1. Food purchase and eating behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic: A cross-sectional survey of Russian adults.
- Author
-
Ben Hassen T, El Bilali H, Allahyari MS, Berjan S, and Fotina O
- Subjects
- Adult, Cross-Sectional Studies, Feeding Behavior, Food, Humans, Pandemics, Russia epidemiology, SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19, Refuse Disposal
- Abstract
The Russian government took strong containment measures to prevent the spread of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) with rigid hygiene protocols and restrictions on daily living, such as social distancing and closing businesses and schools. While these measures were crucial to stop the diffusion of SARS-CoV-2, numerous voices highlighted their disorderly psychological, social, and economic impacts on food consumption behavior and lifestyle. Therefore, this paper aims to understand how consumers' food-related habits in Russia have shifted due to the COVID-19 pandemic and potential problems and opportunities this might bring for the Russian food system. The study is based on an online cross-sectional survey using a structured questionnaire administered in Russian through the Survey Monkey platform. A total of 1297 valid answers was collected. The results reveal that diet and food shopping, preparation, and use have been widely affected. Indeed, the survey results suggested (i) a change in the modality of acquiring food, consumers reduced the number of shopping trips and buying more on each trip to minimize store visits; (ii) a surge of stockpiling of non-perishable food items; (iii) a shift toward healthier diets; (iv) an increase in culinary capabilities; (v) a decrease of food waste. The results are expected to inform current emergency plans as well as long-term food-related strategies in Russia., (Copyright © 2021 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)
- Published
- 2021
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