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Harris Poll: Half of Americans Watch Cooking Shows Very Often or Occasionally

Half of Americans (50%) say they watch TV shows about cooking very often or occasionally, but half (50%) say they watch these shows rarely or never. Looking a little more specifically, just one in five U.S. adults (21%) say they never watch TV shows about cooking while three in ten (29%) do so rarely, one-third (34%) do so occasionally and 15% watch cooking shows very often.

These are some of the findings of the Harris Poll, conducted online between May 10 and 17, 2010, among 2,503 online U.S. adults ages 18 and over.

Certain groups are more likely to watch cooking shows. Over half (55%) of Baby Boomers (those aged 46-64) watch cooking shows very often or occasionally, compared to over half (57%) of Echo Boomers (those aged 18-33) who say they rarely or never watch these shows. While many of the great chefs are male, and men say they love to cook more than women do (32% versus 28%), women are more likely than men are to watch cooking shows very often or occasionally (54% versus 46%).

Besides trying to make the dishes shown on cooking channels, those who watch these shows can be influenced to potentially purchase some of the food they see being prepared, along with the gadgets the chefs use and even the cookbooks the star-chefs have written. In fact, over half (57%) of those who watch these shows say they have purchased food as a direct result of something they've seen on a cooking show. Over one-third (36%) say they have purchased small kitchen gadgets, 24% have purchased cookbooks and 6% have even purchased large appliances as a direct result of something they've seen on a cooking show.

Much as they are more likely to watch these shows, Baby Boomers are also more likely to purchase both food (60%) and kitchen gadgets (41%) because of something they've seen on a cooking show. Gen Xers (those aged 34-45) are more likely to purchase cookbooks (29%) and large appliances (9%) after seeing them on cooking shows.

Rachael Ray is the queen of easy meals and manages to get people cooking rather than dining out. According to Americans who watch cooking shows, 30 Minute Meals with Rachael Ray is their favorite cooking program. Tied at number two for favorite cooking show are two Southern cooks - Paula Deen with Paula's Home Cooking and the king of "Bam," Emeril Lagasse, with Emeril Live. At number four is the uber-cooking competition, Iron Chef, and number five is Good Eats.

In at number six is Guy Fieri's Diners, Drive-ins and Dives and number seven is Top Chef. Three females round out the top ten: the Barefoot Contessa hosted by Ina Garten, Martha Stewart, and Everyday Italian with Giada de Laurentiis.

Cooking shows are big business. They can boost viewership for networks and can also spur show collateral, such as cookbooks and kitchen gadgets. Additionally, many TV chefs have their own restaurants that can draw viewers and fans of the show to dine there. Besides business, cooking shows are also a form of escapism for many people. And, while many may have a little Martha Stewart in them, who can actually do the perfect souffle? However, watching these shows makes cooking look so easy, that it's likely many file away those recipes as something they would "love to make later."

For more information, you can read the complete press release.

Ted Allen's Kitchen Essentials

In the July/August 2010 issue of Food Network magazine, Chopped host Ted Allen reveals his 10 kitchen essentials:

1 Fish spatula

2 Restaurant food-storage containers

3 Wooden spoons

4 Magnetic knife rack

5 Cast-iron skillet

6 Pressure cooker

7 Vita-Mix Blender

8 Parchment paper

9 Heavy wood cutting boards

10 iTunes

CNN Launches Eatocracy

CNN.com today announced the launch of Eatocracy, a blog created to feed the minds, hearts and stomachs of food fanatics across the world.  Covering the pulse of food news – from its culture and trends to the politics and economics of eating -- Eatocracy will aim to be a destination for passionate dialogue and debate about food.

 

 

 

Just What We All Needed: Kirstie Alley Launches New Organic Diet Program

Carolyn Phenicie, Contributing Writer, Food Culture

Following in the footsteps of Marie Osmond, Valerie Bertinelli and Jennifer Hudson, former Cheers actress Kirstie Alley recently launched a new diet program. 

"You might know me as an award-winning actress…or as that actress who gained weight and lost it and gained it back again and appears weekly on the cover of the Enquirer in really ugly fat clothes," Alley, who famously lost weight and showed off her new body on Oprah only to gain the weight back again, says in an introductory video. 

Her program, Kirstie Alley's Organic Liaison, is a bit different than other celebrity diets in that it's brand new. Osmond's NutriSystem, Bertinelli's Jenny Craig and Hudson's Weight Watchers all existed before the celebrities jumped on board to help promote it. Organic Liaison has been in research and development for the last two years, Alley says. The release of Organic Liaison coincided with the premiere of Alley's new TV show, 'Kirstie Alley's Big Life,' which airs on A & E.

The program consists of two basic components: a group of dietary supplements and access to online tools. The dietary supplements cost $139 for a month's supply and include Rescue Me (a nutrient replacement elixir), Release Me (a calcium and magnesium supplement) and Nightingale (a sleep aid containing tryptophan.) The site also sells Relieve Me (a digestive aid) and Pagoda (a green tea metabolism booster), for an additional cost. 

