Most Consumers Never Think About Soy

What we don't know can hurt us.

Ignorance about soy and soy products is depriving the majority of Americans from the benefits of soy products and soy alternatives to milk.

That's the conclusion of a study conducted by 8th Continent soymilk owner Stremicks Heritage Foods, reported on by NutraIngredients-USA.com.

The article by Shane Sterling said:

More than 50 per cent of consumers polled in a recent survey admit they know very little about soy with less than one in five consuming soy products on a weekly basis, according to a new survey.

Less than one in 10 said they had discussed the health benefits of soy products with doctors or health care providers, while 36 per cent of adults and 41 per cent of parents had never tried a soy food or beverage. ...

But only 17 per cent consume soy products on a weekly basis; 34 percent monthly.

About 37 percent have drunk soymilk with about 40 percent of respondents saying they have never tried it because they believe it tastes bad. A quarter said they found it to be too expensive or felt they did not know enough about its health benefits.

Of course the study is somewhat self-serving. 8th Continent will be launching a product fortified with the additives that consumers already try for by other means. It's still helpful to have some concrete information on the alternative market, one that few outside the industry have any facts about.

The survey was conducted by Harris Interactive and comprised more than 2000 US adults. About a quarter of these had children under 18 years old.