OTTAWA – Blame it on Instagram. Or food trucks. Or the proliferation of cooking shows inspiring would-be stars of the stove. A new Nanos Survey commissioned by Gusto TV entitled 'Foodie Nation' reveals that Canucks have an appetite for adventure when it comes to food.
A whopping 70% of Canadians surveyed identify themselves as a 'foodie' – a person who has an avid interest in food and seeks new culinary experiences, rather than simply eating out of convenience or hunger. Among those, one in four (24%) consider themselves to have serious culinary cred, while those under 40 years of age are more likely to be a foodie compared to older Canadians.
Other highlights from the survey include:
– 96% of Canadians surveyed like to try new food experiences either regularly (40%) or occasionally (56%). Quebec (43.6%) and Ontario (43%) lead the country as the most adventurous;
– The mighty perogi (39%) outstripped sushi (20%), souvlaki (17%) and butter chicken (17%) as the international food chosen most for being part of Canadian cuisine. This finding was largely driven by Canadians in the Prairies, where 63.4% picked the dough dumplings, followed by Atlantic Canadians (42.3%);
– One in four Canadians surveyed admitted to sharing food photos online 'occasionally' (26%), with Atlantic Canada being the highest region (28.8%), followed by Quebec in second place (27.6%) and BC (27.5%) and Ontario (22.9%) following behind;
– Although the battle of the sexes extends to the kitchen at times, women foodies (24.6%) only narrowly edged out male counterparts (23%) when it comes to being serious gourmets;
– The future is bright for food lovers, with 46.1% of survey respondents aged 18-29 and 47% age 30-39 regularly experimenting with new fare.
"Canada is the greatest food nation on the planet," said Gusto TV CEO and founder Chris Knight, in the survey’s news release. "Cooking and the enjoyment of eating has never been more popular. We see that in this first poll, and in the overwhelming positive response we've had to launching a new food and cooking specialty television channel across Canada."
