Abstract

The current paper reviews published academic research on European consumer attitudes towards Functional Foods (FFs). The main goal is to rationalize the vast existing body of evidence on consumers’ understanding and use of FFs and identify further interesting research avenues. Almost all the studies analyzed in the current review reveal that consumer acceptance of the concept of FFs together with a better understanding of its determinants are core factors for market orientation, development and success. However, failure rates have shown that consumer acceptance is often neglected or at least far from being understood.

Keywords: Consumer attitude, consumer behaviour, Europe, functional foods, literature review, market development.