Abstract
Academic research on food consumer behavior related to food safety has developed extremely rapidly in the last decades, and a sizable amount of knowledge has been accumulated in this interdisciplinary field. This information set, as big data, lends itself to bibliometric analysis. Based on the Web of Science database and on a statistical analysis of more than 26.6 thousand articles containing more than 3.4 million bibliometric pieces of information, the current article offers a systematic analysis of these statistical data. The dynamics of relevant publications show an exponential character. The field is dominated by researchers from welfare states; however, food safety is a more important problem in developing states. There are dynamic changes in the portfolio of journals, but Bradford’s law cannot be proven. The explanatory power of Lotka’s law has been decreasing, proving the de-concentration of relevant authors. Besides traditional disciplines like consumer science, food chemistry, microbiology, and technology, new disciplines, e.g., sociology, cultural anthropology, postmodern techniques, and the real-life study of consumer behavior, going beyond the application of traditional techniques, are gaining importance. There are three key challenges for further research: (1) contribution to a deeper understanding of inherent laws governing the food-consumer-environment system; (2) quantification of results for decision-makers to enhance the efficiency of policy preparation; (3) widening the scope of research in geographical terms, better involving the developing world, and in sociological terms, focusing on the specific needs of vulnerable groups.
Highlights
The desire to consume food without getting ill is one of the most basic and ancient motives of human activity and regulation [1]
As a result of centuries of research efforts, an extensive mass of knowledge has been accumulated on food hygiene, but the systematic, methodologically well-founded research of food consumer behavior–food safety relationship has a much shorter history [5]; there is a wide consensus that this information is essential to the enhancement of the food safety level [6], further sophistication of the regulatory and consumer education system [7], and the decrease in foodborne diseases [8]
The results of the bibliometric analysis have highlighted the importance of consumerrelated food safety research
Summary
The desire to consume food without getting ill is one of the most basic and ancient motives of human activity and regulation [1]. It is well documented that food hygiene was a focal point of interest already in antiquity [2]. The development of contemporary food safety research can be traced back to food hygiene-related investigation [3] and legislation [4]. Sustainability and food safety are closely related concepts because food safety means a direct contribution to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN [9]. As a result of centuries of research efforts, an extensive mass of knowledge has been accumulated on food hygiene, but the systematic, methodologically well-founded research of food consumer behavior–food safety relationship has a much shorter history [5]; there is a wide consensus that this information is essential to the enhancement of the food safety level [6], further sophistication of the regulatory and consumer education system [7], and the decrease in foodborne diseases [8].
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