Exploring consumer beliefs about novel fortified foods: A focus group study with UK-based older and younger adult consumers.

Consuming 'nutritionally-enhanced' food products (including those that are fortified or enriched to deliver nutritional and functional properties) may help to improve overall diet quality and combat risks associated with malnutrition. However, fortification can negatively impact consumer acceptance, particularly where expected sensory properties of 'delivery' foods are affected by target ingredients. Here, we explored factors influencing consumer acceptability for six novel food products that had been fortified, including both savoury and sweet meal components (e.g., high protein dumplings, probiotic yoghurt drink). In person focus groups (25 consumers aged between 22 and 76 years old) were conducted with two stages; firstly, participants completed a blind taste test of products without awareness of fortification. Secondly, participants discussed products with awareness of additional ingredients and food properties. Reflexive thematic analysis showed that liking of sensory properties differed between foods, but informing participants about the fortification of products highlighted potential trade-offs between taste, health, price, and familiarity. Though taste and texture were generally prioritised by participants, positive perceptions of health benefits increased consumer willingness to buy, whilst both cost and uncertainty about product use were potential barriers. Trust of information was a key concern for labelling and product claims. These results highlight product features that may be optimised to support the success of fortified foods. Greater transparency when building product brands and improving consumer knowledge of fortification may also be important for longer-term consumer acceptance.

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Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Déclaration de conflit d'intérêts

Declaration of competing interest This study was conducted as part of a multi-disciplinary project with BIC Innovation (LN, CM, NR, AH, KS) and involved collaborating with food manufacturers to test bespoke products at an early stage of development for each respective company. Within this capacity, BIC Innovation contributed to study conceptualization and assisted with study provisions including the sourcing of test foods, and minor adjustments to the study methodology were made to meet the needs of all food manufacturers and identified product attributes (including product labels and age range of participants). At the time of publication, CM was a postgraduate research student at Swansea University and was also employed by BIC Innovation as a research assistant to contribute to data collection and analyses as part of this project. BIC Innovation (as a collaborator) and the Welsh Government (as a funder) placed no restrictions on the design, methodology, and analysis of data, and had no influence on the interpretation or reporting of results. RE & LLW held primary responsibility for final study content.