With the Super Bowl fast approaching, the majority of football fans say they feel no guilt about snacking down heartily as they watch their favorite teams try to make it to the Super Bowl.
That's according to the third annual Supervalu Snack Down Survey by Harris Interactive, which revealed that the majority of respondents readily acknowledge that few, if any, snacks they eat during games would be considered healthy or good for them. The survey also found that 54 percent of fans say they don't confine their snacking to any special time but will eat throughout the game. Another 12 percent say they start snacking before the game as a warm-up and 9 percent report that "I load up my plate at kickoff."
And what will these millions of fans be eating? Their favorites are dips and spreads (32 percent) followed by chicken wings (23 percent), both up slightly in popularity from last year. Tied for third place at 14 percent were pizza and salty snacks such as chips, peanuts, pretzels or popcorn.
Nearly three-quarters of the fans say they plan to prepare and serve food and snacks to others at their home during the run-up to the Super Bowl and during the big game.
Tough economic times aren't stopping fans from spending on their favorite foods to watch their favorite teams. Seventy-six percent of the fans say they have not changed their snack budgets from last year, while 7 percent plan to spend more. ?Half of hosting fans will spend up to $100 or more on game-day fare, while 38 percent will spend less than $50.
As for where to buy their Super Bowl party foods, the vast majority, nearly 80 percent, say their local supermarket, followed by discount stores, mass merchants or warehouse clubs (43 percent); restaurants, caterers, gourmet food stores or delicatessens (6 percent); and convenience stores (4 percent).