Coronavirus pandemic likely to permanently change dining habits of Asian consumers, Nielsen study says

Asian consumers are unlikely to go back to their old habits of frequently dining out, and will instead prefer takeaways and eating at home once life goes back to normal after the Covid-19 pandemic, according to a study.

“Consumer across Asia have signalled their eating habits may change permanently once the world moves beyond the impact of the novel coronavirus,” an online survey by market researcher Nielsen found. Over 6,000 respondents in 11 markets – China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, Thailand, Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia – were polled between March 6 and 17.

In China, 86 per cent of those polled said they would eat at home more often than before the outbreak, followed by 77 per cent in Hong Kong. In South Korea, Malaysia and Vietnam that number stood at 62 per cent.

The survey underscores the changing retail landscape, particularly for the food and drinks segment, as businesses grapple with the new normal of social distancing drilled into the public’s psyche to stem the spread of Covid-19. The highly contagious disease has affected over 1.2 million people across the globe and claimed at least 64,000 lives so far.

“The Covid-19 crisis has certainly changed attitudes and behaviours of consumers,” said Vaughan Ryan, managing director for Southeast Asia at Nielsen Connect.