production companies to have a general knowledge of the market. Much more
important is to identify the specific market segments of customers. The rapidly
growing number of the elderly requires food producers to give priority to the
specific needs of this market segment. This is closely connected to the fact that the
needs of the elderly differ from those of other age categories, and their needs
represent the foundation for targeted marketing. Health awareness and a focus on
quality keeps increasing and providers have to face new challenges every day.
Consumers (including the elderly) receive a broad range of information on what
constitutes a healthy lifestyle and pay special attention to the prevention of
illnesses, which also affects their attitude towards food products.
The question we raised during our survey was aimed at establishing which
elements of the previous traditional models could be incorporated into the new
model and what components could complement the hypothetical behaviour models
of food consumption by our target group.
A new wave of purchasing and consumption habits has been developing,
which not only affects the behaviour of the middle-age generation, but can also be
incorporated into the day-to-day habits of the elderly:
• the popularity of natural (“bio” etc. ) products is increasing;
• there is a growing demand for functional food products;
• more and more people pay special attention to healthy nutrition;
• the sale of “comfort” food products requiring short preparation time is
increasing;
• people spend less time shopping, the general preference is to buy food
for one week at one place; and
• there are more possibilities to eat out.
For the elderly consumers, food products are not just an issue of
subsistence, but also a conscious process aimed at maintaining their health and
preventing illness. We started out from the traditional food consumption behaviour
model by PILGRIM (1957). The model represented in Figure 2 has been developed
on the basis of three major indicators: economic and social (cultural) factors,
factors associated with an individual, and factor associated with a food product.
The latter include aspects of food quality and other food properties. Consumers
with increased health awareness typically reject mass-products and specifically
seek high quality products with a higher added value satisfying their special
nutrition needs. When we talk about quality, we have in mind certain nutritional
benefits, the natural origin and properties making the product enjoyable, and its
reasonable price. In aggregate it means the product’s marketability.
The designed models make it possible to draw a conclusion as to the
specific needs of the elderly, and can also lead us to a conscious and future-focused
choice of food products. Focusing on the future is a significant aspect of behaviour,
since this specific attitude can significantly increase the health awareness of the
elderly, facilitate their health-related decisions and ultimately improve their health condition.