Consumer perception of the quality of beef resulting from various fattening regimes

The evaluation of meat quality and safety is not a straightforward task for consumers. In this article, the Total Food Quality Model will be introduced as a framework for understanding how consumers perceive meat quality, and results from a Danish study of consumer perception and experience with beef will be presented. Consumers form expectations about the eating quality of meat at the point of purchase, based on prior experience and information available in the shopping environment, while the eating quality is experienced at home during and after meal preparation. Results show that consumers have difficulty in evaluating meat quality based on visual stimuli (as in a shopping situation), resulting in uncertainty and dissatisfaction, and reveal a need for consumer education as regards the evaluation of eating quality during shopping.