The shift in consumer dietary patterns from meat-based to plant-based food products has become a prominent trend worldwide. This shift is driven by various factors, including concerns about personal health and environmental awareness. Despite the global growth of the plant-based food industry, developing nations tend to be slow with adopting non-meat-based diets. This is mainly due to high levels of food insecurity and meat being the main source of protein, especially in countries like South Africa where food consumption is needs-based, and consumers are unaware of the environmental footprint of meat production. This paper is part of a two-phase study and reports on the quantitative results, which were obtained during the second phase. The main aim of this study was to investigate the factors that influence consumers’ decisions to choose plant-based food products. The factors that were selected were informed by the thematic results from phase 1, which involved focus groups that explored consumers’ opinions and behaviours towards plant-based lifestyles. By means of survey distribution, 426 online questionnaires were distributed among young consumers in South Africa. A conceptual model with six hypotheses was tested and the data were analysed using SmartPLS 4.1.0.8. The findings indicated the product taste and product knowledge are the most important factors that drive young consumers’ decisions to choose plant-based food products. The study further found that product quality, affordability, social influence, and product packaging play a role but to a lesser degree. Food marketers can utilise these findings and implement marketing strategies that can assist with persuading consumers to choose plant-based food products and adopt a healthier, more sustainable lifestyle.

Emerging economies harbour increasing consumption patterns with detrimental social and environmental consequences. This study postulated that satisfaction with life determines consumers’ social contribution and environmental well-being (as sub-dimensions of their overall subjective well-being), which in turn contribute to their conscientious decision-making, especially regarding resource-intensive white goods. Acquiring such goods necessitates conscious thought surrounding the future implications of its use. A non-probability purposive sampling approach yielded a sample of 320 middle- to high-income consumers who were acquiring appliances. Structural equation modelling was performed on the survey data. Satisfaction with life was found to be an equally strong determinant of social contribution and environmental well-being. In turn, environmental well-being was the strongest predictor of respondents’ consideration for future environmental consequences in their decision-making. However, more attention is needed to improve consumers’ satisfaction with life and their subjective.

In the ultra-high temperature (UHT) milk category, parent brands introduce line extensions as innovative product designs to address the competitiveness in the market. However, not knowing if consumers will purchase the product results in uncertainty for the product design and marketing team. Using the behavioural reasoning theory, the purpose of this study was to explore South African consumers’ reasons for purchasing a UHT line extension that was designed to include the word ‘enriched’ and other extrinsic line extension attributes comprising product packaging design, country of origin and price. An exploratory-descriptive qualitative study was conducted using six focus groups involving milk consumers from a South African university. Three behavioural approaches (i.e. curiously cautious, unconditional and habitual) emerged, with diff erentiating characteristics of the behaviour towards the UHT line extension. Each extrinsic product attribute was characterised by specifi c behavioural acts that positively or negatively infl uenced the reasons for purchasing the UHT line extension. The behavioural reasoning theory was useful in explaining the linkage between the reasons for or against purchasing a UHT line extension product and the intended behaviour, which contributes to a better understanding of consumers’ approaches to a UHT line extension. Findings can assist food designers and marketers in designing a UHT line extension that resonates with consumers.

There are various applications of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in healthcare, such as helping clinicians to make decisions, monitoring patient health, and automating routine administrative tasks. This POSTnote gives an overview of these uses, and their potential impacts on the cost and quality of healthcare, and on the workforce. It summarises the challenges to wider adoption of AI in healthcare, including those relating to safety, privacy, data-sharing, trust, accountability and health inequalities. It also outlines some of the regulations relevant to AI, and how these may change. As healthcare is a devolved issue, policies on healthcare AI differ across the UK. This POSTnote focusses on regulations and policies relevant to England.