Food Claims Centre Venlo, Campus Venlo, Maastricht University, Venlo, the Netherlands.
Food Claims Centre Venlo, Campus Venlo, Maastricht University, Venlo, the Netherlands.
Appetite. 2023 Sep 1;188:106616. doi: 10.1016/j.appet.2023.106616. Epub 2023 Jun 5.
Animal agriculture has a large impact on the environment. Hence, there is an increasing demand for meat alternatives - more sustainably produced plant-based products that replace meat as meal component. Demands for meat alternatives also seem to be fuelled by consumers' belief that meat alternatives are healthier than meat products. In an online questionnaire study, we examined whether consumers indeed perceived meat alternatives to be healthier, to what degree consumers adequately estimated the nutritional value of meat (alternatives), and whether a nutrition claim could misguide consumers. In a panel of 120 Dutch consumers, it was found that meat alternatives were generally perceived as being healthier than meat products. According to supermarket data, meat alternatives contained less protein and saturated fat, higher levels of fibre and salt compared to meat. Consumers were found to overestimate the protein content of meat alternatives relative to meat products, especially when meat alternatives carry a 'high in protein' claim. The current beliefs about the healthiness and nutritional content of meat and meat alternatives are precarious and a fair, transparent, and understandable environment should be created for the conscious consumer.
动物农业对环境有很大的影响。因此，人们对肉类替代品的需求越来越大——这些替代品是更可持续生产的植物性产品，可以替代肉类作为膳食成分。肉类替代品的需求似乎也受到消费者的信念的推动，即肉类替代品比肉类产品更健康。在一项在线问卷调查研究中，我们研究了消费者是否真的认为肉类替代品更健康，消费者对肉类（替代品）的营养价值的估计程度，以及营养声明是否会误导消费者。在一个由 120 名荷兰消费者组成的小组中，发现肉类替代品通常被认为比肉类产品更健康。根据超市数据，与肉类相比，肉类替代品的蛋白质和饱和脂肪含量较低，纤维和盐含量较高。研究发现，消费者高估了肉类替代品相对于肉类产品的蛋白质含量，尤其是当肉类替代品带有“高蛋白”声明时。目前对肉类和肉类替代品的健康和营养成分的看法是不稳定的，应该为有意识的消费者创造一个公平、透明和易于理解的环境。
