Men spend more than women, eat out more often: Survey
While some Canadians seek out low-cost alternatives for lunch, many are spending hundreds of dollars per year on their midday meal, according to a survey by Visa Canada.
Sixty per cent of Canadians buy their lunch once or more per week, found the survey of 1,000 adults.
Almost two-thirds (61 per cent) of those who buy lunch are spending between $7 and $13, while nine per cent are spending between $14 and $25. However, 30 per cent of Canadians plan on spending less on lunch this year.
“With a little understanding of budgeting and a lot more brown bags in their briefcases when they head out the door each morning, it is easy to trim this unnecessary and costly expense," said Melissa Cassar, head of corporate and public affairs at Visa Canada.
Men spend more on lunch than women, forking out an average of $9.30 versus $8.30, respectively. Men also eat out for lunch more frequently (an average of 1.3 times per week) compared to women (an average of once per week), found the survey.
Young Canadians (aged 18 to 34) who eat out for lunch do so 2.3 times per week.
Ontarians eat out for lunch most frequently. Twenty per cent eat out three or more days per week, compared to the national average of 15 per cent who eat out at the same frequency. About one-third (34 per cent) of Ontarians never eat out for lunch.
More Quebec residents bring brown bags to work than any other Canadians — 50 per cent pack a lunch every day, followed closely by Albertans (43 per cent) and British Columbians (39 per cent), found Visa.
