Consumer Perception of Food Fraud in Serbia and Montenegro
The main objective of this study was to investigate how food fraud is perceived among consumers in Serbia and Montenegro. A total of 1264 consumers from the two countries participated in an online survey during the second half of 2022, using Google forms<sup>®</sup>. In the Serbian popul...
Main Authors: | , |
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Format: | Article |
Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-12-01
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Series: | Foods |
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Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2304-8158/13/1/53 |
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author | Ilija Djekic Nada Smigic |
author_facet | Ilija Djekic Nada Smigic |
author_sort | Ilija Djekic |
collection | DOAJ |
description | The main objective of this study was to investigate how food fraud is perceived among consumers in Serbia and Montenegro. A total of 1264 consumers from the two countries participated in an online survey during the second half of 2022, using Google forms<sup>®</sup>. In the Serbian population, older or highly educated respondents are aware of different types of fraudulent activities such as substitution, mislabeling, concealment, and counterfeiting. Dilution is mostly recognized by women, the younger population, and students. Consumers believe that trust is the most important factor when purchasing food. The highest level of agreement regarding food fraud is that such activities may pose serious health risks to consumers, and that food inspection services are the most responsible actors in the food chain continuum. When it comes to purchasing food, open green markets are most trustworthy, followed by hypermarkets. Concerning the types of food, fish is most susceptible to fraud, followed by olive oil. This study builds upon existing knowledge of food consumers about food fraud in Europe. |
first_indexed | 2024-03-08T15:07:20Z |
format | Article |
id | doaj.art-46e4e8ded04043389fdbea07853aee5d |
institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
issn | 2304-8158 |
language | English |
last_indexed | 2024-03-08T15:07:20Z |
publishDate | 2023-12-01 |
publisher | MDPI AG |
record_format | Article |
series | Foods |
spelling | doaj.art-46e4e8ded04043389fdbea07853aee5d2024-01-10T14:56:45ZengMDPI AGFoods2304-81582023-12-011315310.3390/foods13010053Consumer Perception of Food Fraud in Serbia and MontenegroIlija Djekic0Nada Smigic1Department of Food Safety and Quality Management, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Belgrade, Nemanjina 6, 11080 Belgrade, SerbiaDepartment of Food Safety and Quality Management, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Belgrade, Nemanjina 6, 11080 Belgrade, SerbiaThe main objective of this study was to investigate how food fraud is perceived among consumers in Serbia and Montenegro. A total of 1264 consumers from the two countries participated in an online survey during the second half of 2022, using Google forms<sup>®</sup>. In the Serbian population, older or highly educated respondents are aware of different types of fraudulent activities such as substitution, mislabeling, concealment, and counterfeiting. Dilution is mostly recognized by women, the younger population, and students. Consumers believe that trust is the most important factor when purchasing food. The highest level of agreement regarding food fraud is that such activities may pose serious health risks to consumers, and that food inspection services are the most responsible actors in the food chain continuum. When it comes to purchasing food, open green markets are most trustworthy, followed by hypermarkets. Concerning the types of food, fish is most susceptible to fraud, followed by olive oil. This study builds upon existing knowledge of food consumers about food fraud in Europe.https://www.mdpi.com/2304-8158/13/1/53fraudulent activitiestypes of food fraudconsumer awarenessconsumer trust |
spellingShingle | Ilija Djekic Nada Smigic Consumer Perception of Food Fraud in Serbia and Montenegro Foods fraudulent activities types of food fraud consumer awareness consumer trust |
title | Consumer Perception of Food Fraud in Serbia and Montenegro |
title_full | Consumer Perception of Food Fraud in Serbia and Montenegro |
title_fullStr | Consumer Perception of Food Fraud in Serbia and Montenegro |
title_full_unstemmed | Consumer Perception of Food Fraud in Serbia and Montenegro |
title_short | Consumer Perception of Food Fraud in Serbia and Montenegro |
title_sort | consumer perception of food fraud in serbia and montenegro |
topic | fraudulent activities types of food fraud consumer awareness consumer trust |
url | https://www.mdpi.com/2304-8158/13/1/53 |
work_keys_str_mv | AT ilijadjekic consumerperceptionoffoodfraudinserbiaandmontenegro AT nadasmigic consumerperceptionoffoodfraudinserbiaandmontenegro |