Food Neophobia and its Influence on the Lack of Diversification in Seafood Consumption
(2022) KLGM01 20221Food Technology and Nutrition (M.Sc.)
- Abstract
- This master’s thesis is performed in collaboration with the Research Institute of Sweden. The purpose of the study was to investigate food neophobia, or an aversion to trying new foods, in the Swedish population and see if it correlates with the country's low and undiversified seafood consumption. The topic of the study stems not only from consumers consuming less seafood than is recommended, but also from a lack of variety in the seafood consumed.
The study was executed by way of an online voluntary survey aiming to measure a subset of the Swedish population’s food neophobia and their perception towards seven different seafoods, salmon, herring, cod, shrimp, mussels, oysters, and seaweed. Participants were asked to fill in an approach... (More) - This master’s thesis is performed in collaboration with the Research Institute of Sweden. The purpose of the study was to investigate food neophobia, or an aversion to trying new foods, in the Swedish population and see if it correlates with the country's low and undiversified seafood consumption. The topic of the study stems not only from consumers consuming less seafood than is recommended, but also from a lack of variety in the seafood consumed.
The study was executed by way of an online voluntary survey aiming to measure a subset of the Swedish population’s food neophobia and their perception towards seven different seafoods, salmon, herring, cod, shrimp, mussels, oysters, and seaweed. Participants were asked to fill in an approach and an avoid new foods scale that measured food neophobia, to select conceptualisations they associated with the seafoods presented in the survey, to select situations they deemed appropriate for the seafoods to be consumed in, and lastly to answer how frequently they consumed the seafoods presented in the survey.
Due to a lack of food neophobic survey participants, it was not possible to investigate whether food neophobia correlated with a lack of a diverse seafood diet. The study showed that only 2.4% of the survey participants exhibited traits of high food neophobia with average avoid new foods scores ranging from 4-5 out of 5. The overall average approach new foods score was 3.968 out of 5 while the average avoid new foods score was 1.696 out of 5, indicating that participants were motivated to try new foods rather than avoid them and were therefore not food neophobic. The most consumed seafoods reported by the participants consecutively were salmon, shrimp, cod, herring, mussels, seaweed and lastly oysters. The findings revealed that the frequency of consumption of various seafoods was not correlated to the participants' not being food neophobic, but rather to the seafood's negative and positive sensory attributes, whether they are perceived as healthy, whether they are perceived as traditional, and whether they are perceived as simple to prepare. In comparison to the other seafoods, frequently consumed seafoods, salmon, shrimp, and cod, were associated with similar conceptualisations and selected by the participants to be appropriate for consumption in more and similar consumption situations compared to the other seafoods. (Less) - Popular Abstract
- Does Aversion to Trying New Foods Contribute to a Lack of Diversity in Seafood Consumption?
Do you eat a variety of seafood? The Swedish population not only consumes less seafood than the recommended 2-3 times per week, but their seafood consumption patterns are also undiversified. Even though there are over 85 species of seafood available on the Swedish market, consumers prefer to buy a specific variety of seafood more frequently than others. Food neophobia, or aversion to trying new foods, is one factor that may be influencing Sweden's undiversified seafood consumption. With so many different types of seafood available for consumption, people suffering from food neophobia may be hesitant to try new seafoods and instead stick to those... (More) - Does Aversion to Trying New Foods Contribute to a Lack of Diversity in Seafood Consumption?
Do you eat a variety of seafood? The Swedish population not only consumes less seafood than the recommended 2-3 times per week, but their seafood consumption patterns are also undiversified. Even though there are over 85 species of seafood available on the Swedish market, consumers prefer to buy a specific variety of seafood more frequently than others. Food neophobia, or aversion to trying new foods, is one factor that may be influencing Sweden's undiversified seafood consumption. With so many different types of seafood available for consumption, people suffering from food neophobia may be hesitant to try new seafoods and instead stick to those they are familiar with.
