From Farm to Fork—Consumer Perceptions of Food Safety and Quality

Dear Colleagues,

At the turn of the millennium, food safety assumed an unprecedented priority within the political agenda and legal framework of the European Union (EU), with Regulation 178/2002 as the cornerstone of the EU food law under the “farm to fork” approach. This redefined strategy is currently part of Europe’s Green Deal, which is driven by issues related to a healthier lifestyle, environmental protection, sustainability and ethical concerns regarding food production and distribution. Consumer perceptions and expectations regarding the quality and safety of the food chain are major driving forces in decision making, with implications for market evolution. Yet, these perceptions rest on complex and multi-dimensional concepts, determined by contextual factors.

It is acknowledged that the general public has become increasingly interested and critical regarding the way their food is produced (e.g., animal welfare and environmental protection) and processed (e.g., food irradiation and food additives). Dynamic consumer demand and new diet and food choices have fragmented the market. To cope with the consumers’ increasing demands and to satisfy different niches of consumers and target markets, quality differentiation has become necessary. It is also noteworthy that safety has become one major determinant of food quality.

In this Special Issue (SI), we invite the submission of original and review works that contribute to the study of consumer perceptions and expectations regarding food safety and quality throughout the food chain.

Dr. Sofia Cancela Duarte
Dr. Angelina Lopes Simoes Pena
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Foods is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• food safety
• food quality
• food chain
• consumer perception
• consumer attitude