
Thanksgiving Rules In The Northeast, But Southerners Claim Largest Piece Of Frozen Pie Sales
Thanksgiving Rules In The Northeast, But Southerners Claim Largest Piece Of Frozen Pie Sales

Consumers in the northeastern U.S. take their Thanksgiving feasts seriously.
Supermarket shoppers in markets like Hartford and New Haven, Conn., Pittsburgh, and Boston spend significantly more, percentage-wise, on ready-made Thanksgiving-related food products than average American consumers, Nielsen reported Thursday.
Hartford/New Haven residents were the top consumers of stuffing products, spending 44% more than average American consumers during the 52 weeks ending September 6, 2008.
During the same period, shoppers in Pittsburgh dominated sales of canned gravy, spending 119% more than average Americans, while Boston consumers spent 194% more than average Americans on New England’s signature fruit condiment, cranberry sauce, according to Nielsen.
But when it comes to Thanksgiving dessert, northeasterners can’t compete with their neighbors to the south, who purchased the lion’s share of frozen pies.
Little Rock, A.R., Birmingham, A.L., and Memphis, Tenn. topped Nielsen’s ranking of the top markets for frozen pie sales. Shoppers in these three markets spent 75% to 102% more on frozen pies than average Americans.
Rank (by highest index) |
Top 10 U.S. Markets: Stuffing Products |
Dollar Sales Index Vs. Total U.S. Sales |
---|---|---|
1 | HARTFORD/NEW HAVEN | 144 |
2 | SYRACUSE | 141 |
3 | BUFFALO/ROCHESTER | 140 |
4 | ALBANY | 139 |
5 | PHILADELPHIA | 138 |
6 | CLEVELAND | 138 |
7 | PITTSBURGH | 132 |
8 | BALTIMORE | 130 |
9 | RALEIGH/DURHAM | 126 |
10 | DETROIT | 126 |
Lowest Rank | BIRMINGHAM | 39 |
Source: The Nielsen Company (September 8, 2007 – September 6, 2008). | ||
*Note: “Dollar Sales Index” is based on each market’s category share of UPC-coded, total dry grocery sales vs. total U.S. sales. |
Rank (by highest index) |
Top 10 U.S. Markets: Frozen Pies |
Dollar Sales Index Vs. Total U.S. Sales |
---|---|---|
1 | LITTLE ROCK | 202 |
2 | BIRMINGHAM | 182 |
3 | MEMPHIS | 175 |
4 | LOUISVILLE | 173 |
5 | OKLAHOMA CITY/TULSA | 172 |
6 | INDIANAPOLIS | 159 |
7 | NEW ORLEANS/MOBILE | 147 |
8 | RALEIGH/DURHAM | 136 |
9 | JACKSONVILLE | 135 |
10 | SALT LAKE CITY/BOISE | 135 |
Lowest Rank | OAHU | 27 |
Source: The Nielsen Company (September 8, 2007 – September 6, 2008). | ||
*Note: “Dollar Sales Index” is based on each market’s category share of UPC-coded, total dry grocery sales vs. total U.S. sales. |
Rank (by highest index) |
Top 10 U.S. Markets: Canned Gravy |
Dollar Sales Index Vs. Total U.S. Sales |
---|---|---|
1 | PITTSBURGH | 219 |
2 | PHILADELPHIA | 219 |
3 | ALBANY | 183 |
4 | BUFFALO/ROCHESTER | 180 |
5 | DETROIT | 177 |
6 | HARTFORD/NEW HAVEN | 171 |
7 | MILWAUKEE | 169 |
8 | BALTIMORE | 168 |
9 | CLEVELAND | 162 |
10 | NEW YORK | 159 |
Lowest Rank | SAN ANTONIO | 21 |
Source: The Nielsen Company (September 8, 2007 – September 6, 2008). | ||
*Note: “Dollar Sales Index” is based on each market’s category share of UPC-coded, total dry grocery sales vs. total U.S. sales. |
Rank (by highest index) |
Top 10 U.S. Markets: Cranberry (Shelf Stable) |
Dollar Sales Index Vs. Total U.S. Sales |
---|---|---|
1 | BOSTON | 194 |
2 | HARTFORD/NEW HAVEN | 174 |
3 | BIRMINGHAM | 154 |
4 | ALBANY | 147 |
5 | MEMPHIS | 145 |
6 | PHILADELPHIA | 140 |
7 | NEW YORK | 133 |
8 | MILWAUKEE | 124 |
9 | TAMPA | 111 |
10 | LITTLE ROCK | 110 |
Lowest Rank | SAN ANTONIO | 49 |
Source: The Nielsen Company (September 8, 2007 – September 6, 2008). | ||
*Note: “Dollar Sales Index” is based on each market’s category share of UPC-coded, total dry grocery sales vs. total U.S. sales. |
Nielsen’s Dollar Sales Index reflects a category’s share of total dry grocery sales for a Nielsen market versus the total U.S., using supermarket dollar sales over the most current 52-week period.
The Hartford/New Haven market’s index of 144 for the Stuffing product category, for example, reveals that supermarkets in that particular market sell 44% more stuffing products, relative to total dry grocery purchases, than the national average.
https://www.nielsen.com/us/en/insights/article/2008/thanksgiving-rules-in-the-northeast-but-southerners-claim-largest-piece-of-frozen-pie-sales/