The online program costs $10 a month or $89 for a whole year and includes access to online tools including an organic recipe database, calorie counters, meal planners and an organic food finder. Members can also join forces with an online supporter, called a "Chubby Buddy." 

So far, it's gotten mixed reviews; reviewers' primary complaint is the lack of a set exercise program, widely considered key in any weight loss attempt. Some, though, see something a bit more sinister: a scam for Scientology. Anonymous, an anti-Scientology group, sees links between the supplements in Alley's program and those hawked by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard. There are also several Scientologists working for Alley's company in different capacities. 

Whether any one person will be successful on a diet promoted by a celebrity is dependent on a variety of factors, but it's clear celebrities are successful at selling diets for weight loss companies. Hudson follows in the footsteps of Jenny McCarthy and Sarah Ferguson, who previously advertised for Weight Watchers.

There are plenty of other online diet options that are free (like SparkPeople) or cheaper (like LiveStrong's Daily Plate Gold) than Alley's, but those who only want the online tools and not supplements may put a dent in her business. That, plus the fact that it hasn't been advertised widely (unlike the other celebrity diets, particularly those hawked by Osmond and Bertinelli), makes it unclear how successful it may be.

Recipe Contests: Menu Development or Publicity Stunts?

We currently live in an age of recipe contests.  Normal, everyday home cooks can now have a chance at money and stardom with a winning cookie recipe or creative use of some branded ingredient.  The Food Network, in addition to every cooking magazine, offers some type of recipe or cooking contest.  

The winners usually receive a cash prize, along with recognition in a press release, an introduction at an event, and the recipe posted on the website or perhaps in a cookbook.  But the ultimate prize:  getting your winning recipe on the menu of a national fast casual or casual dining chain.

TGI Friday's has long been involved in recipe contests.  In November 2006, TGI Friday's partnered with Bravo's Top Chef (currently in its sixth season), in which the casual dining chain's Executive Chef served as a guest panelist to identify a winning entrée that was then added to the TGI Friday’s menu.  In January 2008, the company partnered with Food Network's Ultimate Recipe Showdown to launch six menu items inspired by winning dishes from the show. 

Janice Kollar was one of those winners.  Her "Really Good" Chocolate Layer Cake won the Ultimate Recipe Showdown episode on cakes, and in addition to the $25,000 in her prize package, the cake was to be added to the menu at TGI Friday's.

Well, not exactly.

For the winners, "these are not the actual recipes," explains Amy Freshwater, a spokesperson for TGI Friday's, "but rather inspired by winning recipes.  They are true to the spirit of the original recipe but had to be adjusted so we could introduce them to our 600 U.S.-based restaurants."

Gatorade Drops Tiger Woods

According to breaking news from fanzine TMZ, a rep for Gatorade told CNBC, "I can confirm that we no longer see a role for Tiger in our marketing efforts and have ended our relationship."

Gatorade is the third company to drop the golfer in the wake of the extramarital scandal, after Gillette and Accenture.  Gatorade is owned by PepsiCo.

Oliver Twist: Jamie Oliver to Teach Americans About 'Proper Food'

I believe that every child in America has the right to fresh, nutritious school meals, and that every family deserves real, honest, wholesome food. Too many people are being affected by what they eat. It's time for a national revolution. America needs to stand up for better food! 

-- Jamie Oliver

 

ABC has announced that Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution, a new reality series produced by American Idol host Ryan Seacrest and starring the British chef as he provides a healthy, culinary makeover of residents of the city of Huntington, WV, will premiere on Friday, March 26 at 9PM ET/PT. 

Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution will follow Oliver as he travels to Huntington -- which was labeled "the unhealthiest city in America" by The Associated Press in 2008 -- to start a new initiative that utilizes local resources to improve eating habits.

 

"The time is right for people to rediscover the sense of pride, satisfaction and fun you can get from cooking for the people you love. There's an incredible community in Huntington, and I want this experience to be a celebration of what we can achieve when people come together," said Oliver.  "I want to prove that turning around the epidemic of obesity and bad health doesn't have to be boring or dull in the slightest. Wonderful stories will unfold in Huntington, and hopefully this will inspire the rest of the States." 

Judging from the trailer, Oliver will mostly focus on school lunches and children's nutrition as a way to tackle the problem.  Clearly, the six-episode series is loosely based on Oliver's U.K. series Jamie's Ministry of Food and Jamie's School Dinners, which were both aimed at improving children's nutrition. 

As told to the New York Times' Mark Bittman in the January/February issue of Cooking Light -- click on video excerpts of that interview here -- Oliver feels that, "if I'm really clever, in the next nine months we can tell a story that inspires people, upsets them enough, and makes them understand that change is easy and it doesn't necessarily involve spending more money."

According to Oliver, "proper food" is food from scratch.  "If you could at least half of the time buy, or do yourself, something that was remotely scratch-based, you probably could fix 98 percent of the [nutrition] problems in America.  It's so much more than just 'eat less.'"

He goes on to discuss how arming the public with basic cooking skills -- stewing, roasting, stir-frying -- and access to fresh or frozen ingredients can create simple, great meals.

