Abstract
This study aimed to evaluate the food choice motives in a sample in Brazil and to identify how socioeconomic characteristics and risk perceptions about chronic diseases and weight gain affect these motives. The Food Choice Questionnaire (FCQ) is an instrument to analyze the motivations for food choice. The FCQ was completed by 525 adult individuals in Brazil. The participants were asked about their perceived risk of gaining weight, developing diabetes, and hypertension. Confirmatory factor analysis led to the rejection of the original FCQ structure, and, after exploratory factor analysis, 30 items of the FCQ were maintained in eight factors: Nutritional Composition, Preparation Convenience, Purchase Convenience, Mood, Sensory Appeal, Health, Price, and Familiarity. Sensory Appeal and Familiarity were, respectively, the most and the least important factors involved in food choices in this sample. A high education level, high income, age, and female sex positively affected FCQ factors (except for the Price factor). On the basis of FCQ scores, we defined five clusters: Health Driven, Practicality Concerned, Shape Concerned, Food Concerned, and Cooking Enthusiasts. In general, individuals were optimistic regarding the risk of developing diabetes, hypertension, and gaining weight, especially those from the Shape Concerned cluster. The differences in food choice motives presented here reinforce the existence of different niches of food consumption. Different types of products can attract specific target groups at the time of choice.
Highlights
Making choices is a complex mental process
Food choices play an important role in the symbolic, economic, and social aspects of life by expressing preferences, identities, and cultural meanings”. In this sense, studying food choices is relevant, as it allows for the identification of consumer demand for supplies, consumption of nutrients, and health issues [2], and because food patterns change over time
The present study aimed to evaluate the food choice motives in a sample in Brazil, to identify whether and how socioeconomic issues affect food choice motives, as well as how food choice motives associate with risk perceptions about chronic diseases and weight gain
Summary
Making choices is a complex mental process. According to Sobal et al [2], “food choice involves the selection and consumption of foods and beverages, considering what, how, when, where, and with whom people eat, as well as other aspects of their food and eating behaviors. Food choices play an important role in the symbolic, economic, and social aspects of life by expressing preferences, identities, and cultural meanings”. In this sense, studying food choices is relevant, as it allows for the identification of consumer demand for supplies, consumption of nutrients, and health issues [2], and because food patterns change over time.
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