Food choice and the consumer

This book provides an interdisciplinary survey of food selection and examines each of the stages which the consumer goes through in making choices about what food to include in their daily domestic cuisine. The study of food provisioning is usually confined to the act of supplying food in the food chain, and food choice limited to sensory activities, or the retail arena. This book addresses the consumer tasks of acquiring, preparing, cooking, serving, consuming and finally disposing of food. The 'domestic food provisioning' process is under a wide range of economic, social, nutritional and scientific influences and the book draws material from a variety of disciplines. It illustrates the importance of adopting an 'integrated' approach, and the need to bridge some of the gaps that exist between the pure and social sciences. In the process it brings together an international field of expertise and offers an insight into the nature of consumer choice as an integrated set of activities. Written for those requiring an overview of this subject for commercial or academic reasons, the book provides the food industry with an insight into the demands of its customers and a way of understanding how they may be met. Lecturers and advanced students in food science, nutrition, sociology, psychology, business studies and economics will find it an essential collection of information.