Mercado de alimentos funcionais: percepção do consumidor brasileiro

Abstract

Due to the changes in the relationship between people and food, reflected by the increased awareness of the influence of diet on health, coupled with the paradoxical increase in obesity rates, the present study aimed to (i) identify the perception of health benefit and the purchase intention that consumers have for products that have functional compounds in their composition; (ii) assess their level of understanding of the effects of such compounds on the organism and correlate such results with sociodemographic characteristics; (iii) verify that the information on the front of the labels (FOP) helps the consumer to identify and differentiate foods with functional properties; iv) to analyze how the sociodemographic characteristics, lifestyle and level of attention given to labels by consumers interfere in the perception of functional properties of foods. Therefore, a quantitative survey (393 Brazilians) was conducted through online questionnaires. The obtained data were analyzed by the statistical program SPSS version 20. The results showed that the level of perception and the degree of knowledge about the functional properties of compounds such as antioxidants, fibers, omega 3, phytosterols and probiotics are directly correlated with the level of education. , gender, health habits, and how well people observe label information. Thus, people with higher education, female and more frequent consumption of fruits (1 to 2 times a day) and vegetables (1 to 2 times a day), in addition to the habit of practicing physical activity (1 to 3 times per week), showed greater knowledge about the functional action of the compounds in the body, probably because they seek to inform themselves about food and worry about health care. Regarding the perception of most consumers about the health benefits provided by functional compounds, we highlight products with “fiber”, “phytosterol” or “omega 3”. This result is related to previous knowledge of consumers, the association made by them between the food matrix and the presence of a functional compound in the overall view of health and the ability of marketing to develop the need for consumption. It was also found that the perception of health benefit interferes more with the purchase intention of consumers who are concerned with food. Overall, consumers were doubtful in understanding the information contained in the FOP, suggesting that such information does not contribute to the identification of products with functional properties. In addition, they had difficulty differentiating the appeals (nutritional and health) present on the labels, which were confused with functional claims. Regarding the characteristics of consumers associated with health (fruit consumption, vegetables and physical activity), there were no direct correlations between these habits and the greater ability to distinguish conventional from functional products. This information is of great relevance for both the direction of the food industries in the development of new products and the planning of public policies aimed at fostering food and nutrition education.