IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v19y2022i3p1208-d730750.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Awareness, Knowledge, and Interest about Prebiotics—A Study among Romanian Consumers

Author

Listed:
  • Gabriela Precup

    (Faculty of Food Science and Technology, University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, 400372 Cluj-Napoca, Romania)

  • Cristina Bianca Pocol

    (Department of Animal Production and Food Safety, University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, 400372 Cluj-Napoca, Romania)

  • Bernadette-Emőke Teleky

    (Faculty of Food Science and Technology, University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, 400372 Cluj-Napoca, Romania)

  • Dan Cristian Vodnar

    (Faculty of Food Science and Technology, University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, 400372 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
    Institute of Life Sciences, University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, 400372 Cluj-Napoca, Romania)

Abstract

The consumer awareness towards healthier diets and the impact of nutrition on health has triggered an increase in the production and commercialization of foods with health claims. The scientific literature classifies these food products as functional foods, with a role in promoting health and preventing diseases, and they had a market share of almost 200 million EUR in 2019. Prebiotics are considered functional foods, referring to substrates that are selectively utilized by host microorganisms conferring a health benefit, as defined by the International Scientific Association for Probiotics and Prebiotics. Several health benefits are associated with the consumption of prebiotics; however, specific requirements must demonstrate the causality between the specific ingredient and the claimed effect. Health claims associated with food products are assessed in the European Union and need to be supported by rigorous scientific evidence before being authorized and permitted on the market. Consumers’ perception of this topic is influenced by the various stakeholders involved. The current work aimed to study the consumers’ perception and interest and to assess the knowledge on the prebiotic concept in Romania. The consumer interest level was quantified by using the web-based data tool Google Trends, and a questionnaire-based investigation was designed. The collected data were analyzed with the help of the SPSS program, and crosstabulation was used to identify the influence of socio-demographic characteristics on diet choice and awareness of prebiotics. A total of 303 persons answered the online applied questionnaire, grouped as young consumers (15–24 years old) and adults (25–64 years old). Even if most responders were familiar with the term of prebiotics (74% of total responders), some results were contradictory regarding their knowledge. The work emphasized the need to carry out educational campaigns and inform consumers on the relationship between certain food ingredients and health outcomes in a clear way and based on a rigorous assessment of the scientific evidence.

Suggested Citation

  • Gabriela Precup & Cristina Bianca Pocol & Bernadette-Emőke Teleky & Dan Cristian Vodnar, 2022. "Awareness, Knowledge, and Interest about Prebiotics—A Study among Romanian Consumers," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(3), pages 1-16, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:3:p:1208-:d:730750
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/3/1208/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/3/1208/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Cristina Bianca Pocol & Valentina Marinescu & Antonio Amuza & Roxana-Larisa Cadar & Anda Anca Rodideal, 2020. "Sustainable vs. Unsustainable Food Consumption Behaviour: A Study among Students from Romania, Bulgaria and Moldova," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(11), pages 1-21, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Agnieszka Gruszecka-Kosowska & Katarzyna Mazur-Włodarczyk & Agata Wódkowska, 2023. "Native vs. Unique Fruit Popularity: Exploring the Sustainable Fruit Consumption in Poland—Research Report," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(14), pages 1-23, July.
    2. Ruxandra Malina Petrescu-Mag & Iris Vermeir & Dacinia Crina Petrescu & Florin Laurentiu Crista & Ioan Banatean-Dunea, 2020. "Traditional Foods at the Click of a Button: The Preference for the Online Purchase of Romanian Traditional Foods during the COVID-19 Pandemic," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(23), pages 1-15, November.
    3. Carlos Eduardo Lourenco & Nadine Marques Nunes-Galbes & Riccardo Borgheresi & Luciana Oranges Cezarino & Flavio Pinheiro Martins & Lara Bartocci Liboni, 2022. "Psychological Barriers to Sustainable Dietary Patterns: Findings from Meat Intake Behaviour," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(4), pages 1-16, February.
    4. Roberto Feltrero & Leire Junguitu-Angulo & Sara Osuna-Acedo, 2023. "Deploying SDG Knowledge to Foster Young People’s Critical Values: A Study on Social Trends about SDGs in an Educational Online Activity," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(8), pages 1-30, April.
    5. Katherine Kent & Denis Visentin & Corey Peterson & Carmen Primo & Catherine Elliott & Margaret Otlowski & Sandra Murray, 2021. "The Perceived Importance and Intended Purchasing Patterns of Sustainable Foods in Australian University Students," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(21), pages 1-17, October.
    6. Vasile Gherheș & Marcela Alina Fărcașiu, 2021. "Sustainable Behavior among Romanian Students: A Perspective on Electricity Consumption in Households," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-17, August.
    7. Georgiana-Raluca Ladaru & Diana Maria Ilie & Maria Claudia Diaconeasa & Ionut Laurentiu Petre & Florian Marin & Valentin Lazar, 2020. "Influencing Factors of a Sustainable Vegetable Choice. The Romanian Consumers’ Case," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(23), pages 1-20, November.
    8. Maria-Georgeta Moldovan & Dan-Cristian Dabija & Cristina Bianca Pocol, 2022. "Resources Management for a Resilient World: A Literature Review of Eastern European Countries with Focus on Household Behaviour and Trends Related to Food Waste," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(12), pages 1-13, June.
    9. Maria B. Forleo & Nadia Palmieri, 2023. "Environmental Attributes of Wild versus Farmed Tuna: Beliefs, Knowledge and Purchasing Choices of Italian Consumers of Canned Tuna," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(9), pages 1-21, April.
    10. Valeria Borsellino & Sina Ahmadi Kaliji & Emanuele Schimmenti, 2020. "COVID-19 Drives Consumer Behaviour and Agro-Food Markets towards Healthier and More Sustainable Patterns," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(20), pages 1-26, October.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:3:p:1208-:d:730750. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.