Consumers are becoming more aware of the benefits of reducing alcohol consumption, which has increased the popularity of non-alcoholic beer (NAB). However, the brewing industry still faces many difficulties in producing NAB with similar physicochemical and sensory characteristics to regular beers. To mitigate these challenges, a multidisciplinary study was conducted to: (1) determine selected quality characteristics of various NABs, (2) compare them with literature data for regular beers, and (3) find out how Polish consumers, especially young people, perceive NAB and what motivates them in their purchasing decisions. Physicochemical quality characteristics of NABs, namely pH (4.3–4.7), bitterness (IBU = 12–77), colour (EBC = 6.4–19.6), total soluble solids (2.8–8.3 °Bx), and vitamin B₂ content (0.11–0.30 mg/L) were similar to alcoholic beers. Total phenolics (150–321 mg/L), Ca (13–45 mg/L), Mg (40–94 mg/L), K (192–490 mg/L), Na (0.5–57 mg/L), and P (158–467 mg/L) contents in NABs were slightly lower than in alcoholic beers, but this assortment is a healthier source of these nutrients due to the lack of alcohol-related harm. According to the consumer study, taste and availability in shops were found to be crucial factors influencing NAB purchasing decisions.

The main challenge of our time is, on the one hand, malnutrition or the increasing number of overweight and obese people, and on the other hand, degradation of the environment and natural resources as a result of production. There is an urgent need to promote well-balanced and safe diets that have a low negative impact on the environment, while being culturally acceptable and economically accessible to all. This chapter discusses the concept of a “sustainable healthy diet” in the context of international and national dietary guidelines as well as the environmental impact of production and consumption of selected food groups and types of dietary patterns.

The growth of the plant-based dairy alternatives market and consumers’ diverse preferences and expectations prompted an evaluation of plant-based yogurt alternatives based on coconut, oat, soy, and cashew nut compared with dairy yogurt. Consumers’ responses were assessed under blind, expected, and informed conditions using hedonic evaluation, the Check-All-That-Apply (CATA) questionnaire, and purchase intention measurement. The type of raw material significantly influenced the physicochemical properties, sensory profile, and consumer perception of fermented products. Dairy yogurt achieved the highest overall liking, while the coconut-based yogurt alternative was the most preferred plant-based product and showed sensory characteristics closest to dairy yogurt. Taste was identified as the main driver of overall liking, followed by creaminess, thickness, and light color. Conversely, artificial flavor notes, blandness, gray appearance, and thin texture were the main negative drivers of overall liking. The integration of physicochemical, sensory, and hedonic data confirmed that consumer responses are shaped through sensory perception rather than direct evaluation of instrumental quality parameters. Product information positively influenced consumer expectations, but its effect on final acceptance depended on whether sensory quality met those expectations. Higher overall liking consistently predicted higher purchase intention, indicating that sensory acceptance remained the primary determinant of consumers’ willingness to buy plant-based yogurt alternatives.