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E.
 
In the US context, between 2006 and 2008, Bronnenberg analysed data from 38,000 
families who had bought 238 different kinds of packaged goods. Although the same 
brands could be found across America, there were clear differences in what people 
purchased. In general, there were two leading brands in each kind of packaged goods, but 
there were smaller brands that assumed a greater proportion of consumers’ purchases 
than was statistically likely. One explanation for this is that 16% of people surveyed came 
from interstate, and these people preferred products from their home states. Over time, 
they did buy more products from their adopted state, but, surprisingly, it took two 
decades for their brand loyalty to halve. Even people who had moved interstate 50 years 
previously maintained a preference for home-state brands. It seems the habits of food 
buying change more slowly than we think. 

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IELTSMaterial.com 
F.
 
Bronnenberg’s
findings were confirmed by Atkin’s in India although there was something 
more unexpected that Atkin discovered. Firstly, during the period of his survey, the cost 
of all consumables rose considerably in India. As a result, families reduced their spending 
on food, and their caloric intake fell accordingly. It is also worth noting that although India 
is one country, states impose tariffs or taxes on products from other Indian states, 
ensuring that locally-produced goods remain cheaper. As in the US, internal migrants 
bought food from their native place even when it was considerably more expensive than 
local alternatives, and at a time when you might expect families to be economising. This 
element made the brand-loyalty theory even more convincing. 
G.
 
There is o
ne downside to these findings. In relatively closed economies, such as India’s, 
people develop tastes that they take with them wherever they go; in a more globalised 
economy, such as America’s, what people eat may be more varied, but still dependent on 
early exposure to brands. Therefore, according to both researchers, more advertising may 
now be directed at minors since brand loyalty is established in childhood and lasts a 
lifetime. In a media-driven world where children are already bombarded with 
information, their parents may not consider it appropriate yet more advertising is hardly 
welcome.