Bittman asks Oliver what will happen when he gets people to cook proper food half the time.  Oliver responds, 

Well, this sounds a bit romantic, but if once, twice, or even three times a week people cooked, and sat around the table with their family, that would have a dramatic impact on the whole country.  I think kids would be happier, marriages would fail less.

Let's bring on the revolution.

Paula Deen Abruptly Cancels Six-City U.S. Tour, Blames Promoter

Celebrity chef and iconic television personality Paula Deen today cancelled a six-city personal appearance tour that had been scheduled to begin on February 20th -- in two days -- and end on March 19th.

 

Paula Deen Enterprises announced that the promoter of the tour, Celebrity Chefs Tour LLC, was unable to meet its financial obligations, and that it was necessary to terminate the promoter and cancel the shows "Celebrity Chefs Tour: An Evening With Paula Deen and Family."

"We've done many of these shows around the country with other promoters and they've been wonderful," said Nancy Assuncao, the spokesperson for Paula Deen Enterprises, in a statement. "But there were apparently too many financial and logistical issues for this promoter to handle and we had to make a painful decision after they could still not perform after giving them additional time to meet their obligations. We're aware that Paula's fans will be disappointed, but we'd rather ask them to be patient than take a chance that they'll be unhappy."

The canceled shows were scheduled to begin on February 20th in Charlotte, stopping in Durham, Los Angeles, Cleveland and Cincinnati, before ending March 19th in Indianapolis.  The tour was to feature Paula Deen, her sons Bobby and Jamie, and other Food Network personalities as they told stories, cooked, and interacted with the audience.

According to the statement, Ms Deen said, "I love traveling the country sharing stories, cooking and visiting with folks, it's one of my favorite things to do.  That's why I'm so sorry that those who bought tickets or were planning to attend are going to be disappointed. I apologize for that and I appreciate their patience. Right now my team is working on an alternative plan with new promoters and we hope to announce the details in the coming weeks."

The statement did not give contact information for ticket holders regarding refunds or credits for future appearances.

Selling Diets to Men

Joanna Bettelheim, Contributing Writer, Food Culture

The flip side of food (eating, indulging) is the weight loss industry, which reaps billions every year.  Most of those dollars come from women, who often have a love/hate relationship with food, culturally speaking.  While being expected to have a close relationship with chocolate, women are also faced daily with images which tell them not to eat too much of it.  

But though there is still a strong base of dieting as a female-dominated activity, it seems that the fact that Americans overall, not just women, are so overweight that losing pounds has become a unisex need.  According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than two-thirds of the U.S. adult population is overweight and more than one-third is obese. 

Jenny Craig will soon be adding a new spokesperson to its roster:  Jason Alexander was recently announced as the newest celebrity sign-up.  The Seinfeld star has apparently tried other diets in the past that did little to assuage the 30 pounds the actor was looking to shed.  Nutrisystem is another weight loss program that's looking to convert beer guts into cash by appealing to a male customer.  Its new campaign includes football personalities like sportscaster Chris Berman who are going "all the way" with their weight loss.

Restaurants are also joining in, selling lighter options to men as well as women, and expanding the options beyond simple salads.  Applebee's launched its Under 550 Calories menu with one commercial which is decidedly male.  It features four men out for dinner, ordering massive cheesy burgers and fries, when one shocks them all by ordering from the lighter side of the menu.  He of course is ultimately triumphant when his plate arrives and his friends gaze in shock to see his tasty peppercorn steak with Asiago cheese.  One goes so far as to try and steal a potato from his plate.  The message is clear: this diet menu is masculine.

Asiago Peppercorn Steak from Applebee's 

Subway is also pushing for the business of the health-conscious dude.  Penning a deal with NBC Sports, they have been featuring athletes more and more as spokespeople, as well as the old favorite, Jared.  And while obviously the audience for sports crosses most boundaries, football is the essence of raw, physical masculinity in American culture, and connecting it to subs with 7 grams of fat or less rather than just Doritos and beer signifies a change in the way men are relating to food, particularly when it comes to the lighter side.

With all of these changes to the way diets are being sold, one has to wonder: which came first?  Are more men dieting, forcing companies to vie for the customer, or are these ads convincing men that they need to think about their waistlines?

11 out of 15 Correct: Food Pop Culture Royalty

Apparently, after taking the Food Network's online Food Pop Culture IQ Quiz, I'm Food Pop Culture Royalty.

Scripps Networks: Fine Living to become the Cooking Channel in Q3 2010

Scripps Networks, producer and distributor of several lifestyle cable channels, including the Food Network, HGTV, and DIY, issued a press release back in October that it is rebranding Fine Living Network as the Cooking Channel.  Clearly, they see a market opportunity in us foodies, and they can combine operations in New York with sister channel, the Food Network.

 

Inquiring minds want to know: besides Fine Living's current crop of shows, what else is in store for us?  Scripps says that the new channel will focus on instruction, but it's anyone's guess as to who they will get as a star.

The logo is already on the Scripps homepage, take a look (I circled it in red):

 
Food Culture Blog expects some re-runs of forgotten Food Network episodes at the beginning, until things take shape.  Stay tuned.