Associations between COVID-19 fear and food purchasing and eating behaviors among manufacturing workers

Abstract

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has seriously affected the psychological health of individuals worldwide. This study examined the relationship between COVID-19-related fear and the eating behaviors and food purchasing behaviors of manufacturing industry workers. A total of 200 manufacturing industry workers, with an average age of 35.68 ± 11.33 years (19–68) and 72% male, participated in the study. The results showed that the food purchasing behaviors of manufacturing industry workers during the COVID-19 pandemic were predominantly shaped by perceptions of risk and safety. A significant increase was observed in the “reliability and packaging” dimension during the pandemic compared with the pre-pandemic period (25.86 ± 3.62 vs. 25.34 ± 3.98, p = 0.002). In contrast, a statistically significant but small decrease in “price sensitivity” scores was observed (7.81 ± 1.98 vs. 7.89 ± 1.93, p = 0.043). Supermarkets were perceived as the safest shopping environment, while street vendors and open markets had the lowest perceived safety ( p < 0.05). Hierarchical regression analysis revealed that older age (β = 0.147, p = 0.038), greater importance given to product information (β = 0.142, p = 0.040), and a preference for preserved/frozen foods (β = 0.225, p = 0.002) were significant independent predictors of higher COVID-19 fear. Manufacturing industry workers demonstrated selective and risk-focused adaptations in their food-related behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic. These findings offer important implications for occupational health practices and workplace-based nutrition interventions.