COVID-19 Lockdown and Self-Perceived Changes of Food Choice, Waste, Impulse Buying and Their Determinants in Italy: QuarantEat, a Cross-Sectional Study.

Alessandro Scacchi,Fabrizio Bert,Roberta Siliquini,Dario Catozzi,Edoardo Boietti

doi:10.3390/foods10020306

Alessandro Scacchi, Fabrizio Bert + Show 3 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/foods10020306

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Abstract

Data about self-perceived food choice (FC) changes and their determinants during COVID-19 lockdowns are limited. This study investigated how the Italian lockdown affected self-perceived food purchases (FP), occurrence of impulse buying (IB), household food waste production (HFWP) and their determinants. A web-based cross-sectional survey was distributed in May 2020, collecting an opportunistic sample of the Italian population. A total of 1865 (70% females) people were enrolled, the median age was 29 (IQR 16.0). Most of the sample increased overall FP (53.4%), food consumption (43.4%), reduced HFWP (53.7%) and halved the prevalence of IB (20.9%) compared to the period before the lockdown (42.5%). Baking ingredients, fresh vegetables, fresh fruit and chocolate had the largest sales increase by individuals, while bakery products, fresh fish and salted snacks purchases highly decreased. Increased FP was associated with the occurrence of IB (adjOR 2.48, p < 0.001) and inversely associated with not having worked during lockdown (adjOR 0.71, p = 0.003). Multivariable logistic regressions revealed occurrence of IB was associated with low perceived dietary quality (adjOR 2.22, p < 0.001), resulting at risk, according to the Emotional Overeating Questionnaire (EOQ, adjOR 1.68, p < 0.001), and inversely associated with decreased HFWP (adjOR 0.73, p < 0.012). Reduced HFWP was associated with higher perceived dietary quality (adjOR 2.27, p < 0.001) and negatively associated with low score at WHO-5 Well-Being Index (adjOR 0.72, p = 0.002). The Italian lockdown highly affected FC behaviours, leading to positive and sustainable habits towards food purchase and consumption. Public health interventions are needed to keep these new positive effects and avoid negative consequences in case of future lockdowns.

Highlights

On 21 February 2020, the first case of indigenous severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)-CoV2 infection in Italy was reported
The aim of this study was to investigate, during lockdown, how Italian people have perceived the change of their food purchases and eating habits and what are the factors associated with the self-perceived increase in food purchases, occurrence of impulse buying and household food waste production
The QuarantEat study investigated how a sample of Italian inhabitants was affected by the lockdown in terms of self-perceived variations of food purchase, food consumption habits, physical activity levels and how home confinement impacted on mental well-being as well as on the presence of emotional overeating

Summary

Introduction

On 21 February 2020, the first case of indigenous SARS-CoV2 infection in Italy was reported. A few days later, the lockdown was established in some provinces of northern. [1,2]. On 9 March 2020, the Italian Government decided for a stringent containment measure of lockdown on the entire national territory [3]. This measure was effective in flattening the epidemic curve and bought valuable time, allowing for the number of intensive care beds to be nearly doubled before the National Health System reached maximum capacity [4]. On 3 May, the government declared the end of the first phase of the lockdown by introducing a series of less restrictive anti-contagion rules [5]

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