The current BILLA Austria Report 2022 was published

• Third BILLA Austria Report shows: Well-being in 2021 maintained at about the same level as the previous year - 61 out of 100 points on the well-being scale (2020: 60.7; 2019: 64.4) 

• Federal state ranking: Salzburg as the new feel-good oasis, closely followed by Carinthia, Styria and Tyrol, Vienna brings up the rear this year 

• Enjoyment of hobbies on the rise, people feel most at home with family and friends 

• The 50- to 65-year-olds are doing best, but the 18- to 29-year-olds are regaining the most, especially in leisure time, among friends and in love 

• Greatest concern about political situation in the country, individual situation less of a burden 

• Return to normality as the greatest wish 

• Cooking and conscious enjoyment have a positive effect on well-being 

The pandemic has been with us for almost two years now. Every tenth person in Austria (11%) has been affected by a Corona disease themselves, every second (48%) in their immediate environment. Every fifth person has been on short-time work (18 %) and 9 % have lost their job. 37 % are feeling the economic consequences and the virus has also left its mark psychologically on 55 %. On the whole, however, Austrians have learned to deal with the situation. According to the BILLA Austria Report, a survey of 3,000 men and women conducted in November 2021, people in this country are doing well despite these circumstances. Well-being has remained at the level of the previous year. In this context, resumed hobbies and leisure activities - which were almost unrestrictedly possible especially in summer and early autumn - have a more positive effect on the mood again. 

"As a local food supplier, we are in daily contact with the people in the country in our markets and are naturally interested in how they are doing, what concerns them, what they worry about and what they want. This knowledge helps us to become even better in our actions and our range of products and services and to provide our customers with the best possible support in an area of their lives that is so essential - namely the purchase of groceries," says Elke Wilgmann, BILLA CEO, explaining the motives behind the study, which was conducted for the third time by the market research institute marketmind. 

Well-being in Austria at a constant level, leisure time gains influence 

In the second year of the pandemic, the well-being of Austrians has stabilised at a relatively constant level. The current well-being index is 61 out of 100 points (2020: 60.7; 2019: 64.4). This value is determined using a statistical model that takes into account the strengths of influence from different areas of life. As in the past, the meaning of life - i.e. goals, beliefs and values - has the greatest influence (18 %) on well-being. Physical fitness and health (14 %), everyday activities (14 %) and the job (13 %) also shape the index. Leisure time is gaining strongly in relevance (11 %, +4.5 ppt; 2020: 6.5 %, 2019: 9 %). The area of fitness and health (+1.9 ppt) also gains, while love and partnership (6%, -2.4 ppt) and family (5%, -3.2 ppt) lose influence. The area of nutrition (6%), which also has an impact on personal well-being, remains constant. 

"In the three-year comparison, you do see a drop in well-being from 2019 to 2020 - which is not surprising given the circumstances - but in 2021, the feeling situation has stabilised. People have come to terms with the situation to a certain extent, and with the option of Covid 19 vaccination and free Corona tests, people are feeling a bit more comfortable again in their daily lives. Also, the results show that we are taking back what we have lost: Leisure time has a more positive effect on our well-being again. Practising hobbies, meeting friends, drinking coffee or going to the cinema - all these activities were possible in what felt like a normal summer and autumn, and the resulting sense of well-being is apparently still having an effect in winter," says Stefan Schiel, Managing Director at marktmind. "Austrians also perceive their personal mood much more positively than that of others. While they see themselves as cheerful, loving and happy, their fellow human beings are more likely to be perceived as dissatisfied and angry." 

Interpersonal relationships unclouded, enjoyment of leisure activities increases 

Despite Corona, family (68 points) and the circle of friends (67 points) continue to be those areas of life in which Austrians feel most comfortable. While leisure was still in third place out of ten in 2019 (67 points), it fell to second to last place in 2020 (56 points). With 62 well-being points in 2021, Austrians clearly enjoy activities, hobbies and undertakings more. Well-being is lowest in the areas of work (57 points) and physical fitness and health (55 points). 

Family is also the source of special moments of joy for 24% of respondents. This is followed by good food (16%) and one's own children and friends (15%). 

