Many urban Malaysians dine out, as evident from the high frequency of food consumed outside of home. Unfortunately, poor dietary habits and inadequate physical activity have contributed towards obesity and increased risk of diet-related non-communicable diseases in Malaysia. Approximately 8.1% of Malaysians are living with diabetes, hypertension, and high cholesterol. Consequently, improvements and modifications in the dietary intake are critical; even when dining out. Although many Malaysians would like to eat healthily, the high costs associated with healthy food acts as a deterrent. Thus, this study aimed to determine factors predicting consumers’ behavioral intention toward healthy food when dining out. Using the cross-sectional study design, quantitative data from 385 Malaysian living in Klang Valley were collected through online survey by sharing the Google form through social media. The findings revealed that health factors, social and subjective norms, attitudes, and price significantly affected consumers’ behavioral intentions in choosing healthy food in the food service industry. Moreover, price is the most influential factor in choosing healthy food followed by the health factor. Furthermore, age, marital status, employment status, and household monthly income significantly affected the behavioral intentions to choose healthy food. Restaurateurs should consider more reasonably priced healthy food options to benefit from the healthy eating trend in Malaysia and to fulfil consumer demand for healthy food when dining out.
Annunziata, A., & Pascale, P. (2009). Consumers' behaviors and attitudes toward healthy food products: The case of organic and functional foods (No. 698-2016-47803).
Apaolaza, V., Hartmann, P., D'Souza, C., & Lopez, C. M. (2018). Eat organic–Feel good? The relationship between organic food consumption, health concern and subjective wellbeing. Food Quality and Preference, 63, 51-62.
Bellows, A. C., Onyango, B., Diamond, A., & Hallman, W. K. (2008). Understanding consumer interest in organics: Production values vs. purchasing behavior. Journal of Agricultural & Food Industrial Organization, 6(1), 1169-1198. https://doi.org/10.2202/1542-0485.1169
Cambridge Dictionary. (n.d.). Health food. dictionary.cambridge.org. Retrieved January 25, 2021, from https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/health-food.
Chambers, S., Lobb, A., Butler, L. T., & Traill, W. B. (2008). The influence of age and gender on food choice: a focus group exploration. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 32(4), 356-365.
Chandran, S. (2020). Malaysians are consuming healthier food options during the MCO. The Star. Retrieved from https://www.thestar.com.my/lifestyle/living/2020/04/24/these-malaysians-are-consuming-immunity-boosting-foods-during-the-mco.
Ditlevsen, K., Sandoe, P., & Lassen, J. (2019). Healthy food is nutritious, but organic food is healthy because it is pure: The negotiation of healthy food choices by Danish consumers of organic food. Food Quality and Preference, 71, 46-53.
Food Industry Asia. (2019). Majority of Malaysian consumers want healthy foods but cost is a deterrence. Retrieved from https://foodindustry.asia/news-articles/2019/majority-of-malaysian-consumers-want-healthy-foods-but-cost-is-a-deterrence.
Gosliner, W., Madsen, K. A., Woodward?Lopez, G., & Crawford, P. B. (2011). Would students prefer to eat healthier foods at school? Journal of School Health, 81(3), 146-151.
Herbalife Nutrition. (2020). Diet decisions survey APAC. Retrieved from https://www.herbalife.com.sg/apacnews/press-release/diet-decisions-survey/
Institute for Public Health. (2020). National Health and Morbidity Survey (NHMS) 2019: Non-communicable diseases, healthcare demand, and health literacy—Key Findings. Retrieved fromhttps://iptk.moh.gov.my/images/technical_report/2020/4_Infographic_Booklet_NHMS_2019_-_English.pdf.
International Food Information Council. (2020). 2020 Food and health survey. Retrieved from https://foodinsight.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/IFIC-Food-and-Health-Survey-2020.pdf.
Kang, J., Jun, J., & Arendt, S. W. (2015). Understanding customers’ healthy food choices at casual dining restaurants: Using the Value–Attitude–Behavior model. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 48, 12-21.
Koulierakis, G., Dermatis, A., Vassilakou, N. T., Pavi, E., Zavras, D., & Kyriopoulos, J. (2021). Determinants of healthy diet choices during austerity in Greece. British Food Journal.
