Social and cultural influences on food choices: A review

Abstract

Human food choices (FC) influence food production systems. Agriculture is responsible for feeding the entire population, and somehow generates different types of environmental degradation. Consumers play a decisive role in consumption trends because FC has shaped habits and behaviors. Food is an expression of people's identity, values, and lifestyle. The objective of this article is to analyze the factors that influence FC and to consider intervention strategies used to work on improving behaviors and FC. The influence of socio-cultural aspects, such as cultural capital, social stratifications, and the inequalities could possibly trigger consumers' FC. The effects of different factors such as foodscapes, social environments, tastes, and even nutritional information, have generated that, the consumer chooses a product under pressure or makes an uninformed choice that generally is unhealthy. Restricting food accessibility generates a reactive but non-aware action, so it is necessary to work creating a sustainable food culture, with the first step of consumers being self-aware of their current FC.

Keywords: Consumer attitudes; food barriers; food environments; food motivators.