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Article No. 4948 Available on www.roymorgan.com Link to Roy Morgan Profiles

Tuesday, 4 June 2013

So the new season of MasterChef has arrived, complete with a cheeky culinary spin on an age-old theme — men versus women. The possibilities are downright delicious: kitchen knives hurled, heated exchanges over sizzling stoves, passions stoked by sinful desserts… or not. Could this gastronomic battle of the sexes turn out to be a storm in a measuring cup? Are men and women really that different in the kitchen? Roy Morgan Research reveals all…

The foodie factor Given our reputation as a sporting nation, it may come as a surprise to learn that more Australians love cooking than practising sport. While 28% of us love to do as many sports as possible, more than double that amount (62%) love to cook — 67% of women and 57% of men, to be precise. Compare that to the 21% of women and 34% of men who love doing sport, and MasterChef could be onto a winner. When it comes to talent in the kitchen, women appear to have the advantage: 57% agree with the statement ‘People often compliment me on my cooking’, compared to 42% of men. Aussie men and women in the kitchen: cooking more popular than doing lots of sport 80%

70%

60%

% of Australians 14+

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

MasterChef 2013: are men and women really that different in the kitchen?

67%

57%

57%

50% 42% 40% 34% 30% 23%

24% 21%

20%

10%

0% I love to cook

People often compliment me on my cooking

Men

Held a dinner party in the last 3 months

I love to do as many sports as possible

Women

Source: Roy Morgan Single Source (Australia), April 2012 – March 2013 (n = 20,767). Base: Australians 14+ Roy Morgan Research Ltd. A.B.N. 91 007 092 944 Quality System Certified to AS/NZS ISO 9001 401 Collins Street, Melbourne, Victoria, 3000 – GPO Box 2282U, Melbourne, Victoria, 3001, Australia Tel: (03) 9629 6888 Fax: (03) 9629 1250 (03) 9224 5387 [email protected] www.roymorgan.com

Among MasterChef fans, these percentages shoot up. As of December 2012, after the last ‘nonprofessional’ season of the show, 81% of women and 74% of men who ‘really love to watch MasterChef’ said they loved to cook, while 64% of the women and 58% of the men said people often complimented them on their cooking.

The dinner party dimension


Requiring a certain degree of culinary confidence, throwing a dinner party could be considered good training for any aspiring MasterChef. In that respect, women and men are evenly matched: the latest data shows that 24% of women and 23% of men threw a dinner party in the last three months. Again, these figures are noticeably elevated among MasterChef fans: 33% of men and 30% of women who ‘really love to watch’ the show threw a dinner party in an average three-month period last year.

Cuisine countdown When asked which cuisines they like eating, Aussie men and women have similar tastes. Topping the list for both genders is Chinese (71% of women, 70% of men), followed by Italian (62% of women, 58% of men) and Thai (55% of women, 52% of men). Indian and Mexican are also favourites. This suggests it could be a close contest between the genders should they be faced with challenges of a multicultural nature. George Pesutto, Industry Director — Media, Roy Morgan Research, says:

“By setting itself up as a gastronomic battle of the sexes, the new season of MasterChef promises to provoke spirited dinner table conversation and competition in the kitchen. “While women and men share similar tastes in cuisine, differences emerge when we consider their love for cooking and the compliments they receive for their culinary efforts. In that respect, women are shaping up as early favourites in this televisual cook-off. “Getting even more specific, we’ve found that the highest proportion of women who love cooking and receive compliments for their cooking are aged between 25 and 34. Several of the contestants fit this profile this season, so we’ll be watching them closely. “Admittedly, there are more male celebrity chefs (including two of the show’s judges) than females, but the data has spoken…we predict a female winner!” Visit the Roy Morgan Online Store to access an extensive range of customer profiles and reports, including food attitude profiles, profiles of people who love to cook, and food consumers. These profiles provide an overview of their demographics, attitudes, activities and media usage.

Roy Morgan Research Ltd. A.B.N. 91 007 092 944 Quality System Certified to AS/NZS ISO 9001 401 Collins Street, Melbourne, Victoria, 3000 – GPO Box 2282U, Melbourne, Victoria, 3001, Australia Tel: (03) 9629 6888 Fax: (03) 9629 1250 (03) 9224 5387 [email protected] www.roymorgan.com

For comments or more information please contact: George Pesutto General Manager – Media & Communications Office: +61 (3) 9224 5206 [email protected]


About Roy Morgan Research Roy Morgan Research is the largest independent Australian research company, with offices in each state of Australia, as well as in New Zealand, the United States and the United Kingdom. A full service research organisation specialising in omnibus and syndicated data, Roy Morgan Research has over 70 years’ experience in collecting objective, independent information on consumers. In Australia, Roy Morgan Research is considered to be the authoritative source of information on financial behaviour, readership, voting intentions and consumer confidence. Roy Morgan Research is a specialist in recontact customised surveys which provide invaluable and effective qualitative and quantitative information regarding customers and target markets. Margin of Error The margin of error to be allowed for in any estimate depends mainly on the number of interviews on which it is based. Margin of error gives indications of the likely range within which estimates would be 95% likely to fall, expressed as the number of percentage points above or below the actual estimate. Allowance for design effects (such as stratification and weighting) should be made as appropriate.

Sample Size 5,000 7,500 10,000 20,000 50,000

Percentage Estimate 40%-60% ±1.4 ±1.1 ±1.0 ±0.7 ±0.4

25% or 75% ±1.2 ±1.0 ±0.9 ±0.6 ±0.4

10% or 90% ±0.8 ±0.7 ±0.6 ±0.4 ±0.3

5% or 95% ±0.6 ±0.5 ±0.4 ±0.3 ±0.2

Roy Morgan Research Ltd. A.B.N. 91 007 092 944 Quality System Certified to AS/NZS ISO 9001 401 Collins Street, Melbourne, Victoria, 3000 – GPO Box 2282U, Melbourne, Victoria, 3001, Australia Tel: (03) 9629 6888 Fax: (03) 9629 1250 (03) 9224 5387 [email protected] www.roymorgan.com