Krystallis, A., Arvanitoyannis, I., & Chryssohoidis, G. (2006). Is there a real difference between conventional and organic meat? Investigating consumers' attitudes towards both meat types as an indicator of organic meat's market potential. Journal of Food Products Marketing, 12(2), 47-78.
Kwiksurveys. (n.d.). Quantitative data collection and analysis. Retrieved from https://freeonlinesurveys.com/survey-research/quantitative-data-collection. .
Laerd Statistics. (2018). Testing for normality using SPSS statistics. Retrieved from https://statistics.laerd.com/spss-tutorials/testing-for-normality-using-spss-statistics.php.
Lee, Y. Y., & Muda, W. A. M. W. (2019). Dietary intakes and obesity of Malaysian adults. Nutrition Research and Practice, 13(2), 159-168.
Lockie, S., Lyons, K., Lawrence, G., & Grice, J. (2004). Choosing organics: A path analysis of factors underlying the selection of organic food among Australian consumers. Appetite, 43(2), 135-146.
Macrotrends. (n.d.). Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Metro Area Population 1950-2022. Retrieved from https://www.macrotrends.net/cities/206411/kuala-lumpur/population#:~:text=The%20current%20metro%20area%20population,a%202.79%25%20increase%20from%202019.
Magnusson, M. K., Arvola, A., Hursti, U. K. K., Åberg, L., & Sjödén, P. O. (2001). Attitudes towards organic foods among Swedish consumers. British Food Journal, 103(3), 209-226.
Mamun, A. A., Hayat, N., & Zainol, N. R. B. (2020). Healthy eating determinants: A study among Malaysian young adults. Foods, 9(8), 974.
Michaelidou, N., & Hassan, L. M. (2008). The role of health consciousness, food safety concern and ethical identity on attitudes and intentions towards organic food. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 32(2), 163-170.
Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumers Affairs. (2020). KPDNHEP key statistics 2020. Retrieved from https://www.kpdnhep.gov.my/en/corporate-info/charter/52-media/penerbitan/statistik-utama-kpdnhep.
Minnesota Food Charter. (2014). What is healthy food. Retrieved from https://mnfoodcharter.com/the-charter/what-is-healthy-food/.
Most Malaysians want to eat healthy but find it too costly. (2019, May 16). The Sun Daily. Retrieved from https://columbiacollege-ca.libguides.com/apa/newspapers.
O’Donovan, P., & McCarthy, M. (2002). Irish consumer preference for organic meat. British Food Journal, 104(3/4/5), 353-370.
Oppotus. (2020, June 10). Revealing Malaysia’s biggest food trends. Retrieved from https://www.oppotus.com/revealing-malaysias-food-trends/.
Pawan, M. T., Langgat, J., & Marzuki, K. M. (2014). Study on generation Y dining out behavior in Sabah, Malaysia. International Journal of Business and Social Science, 5(11), 92-101.
Rahnama, H., Fadaei, M., & Baghersalimi, S. (2017). Healthy food choice: Survey results from Iranian consumers toward antibiotic?free chicken. Journal of Sensory Studies, 32(1), e12248.
Rezai, G., Teng, P. K., Shamsudin, M. N., Mohamed, Z., & Stanton, J. L. (2017). Effect of perceptual differences on consumer purchase intention of natural functional food. Journal of Agribusiness in Developing and Emerging Economies, 7(2), 153-173.
Shaharudin, M. R., Pani, J. J., Mansor, S. W., & Elias, S. J. (2010). Purchase intention of organic food; perceived value overview. Canadian Social Science, 6(1), 70-79.
Sharkawi, I., Mohamed, Z., & Rezai, G. (2014). Healthy eating: The preventive factors among Malaysians. Journal of Economics, Business & Management, 2(4), 257-268. Singh, A., & Verma, P. (2017). Factors influencing Indian consumers' actual buying behavior towards organic food products. Journal of Cleaner Production, 167, 473-483.
World Health Organization. (2020). Healthy diet. Retrieved from https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/healthy-diet.
