title: Consumer perception of bread quality.
abstract: Bread contains a wide range of important nutritional components which provide a positive effect on human health. However, the consumption of bread is declining during the last decades. This is due to factors such as changing eating patterns and an increasing choice of substitutes like breakfast cereals and fast foods. The aim of this study is to investigate consumer's quality perception of bread towards sensory, health and nutrition attributes. Four consumer segments are identified based on these attributes. The different consumer segments comprise consumers being positive to all three quality aspects of bread ("enthusiastic") as wells as consumers perceiving bread strongly as "tasteless", "non-nutritious" or "unhealthy". Moreover, factors are identified which influence the consumers' quality perception of bread. The results of our study may help health professionals and policy makers to systematically inform consumers about the positive effects of bread based on its components. Furthermore, firms can use the results to build up tailor-made marketing strategies.
authors.affiliation: Ghent University, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Department of Agricultural Economics, Coupure Links 653, B-9000 Gent, Belgium.
authors.forename: Xavier
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Gellynck
authors.forename: Bianka
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Kühne
authors.forename: Filip
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Van Bockstaele
authors.forename: Davy
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Van de Walle
authors.forename: Koen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Dewettinck
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001519:Behavior; D001939:Bread; D003258:Consumer Behavior; D005191:Family Characteristics; D005260:Female; D017144:Focus Groups; D005515:Food Labeling; D006293:Health Promotion; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009753:Nutritive Value; D010465:Perception; D012677:Sensation; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013649:Taste