18- to 29-year-olds regain the most in a year-on-year comparison 

Well-being varies from generation to generation: 50- to 65-year-olds continue to fare best (65.1 points). The 18- to 29-year-olds are once again in last place (57.7 points), but a slight year-on-year improvement is evident here (+1.2 points). In general, they have felt the restrictions of the last two years the most, with their well-being dropping by 6 points from 2019 to 2020. Looking at the individual areas of life, the well-being of young adults in the areas of friends (+3 points; 2020: -8 points), love (+3 points; 2020: -5 points), everyday activities (+4 points; 2020: -9 points) as well as leisure (+6 points; 2020: -13 points) is increasing again - this is where they had the greatest losses in the previous year. 

People in education also benefit from a somewhat more relaxed situation in educational institutions: After the strong decline in well-being in 2020 (-6.4 points), they now see a slight improvement again (58.5 points; +2.5 points). 

Because of Corona, especially women feel the double burden of job and family - this is also reflected in their well-being, which is behind that of men (59.7 points vs. 62.3 points). Women feel more worried, tense and stressed. 

Common good before individual worries: political situation most worrisome 

Chat revelations, Chancellor resignations, lockdowns and compulsory vaccinations - politically, the country is struggling with a multitude of challenges. A circumstance that also worries the population: when asked about their greatest concerns, 53% cite the political situation in the country, which corresponds to an increase of 14 percentage points compared to 2020. This is followed by concerns about conflicts in the world (48 %; +1 ppt) and about climate and the environment (40 %; +3 ppt). Concern about the economy, which was still in first place last year, recorded a strong decline of 19 percentage points and is now in fifth place (38%) after concern about money and finances (40%; +1 ppt). While last year Austrians were more concerned about the health of others than about their own, there is now an exchange of places here (33% vs. 35%). Work (25 %), family (17 %) or possible accidents (12 %) worry the respondents comparatively less. The results thus show that the common good concerns Austrians more than their individual sensitivities. The only difference: people under 30 worry more than the average about their finances (51 %), their job (36 %) and their education (21 %). 

"With the closure of many industries during the lockdowns, concerns for the domestic economy also rose sharply in 2020. One year later, we knew that the economy had escaped relatively unscathed. On the other hand, a lot has happened in the political arena, which has caused the confidence of Austrians to wane and concerns to grow," says Stefan Schiel. "It is interesting that worries in the private spheres, which people themselves have direct influence, are comparatively low, while greater anxiety is evident wherever others are steering the fortunes." 

Future wishes: focus on fitness and health, enjoy life more consciously and return to the old normality 

Austrians are least satisfied with their physical fitness and health (55 points). Six out of ten (63%) would like to change this in the future and devote more time to this area of life. They also plan to make more use of their free time (62%) in the future to pursue hobbies and activities. 57% want to invest more time in their partnership or marriage and 47% in their diet. 

The major life dreams and goals of Austrians have not changed and have remained the same for the third time in a row: 53% would like to enjoy their life more consciously, 43% want to travel to distant countries and 42% want to lose weight.  

On the other hand, if they had one wish, for the majority it would be victory over Corona and a return to normality (16 %; +2 ppt). Another 16% would like to have more money and 14% would like to change their housing situation. Wishes concerning work, changing jobs and health are decreasing, while those concerning security and politics are increasing. 

For the year 2022, four out of ten Austrians (40%) assume that their personal well-being will develop positively. 

Head-to-head race between the federal provinces: Salzburg just ahead of Carinthia, Styria and Tyrol 

Differences between the nine federal states remain in the third year of the BILLA Austria Report: The new feel-good federal state number 1 is Salzburg (2020: 3rd place), closely followed by Carinthia (2020: 4th place). Styria (2020: 2nd place) and Tyrol (2020: 5th place) share third place, closely followed by Upper Austria (2020: 7th place) and Lower Austria (2020: 6th place). Last year's winner Vorarlberg slips to 7th place and brings up the rear together with Burgenland (2020: 9th place) and Vienna (2020: 8th place). In a year-on-year comparison, Upper Austria records the largest increase on the scale (+1.9 well-being points), although the decline from 2019 to 2020 was also particularly large here. Now there is a slight convergence to the values before Corona. Across all provinces, well-being has improved above all in the area of leisure. Burgenland (+10 points), Salzburg (+7 points) and Upper Austria (+6 points) benefit particularly here. The loss in Vorarlberg is due to lower well-being in the areas of education (-6 points), meaning of life (-4 points) and everyday activities (-3 points).   

