Consumer Behaviour towards Food in the Context of Health and Environmental Challenges

A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 April 2025 | Viewed by 1910

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Food Market and Consumer Research, Institute of Human Nutrition Sciences, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, SGGW-WULS, 159 C Nowoursynowska Street, 02-787 Warsaw, Poland
Interests: consumer behaviour; food preferences; food quality; meat and dairy products; plant-based products; food labelling

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Guest Editor
Department of Food Market and Consumer Research, Institute of Human Nutrition Sciences, Warsaw University of Life Sciences (SGGW-WULS), Nowoursynowska 159 C, 02-776 Warsaw, Poland
Interests: consumer behaviour; food preferences; food security; food acceptance
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The dynamic socio-economic processes currently observed cause the environment in which the consumer operates to undergo intensive changes. One’s social environment, cultural traditions, food availability, and food prices, as well as one’s income, social position, individual beliefs, and preferences, interact and influence consumer behaviour. Thus, a debate about the extent to which consumers make their own choices in the food market concerns both the internal and external factors influencing these choices. There is still a need for a better understanding of consumer behaviours toward food in a changing environment, resulting in changes in their needs and the ways they meet them.

Modern consumers are becoming more and more aware of the connection between their health and the food they eat, as well as the connection between the latter and the environment. Thus, not only the health benefits of food but also the impact of its production process on the environment become more important when choosing food.

Therefore, this Special Issue aims to apply a multi-faceted approach to understanding contemporary consumer behaviours related to food and its changes under the influence of various stimuli. We welcome both original research and review articles on the following topics:

  • Consumer behaviour related to food in light of current health and environmental challenges.
  • Factors that trigger food choice in post-COVID societies: has the role of health motives in food choice increased?
  • ‘Back to the roots’: Are local products important for community-conscious consumers?
  • Consumers’ perception of plant-based products: lifestyle or necessity?
  • Information Society: How do the consumers perceive information about food? How does such information affect their behaviour?
  • The role of social media in food and lifestyle choices.
  • Qualitative and quantitative methods: how do they reflect consumer behaviour and why?

Dr. Marta Sajdakowska
Prof. Dr. Marzena Jeżewska-Zychowicz
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • consumer behaviour
  • food consumption
  • determinants of food choice
  • barriers to food choice
  • new food products

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 500 KiB  
Article
Does Health Literacy Mediate Sociodemographic and Economic Inequalities in Fruit and Vegetable Intake? An Analysis of Slovenian National HLS19 Survey Data
by Andrej Kirbiš, Stefani Branilović and Maruša Lubej
Foods 2025, 14(3), 378; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods14030378 - 24 Jan 2025
Viewed by 439
Abstract
Health literacy plays an important role in promoting healthier behaviors. However, less is known about its impact on dietary habits, such as fruit and vegetable (FV) intake. This study examines the mediating role of health literacy in the relationship between FV intake and [...] Read more.
Health literacy plays an important role in promoting healthier behaviors. However, less is known about its impact on dietary habits, such as fruit and vegetable (FV) intake. This study examines the mediating role of health literacy in the relationship between FV intake and demographic and socioeconomic factors among Slovenian adults. We used Slovenian national data from the 19-country Health Literacy Survey 2019–2021 (HLS19) (n = 3360). Results indicate that health literacy plays a complex role in mediating the relationship between demographic and socioeconomic factors and FV intake. Women and financially stable individuals have higher levels of health literacy, which positively predicts higher FV intake. While older individuals demonstrated greater FV intake, they reported lower health literacy, suggesting other mechanisms may drive their dietary behavior. Additionally, while higher education was associated with improved health literacy, its direct relationship with FV intake was negative, though health literacy partially mitigated this effect. These results underscore the importance of health literacy as a mediating factor in improving dietary behaviors and highlight the need for targeted interventions and policies to enhance nutritional education, particularly for marginalized groups. Full article
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13 pages, 282 KiB  
Article
Consumption of Sugar-Sweetened Beverages by Polish Young Adults: A Preliminary Study on the Importance of Sugar Tax Familiarity and Health Effects
by Marta Sajdakowska, Marzena Jeżewska-Zychowicz, Jerzy Gębski and Artur Kiełb
Foods 2024, 13(22), 3616; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods13223616 - 13 Nov 2024
Viewed by 953
Abstract
Consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) contributes to the risk of developing overweight and obesity in children and adults. Thus, reducing free sugar is a globally recognized public health priority. The implementation of a sugar tax is one way of achieving this goal. This [...] Read more.
Consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) contributes to the risk of developing overweight and obesity in children and adults. Thus, reducing free sugar is a globally recognized public health priority. The implementation of a sugar tax is one way of achieving this goal. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between familiarity with the sugar tax and its importance in reducing obesity, the perceived health consequences of SSBs, situations and reasons for consumption, and the frequency of SSB consumption. A cross-sectional study was conducted in May 2022 among 216 Polish adults (age 18–45). Hierarchical cluster analysis was used to identify three homogeneous clusters with regard to the perceived health consequences of consuming SSBs. A logistic regression model was used to verify the relationship between the frequency of SSB consumption (dependent variable) and other variables. Respondents with higher familiarity with the sugar tax (OR: 0.594; 95% CI: 0.42–0.85) and those in the “Unaware of disease” (OR: 0.437; 95% CI: 0.18–0.94) and “Disease-conscious” (OR: 0.484; 95% CI: 0.24–0.97) clusters were less likely to consume SSBs at least once per week than those in the “Moderately disease-conscious” cluster. Both the place of SSB consumption (i.e., restaurant—OR: 1.847; 95% CI: 1.14–3.64, work or university—OR: 3.217; 95% CI: 1.51–6.88, family home—OR: 2.877; 95% CI: 1.50–5.53) as well as a preference for their taste (OR: 4.54; 95% CI: 1.66–12.45) increased the chance of consuming SSBs at least once a week. In conclusion, it is necessary to continue educating the public about the health consequences of SSB consumption. The use of legislative measures (i.e., sugar tax) also contributes to reducing SSB consumption and can thus counteract the increasing obesity rate. Full article
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