An online survey was distributed across multiple platforms to determine whether food neophobia and a lack of diversity in seafood consumption are correlated. Aside from determining whether survey participants were food neophobic, the survey was structured around seven different seafoods, four of which are the most consumed in Sweden (salmon, herring, cod, and shrimp) and the other three are less frequently consumed (mussels, oysters, and seaweed). To investigate and compare the survey participants’ perception and attitudes towards frequently consumed seafood versus ones not so regularly consumed, survey participants were asked how frequently they consumed each seafood, which consumption situations they believed it was appropriate to consume each seafood, and lastly which words they associated with each seafood.
The most consumed seafoods reported by the participants consecutively were salmon, shrimp, cod, herring, mussels, seaweeds and lastly oysters. Only 6 out of the 250 survey participants displayed food neophobic so investigating if food neophobia was correlated to the lack of diversity in seafood consumption could not be conducted. However, the results did show that even though the participants were not food neophobic, they still preferred to consume the seafoods they were more familiar with and perceived as traditional (salmon, cod, herring, and shrimp) compared to seafoods they perceived as unique and that have not regularly been a part of their diets (seaweed, mussels, oysters). Being perceived as healthier, affordable, easier to prepare, made salmon, cod and shrimp the most appropriate seafoods to consume in most of the consumption situations compared to the other seafoods. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/9084663
- author
- Longmore, Natalie LU
- supervisor
- organization
- course
- KLGM01 20221
- year
- 2022
- type
- H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
- subject
- keywords
- Seafood consumption, Seafood, Food neophobia, Food technology
- language
- English
- id
- 9084663
- date added to LUP
- 2022-06-08 14:13:47
- date last changed
- 2022-06-08 14:13:47
@misc{9084663,
abstract = {{This master’s thesis is performed in collaboration with the Research Institute of Sweden. The purpose of the study was to investigate food neophobia, or an aversion to trying new foods, in the Swedish population and see if it correlates with the country's low and undiversified seafood consumption. The topic of the study stems not only from consumers consuming less seafood than is recommended, but also from a lack of variety in the seafood consumed.
The study was executed by way of an online voluntary survey aiming to measure a subset of the Swedish population’s food neophobia and their perception towards seven different seafoods, salmon, herring, cod, shrimp, mussels, oysters, and seaweed. Participants were asked to fill in an approach and an avoid new foods scale that measured food neophobia, to select conceptualisations they associated with the seafoods presented in the survey, to select situations they deemed appropriate for the seafoods to be consumed in, and lastly to answer how frequently they consumed the seafoods presented in the survey.
Due to a lack of food neophobic survey participants, it was not possible to investigate whether food neophobia correlated with a lack of a diverse seafood diet. The study showed that only 2.4% of the survey participants exhibited traits of high food neophobia with average avoid new foods scores ranging from 4-5 out of 5. The overall average approach new foods score was 3.968 out of 5 while the average avoid new foods score was 1.696 out of 5, indicating that participants were motivated to try new foods rather than avoid them and were therefore not food neophobic. The most consumed seafoods reported by the participants consecutively were salmon, shrimp, cod, herring, mussels, seaweed and lastly oysters. The findings revealed that the frequency of consumption of various seafoods was not correlated to the participants' not being food neophobic, but rather to the seafood's negative and positive sensory attributes, whether they are perceived as healthy, whether they are perceived as traditional, and whether they are perceived as simple to prepare. In comparison to the other seafoods, frequently consumed seafoods, salmon, shrimp, and cod, were associated with similar conceptualisations and selected by the participants to be appropriate for consumption in more and similar consumption situations compared to the other seafoods.}},
author = {{Longmore, Natalie}},
language = {{eng}},
note = {{Student Paper}},
title = {{Food Neophobia and its Influence on the Lack of Diversification in Seafood Consumption}},
year = {{2022}},
}