Brandner Magdalena M E, Fyfe Claire L, Horgan Graham W, Johnstone Alexandra M
The Rowett Institute, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen AB25 2ZD, UK.
Biomathematics and Statistics Scotland, Aberdeen AB25 2ZD, UK.
Nutrients. 2022 Nov 7;14(21):4706. doi: 10.3390/nu14214706.
Plant-based diets are seen as a food-based strategy to address both the impact of dietary patterns on the environment, to reduce climate change impact, and also to reduce rates of diet-related disease. This study investigated self-reported consumer purchasing behaviour of plant-based alternative foods (PBAF) and wholefood plant protein foods (legumes) with a cross-sectional online survey. We identified the sociodemographic factors associated with purchasing behaviour and examined knowledge about protein and plant-based diets. We recruited and obtained consent from n = 1177 adults aged >18 from England and Scotland (mean age (± standard deviation (SD)) 44 (16.4) years), across different areas of social deprivation, based on postcode. Descriptive statistics were conducted, and sociodemographic factors were examined by computing covariate-adjusted models with binary logistic regression analysis. A total of 47.4% (n = 561) consumers purchased PBAF and 88.2% (n = 1038) wholefood plant-proteins. The most frequently purchased PBAF were plant-based burgers, sausages, and mince/meatballs. Individuals from low deprivation areas were significantly more likely than individuals from high deprivation areas to purchase wholefood plant-proteins (odds ratio (OR) 3.46, p = 0.001). People from low deprivation areas were also more likely to recognise lentils as good source of protein (OR 1.94, p = 0.003) and more likely to recognise plant-based diets as healthy (OR 1.79, p = 0.004) than those from high deprived areas. These results support current trends of increasing popularity of PBAF, which is positive for the environment, but also highlights these products as being ultra-processed, which may negatively impact on health. The study also re-enforces the link between deprivation, reduced purchasing of wholefood plant-proteins and knowledge of plant-based protein and diets. Further research is needed to examine healthfulness of PBAF and how sociodemographic factors, especially deprivation, affect both food choice and consumption of wholefood plant-proteins.
植物性饮食被视为一种基于食物的策略，旨在解决饮食模式对环境的影响，减少气候变化影响，并降低与饮食相关疾病的发病率。本研究通过横断面在线调查，对植物性替代食品（PBAF）和全食物植物蛋白食品（豆类）的消费者自我报告购买行为进行了调查。我们确定了与购买行为相关的社会人口因素，并考察了有关蛋白质和植物性饮食的知识。我们根据邮政编码，从英格兰和苏格兰招募了1177名年龄超过18岁的成年人（平均年龄（±标准差（SD））为44（16.4）岁），他们来自不同社会贫困程度的地区，并获得了他们的同意。进行了描述性统计，并通过计算协变量调整模型和二元逻辑回归分析来考察社会人口因素。共有47.4%（n = 561）的消费者购买了PBAF，88.2%（n = 1038）的消费者购买了全食物植物蛋白。最常购买的PBAF是植物性汉堡、香肠和肉末/肉丸。来自低贫困地区的个体比来自高贫困地区的个体购买全食物植物蛋白的可能性显著更高（优势比（OR）为3.46，p = 0.001）。与高贫困地区的人相比，低贫困地区的人也更有可能认识到小扁豆是优质蛋白质来源（OR为1.94，p = 0.003），并且更有可能认识到植物性饮食是健康的（OR为1.79，p = 0.004）。这些结果支持了PBAF日益流行的当前趋势，这对环境是积极的，但也凸显了这些产品属于超加工食品，这可能对健康产生负面影响。该研究还强化了贫困、全食物植物蛋白购买量减少以及植物性蛋白质和饮食知识之间的联系。需要进一步研究来考察PBAF的健康程度，以及社会人口因素，尤其是贫困，如何影响全食物植物蛋白的食物选择和消费。
