FEWER AMERICANS EAT ON THE GO

Signs are growing that frugal American consumers are staying at home for breakfast, extending a trend that has hit evening sales at US restaurant chains.
General Mills, whose brands include Cheerios cereals and Yoplait yoghurt, estimated yesterday that total US breakfast cereal sales rose about 5 per cent in June to August from a year ago. Its US sales of breakfast cereals rose 10 per cent, while its yoghurt sales were 19 per cent higher.
Ken Powell, chief executive, said the company's products, which also include Progresso soup and home baking brands, have in general benefited from a shift away from eating out in the evening.

But the increased sales of cereal and yoghurt were consistent with the hypothesis that the same thing is happening in the morning, he said.
Until recently Americans have increasingly eaten breakfast on the way to work, and the trend has supported the growth of breakfast offerings from fast-food restaurants such as McDonalds and from Starbucks and other shops that sell coffee.
Early this year Jamba Juice, a chain built around the sale of fresh fruit “smoothies”, began to offer food as well. It said the baked goods sector was the “fastest growing day part” in the quick service restaurant business.
But David Palmer, a consumer goods analyst at UBS Equity Research, observed in a note to clients: “US restaurant breakfast traffic was flat in the June quarter for the first time since 2004.”
This trend could benefit not just General Mills but also its cereal rival, Kellogg's, he said.
Mr Powell said General Mills' yoghurt sales also seemed to be benefiting from a growing readiness to save money by making a “brown bag” lunch at home rather than eating out.
“Generally we are reading and seeing a shift to dinner [at home], and the percentage of consumers who brown-bag and bring their own lunch is also going up a bit,” he said.
General Mills also reported strong growth in sales of its soup brand. Progresso sales were up 9 per cent in the quarter.
Its rival Campbell's has also seen strong soup sales this year.