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Analyzing Consumer Attitudes Towards Health-protecting Food
39-55Views:417The main goal of our research was to analyze the role of health-protecting food in our daily nutrition. In our secondary research, we analyzed the generalities and characteristics of health and health behavior with the help of relevant domestic and foreign literature. We analyzed the domestic tendencies of health in details. We examined the most important characteristics of functional foods and investigated the factors of personalized nutrition. Based on a literature review, in our primary research we conducted an online questionnaire survey with 231 respondents. Our survey cannot be considered representative, however, the proportion of genders in our sample population is almost the same as the Hungarian population’s. In the questionnaire survey, we examined the frequency of consumption of health-protecting food. After that, we analyzed respondents’ perceptions of the actual health effects of health-protecting food. We have measured consumer attitudes towards health-protecting food. We analyzed the perception of potential health risks and problems from the consumer perspective. We measured the impact of various health factors on shopping. Besides, we have explored our intention to participate in personalized nutrition-related programs. Based on our research, most of the analyzed health-protecting food is consumed once or twice a week. It can be stated that the respondents considered the examined food categories less scientifically proven. We could identify the preventive behaviors of respondents for various health problems. However, there is also uncertainty in the decision of respondents in what is the right way to prevent the diseases. In this uncertain situation, only experts can provide real help to them.
JEL Classification: Q16, Q12, Q13, O32
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Functional Foods, Consumer Attitudes and Personalized Nutrition
3-17Views:496The dramatic spread of the so called diseases of civilization have occurred in the last decade worldwide. Deaths caused by them have long been of the highest rate among all causes of deaths. In parallel with the spread of the diseases of civilization, population of developed countries is increasingly ageing that increases the number of inactives and those who rely on health treatment. The outlined factors pose new challenges to the food industry: it requires the development new foods that slow down the spread of the diseases of civilization that hit the humankind through their health care effect, and at the same time provide longer life in health for the ageing societies. In the decade after decoding the human genome an extremely rapid development occurred in the techniques of genomics, and in the disciplines applying genomics methods. Researches in genomics focus on how the human genome interacts with the environmental factors for determining the gene expression. Nutrition as one of the most important environmental factors has an obvious impact on the health but we have not known yet exactly what this impact is and what its mechanism is. The so called nutrigenomics – that is a new discipline – aims to reveal the relationships that are not yet known. The personalized nutrition is a conception that adapts the diet, the foods, and the nutrients to the unique needs of the specific person.
The authors examined the relationships between the functional foods, consumer attitudes and personalized nutrition in the framework of a nation-wide representative consumer survey of 500 people. According to the results majority of the consumers (73.8%) believes that her/him nutrition (diet) follows a normal structure and all that she/he needs enters her/his body automatically. Knowing the critical health state of the population it can be stated that the high agreement portion is based on misbelieves. This is also indicated by the fact that 57.4% of consumers only eats foods that tastes good, even when it is supposedly less healthy. In the next half year almost 50% of the Hungarian population do not intend to switch to a nutrition considered healthier by themselves. Further 22% of the respondents already feel some urge to change their behavior, they compare the costs and the potential benefits of change. Only 5.0% of the interviewees switched to a nutrition considered healthier by themselves in the last six months, and the rate of those who maintain the positive change is 17.4%.
In the current situation there is no other option than raising awareness of the population for foods that provide excess nutrition benefits. These are the functional foods that hold important position in the education to healthy nutrition of the population. However, it is does matter in which strategy they are used by the enterprises. This applies for the development of both new technologies and new functional foods where involvement of consumers is inevitable today.
The so called perception screening theory answers the solution of the anomalies between the scientific objectivity and the consumer perception. We tried to apply the perception screening theory in a new discipline, entirely unknown to the consumers. The nutrition genomics and its major application area, the personalized nutrition are novel concepts to the population to such an extent that preferences and attitudes related to them have not occurred yet. This is why it could be interesting which most important psychological processes are the ones that can lead to the adoption of the new technology, and the development of the positive consumer attitudes. According to the results Hungarian consumers are mistrustful against the new technology and they are uncertain – despite its obvious advantages. The not so positive attitude is likely caused by more factors together. Traditional thinking, reluctance to the new play a role in it as well as the lack of information and misbelieves related to the genetic tests. The technology is novel to the consumers to such an extent that we found significant differences between the consumer segments only in some cases, i.e. consumer preferences cannot be classified, they are highly scattered. Finally, the authors developed an optimized practical model by which the successful launch of a new functional food and its hindering factors can be securely forecasted. -
Production, Trade and Consumption of Functional Foods in Hungary
3-6Views:240Functional food is a specific food which fulfills the original aim of being a nutrient and an energy-carrier, but promotes better health and well-being. During the last decades new and healthier foods were designed to reduce the risk of chronic illnesses and conditions such as cardiovascular diseases, osteoporosis, some cancers and obesity. However, functional foods are traditional foods expected to be consumed in the diet, but modified in such a way that promotes better health. In Hungary about 16% of the consumers are interested in buying functional foods for health improvements. Dairy products are most often the target products for reducing the risk of osteoporosis in the elderly and increasing gut function. In recent years the market of plant products, especially of fruits and vegetables was rapidly growing due to their high antioxidant capacity. Enhancement metabolism of polyphenols, and flavonoids formed in fruits and vegetables during traditional breeding and processing is not clarified yet and little is known about the effects of the extensive or intensive breeding and of the most economic harvesting time. The functional food science deals with the scientific substantiation of the influences of specific food components (biological active materials) as well as production and formulation of foods and food ingredients. Some of those components are obtained from natural sources, some others are artificial products of the organic synthesis in the industry. The term „functional foods” has never achieved an official definition, but most experts would agree on its benificially target functions in the body beyond adequate nutritional effects. Moderate consumption of vitamines and antioxidants in the diet carried in functional foods are belived to decrease the risk of chronic diseases. According to some market surveys the market of these designed foods is very large and rapidly expanding because of a growing interest among body-builders and other sportsmen with higher physical activities.
JEL code: D12