Insights into Food Perception and Consumer Behavior

This Special Issue contains ten articles discussing a range of topics including the role of food certification in food product choice, information highlighted on food labels, selection of “free from” products, sustainability aspects in food services, food security, and consumer understanding of the food classification proposed by the food groups in the Food-based Dietary Guidelines. According to the Codex alimentarius, certification is a procedure through which official certification organizations, and those officially recognized, provide written or equivalent assurance that foods or food control systems comply with requirements. To this end, food certification is based on a series of activities that may include continuous inspection, audit- ing of quality systems, and product analysis. In this line of reasoning, study investigated how digital marketing can influence Romanian behavior regarding the choice of certified product, considering the association of their preferences in relation to socio-demographic characteristics and identifying consumer knowledge about the certification of agricultural and food products, as well as the reason that led them to purchase such products. The research data showed that the motivations were strongly influenced by digital marketing. The Romanian consumer was motivated by claims such as “healthier, higher quality and beneficial for the environment”, indicating the credibility of the information conveyed and showing that this channel is very important for reducing information asymmetry (contribution 1, [1–3]).