Impact of the Work Model on Food Consumer Behaviour During the Covid -19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected all aspects of people's lives around the world. Restrictions on movement and social distancing have influenced consumer behavior and the emergence of various consumer trends, one of the most important of which is working from home. The main objectives of this study are (1) to identify changes in consumer behaviour in the purchase, preparation and consumption of food during the COVID-19 pandemic, (2) to investigate the impact of the work model on food consumer behaviour during the COVID-19 pandemic. An online survey was conducted among a convenient sample of 625 respondents in the Republic of Croatia. The food categories in which consumption increased the most were flour, vegetables, and fruits, while the greatest decrease was in alcoholic beverages and in the category of sweets and salty snacks. The study confirms that work model during the COVID -19 pandemic influenced some aspects of food consumer behavior. Consumers who worked from home were more inclined to go to the grocery store less often, they tended to make more planned purchases, buy larger quantities of food and stocked up on food; they also placed more importance on the time available for food preparation compared to consumers who worked in the office. The findings suggest that uncertainty and exposure to risk have shaped the way consumers buy food, prepare, and consume food, but only with time will we be able to determine which changes in consumers are temporary and which persist over the long term.