The Importance of Food Perception in Food Choices and Nutrition

Abstract

Nowadays, there is a growing interest in understanding and modulating consumer choices, both for healthy and economic reasons. However, food preferences are influenced by a diversity of factors, which interact among them to a final behaviour. The understanding of food choices is linked with the comprehension of how consumers perceive food and how the different levels of perception (sensorial, psychological, socio-economic) affect those choices. Traditionally, the effect of each discipline was studied independently. Nowadays, the complexity inherent to the decision process is recognized and multidisciplinary studies, where the different dimensions of choices are considered, are increasing. Motivation for consumption is greatly affected by the way individuals identify food. This recognition should be considered at different levels: sensorial, emotional, social and physiological. As such, variability in food characteristics, including food constituents and technological processing, as well as variations in individuals’ characteristics, such as believes, experiences and physiology, and variations in the context in which food is experienced, can greatly affect the final perception.