STRATEGIES FOR BUILDING CONSUMER TRUST IN COOKING OILS USED IN IRANIAN FAST-FOOD RESTAURANTS

Background and Aim: The purpose of this study is to explore building trust to cooking oils used in fast-food restaurants among Iranian women consumers. Methods: Methods: In this qualitative study, eight Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) were conducted among women (n=82) who were responsible for food handling in their households from 5 districts of Tehran in 6 health centers. Each session was held with 7-10 participants with their voices recorded. The final transcripts were read to obtain categories until developing themes by using directed content analysis and constant comparison methods. Results: Three categories were emerged with 9 themes and 46 sub-themes: 1) Cooking oils in fast-food restaurants, 2) Fast-food restaurants, and 3) Building consumer trust. One of the main problem of fast-food restaurants according to the participant views, was cooking oils. The majority of women had desirable knowledge about the disadvantages of cooking oils in fast-food restaurants; however they prefer fast-food restaurants for changing mood, making fun and also the variety of food.Conclusion: Conclusions: The participants mentioned that the most challenging problem of fast-food restaurants was re-used cooking oils. For building trust, visible kitchen, was recommended to fast-food restaurants. Health policy makers should promote conducting educational interventions, media advertisements and improving the nutritional food quality of fast-food companies (e.g. legislation of menu labeling). There is a definite need for designing a system for collecting and recycling of used cooking oils in restaurant applications.

Keywords:

Strategies , Consumer , Building trust , Cooking oil , Fast-food restaurants