Mintel, a research firm based in Chicago, IL, found in its 2010 consumer survey that households with children consume considerably more cookies than those that don’t, and it isn’t just the children eating all those cookies. Even though adults without children buy fewer cookies than parents, adults with children do indulge in the cookies they buy for their kids.

This information bodes well for the cookie business because the US Census data reports that children under the age of 6 and between the ages of 6 and 11 show the strongest population growth.

Even though mom and dad share a bag of cookies with the kids doesn’t mean they have the same taste when it comes to what cookies to buy. Mintel found that adults favored upscale brands while children would rather eat candy-based brands.