The ability to eat cheaper home-cooked meals more often might explain why people appear to spend less money after retirement

A number of studies suggest that those who have retired spend significantly less money than those who are still working. This might imply that many people have insufficient savings for retirement. Using data from Spain, Maria Jose Luengo-Prado and Almudena Sevilla-Sanz take issue with this perspective. Noting that much of the reduction in spending is related to food expenditure, they argue that in many cases reduced spending simply reflects the fact that those who are retired have more time to use home-produced goods.