket size, says Hanson.