Reduced fat products – Consumer perceptions and preferences

Abstract

Dietary guidelines consistently advocate the reduction of fat in the diet and the food industry has responded by introducing a vast range of reduced fat foods on to the market. However, reduced fat diets are difficult for people to maintain. Nutrition education is at a critical crossroads, such that consumers have received the message to reduce fat in the diet, but are unable or unwilling to comply with this information so that overall health status can be improved. Better understanding of the factors that influence fat intake will help to explain why dietary change is so difficult to sustain. Sensory studies and focus group discussions were conducted with consumers to assess their perceptions, acceptance and preferences for reduced fat products. The results implied that consumers associate reduced fat foods with inferior sensory properties and perceive them with a degree of scepticism and mistrust.

The impact of substituting SFA in dairy products with MUFA or PUFA on CVD risk: evidence from human intervention studies

“…However, although studies testing the effects of these foods on CVD markers have shown some promise -as reviewed by Hooper et al (24) -altering the FA composition to increase proportions of potentially beneficial MUFA and PUFA would appear to offer the potential for greater health benefits to the consumer. Moreover, the palatability and texture of milk and dairy products rely heavily on their fat content, with consumer research indicating a preference for the mouthfeel of higher-fat dairy products compared with their low-fat alternatives (55) . A further strategy for modifying milk fat content that was not covered in the present review is the addition of oils directly to the milk or dairy products to increase proportions of MUFA and PUFA without intervention at the farm level.…”

Application of inulin in cheese as prebiotic, fat replacer and texturizer: A review

“…Also, low-fat food plans have been recommended for weight loss and maintenance(Carmichael, Swinburn & Wilson, 1998;Peterson, Sigman-Grant, Eissenstat & Kris-Etherton, 1999). On the other hand, there is a widely held view that low-fat or reduced-fat foods are less desirable because they have poor organoleptic qualities(Hamilton, Knox, Hill & Parr, 2000;McEwan & Sharp, 2000). There are some reviews about specific applications and potential effects of fat replacers(Akoh, 1998;Ognean, Darie & Ognean, 2006).…”

On the Role of Social Media in the ‘Responsible’ Food Business: Blogger Buzz on Health and Obesity Issues

“…Also, since some consumers are already sceptical about healthy and diet food (Hamilton et al, 2000), it may be more challenging to offer the same product and to convince consumers that the modified version is better, than to offer an alternative to attract new customers and retain current ones. The difficulty of adapting existing products has been demonstrated before, as product modification has been found to account for the highest rate of failures (Rochford and Rudelius, 1997).…”