There is also a castling in the district ranking, only the district of Tamsweg was able to stay in the top 10. The first two places on the podium are occupied by Salzburg-Umgebung (+15 ranks) and Klagenfurt-Land (+24 ranks). Urfahr-Umgebung proves to be a clear contender and lands on rank 3 (+63 ranks). On the winning side, there are generally many Upper Austrian districts that have been able to make tidy gains in a year-on-year comparison. The lowest well-being mood can be found in ten Viennese municipal districts, which form the lowest end of the ranking.   

Salzburg is also ranked first in the provincial capital ranking (2020: 4th place), immediately followed by Klagenfurt (2020: 3rd place) and last year's winner Bregenz. 

Cooking and conscious consumption have a positive effect on well-being 

Good food not only tastes good, but it also lifts the mood and creates feelings of happiness - even more so if it has been prepared with love. For seven out of ten Austrians (69%), the enjoyment of home-cooked food has a strong influence on their well-being. And the fact that it is simply better to enjoy food with a clear conscience is shown by the fact that for around half of those surveyed, buying regional (53 %) and animal welfare products (50 %), influences their well-being.  

Overall, almost two thirds (60 %) of Austrians like to cook. Around half of the respondents (51%) consider their cooking skills to be (very) good. Cooking is associated with values such as enjoyment (82 %), quality of life (73 %), health (70 %), family (68 %), well-being (64 %), but also creativity (59 %) and fun (56 %). Food preparation continues to be a strongly female domain in Austria: 46 % of women (men: 13 %) are mainly responsible for it. When cooking or even when buying ingredients, Austrians pay particular attention to freshness (75 %), seasonality (69 %) and regionality (67 %). Varied and balanced nutrition (65%) and animal welfare (65%) also play an important role. Organic food is essential for 54%. When it comes to regionality, people pay particular attention to the origin of fresh products such as fruit, vegetables and meat (78 %). 76% think it is important that 100% of the meat comes from Austria.   

If we take a look into the pots and pans of Austrians, we see that local, traditional cuisine is the clear favourite (81 %), followed by Italian (63 %) and Mediterranean cuisine (53 %). The majority of respondents (64 %) prepare meat and fish as well as vegetarian dishes, 19 % prepare mainly meat dishes and 15 % mainly vegetarian and vegan dishes. While 28 % of men cook mainly meat (women: 14 %), 20 % of women prefer vegetarian or vegan dishes (men: 10 %). In the generation of 18- to 29-year-olds, there is a significantly higher preference for vegetarian and vegan dishes (28 %; 50- to 65-year-olds: 9 %). On average, Mr. and Mrs. Austrian have a cooked meat dish on the table on three out of seven days.   

"I am pleased that the topic of nutrition and the awareness of food from regional production as well as animal welfare products have such a high priority. The results of the survey confirm the measures we have taken and our offer, such as fresh meat 100% from Austria, and are a clear mandate for us to do even more in this area. We are also able to optimally meet the needs of our customers in terms of cooking and nutritional habits with a wide range of foods - be it plant-based alternatives, unusual spices or exotic fruits from Austria and abroad. These topics will also accompany us in 2022 and we can promise that there will be a lot more to come," says Elke Wilgmann.

About the study 

The BILLA Austria Report 2022 was conducted by the market research institute marketmind for the third time. In the period from 2 to 22 November 2021 (comparison period 26.11.-18.12.2020 and 26.11.-18.12.2019), a total of 3,013 women and men aged between 18 and 65 were surveyed - 188 of them from Carinthia. The large sample makes it possible to break down the results to federal state, district and city level and also to survey age, gender and occupational group differences. The BILLA Austria Report is the largest study ever conducted on the topic of well-being in Austria. Further information at billa.at/oesterreich-report.