The effect of neophobia and neophilia on anxiety, trust and local food consumption intention

Nowadays, food is of increasing interest, becoming a source of pleasure, socializing and cultural transmission, as well as compulsory food consumption. Innovations coupled with new recipes, cooking methods from different cultures and ingredients coupled with developments in gastronomy are driving the food and beverage industry forward. The development of the food and beverage industry increases reluctance to consume new products and interest in new products. Within the scope of this study, it is aimed to reveal the effects of food neophobia and food neophilia psychological factors on anxiety and trust and intention to consume local food. The Mediterranean provinces of Antalya, Burdur and Isparta and the tourists visiting these provinces constitute the study area and participants. A total of 493 participants among the foreign tourists arriving in the region were included in the study, and sampling was carried out. Reliable data was collected on 467 participants. The questionnaire prepared as part of the study was prepared in English, German and Russian, taking into account the countries that visit our country most often. Given the results of this study; it is seen that food neophobia positively affects anxiety, food neophilia does not make you feel a sense of trust, and food neophobia negatively affects local food consumption. It is one of the findings that although new foods attract people's attention, anxiety cannot be prevented. Although food choices are driven by human curiosity, people may be reluctant to try new foods because of fear of the harmful effects. People don't prefer local foods that they have never tasted. Another finding of the study is that interest in new foods has no impact on self-confidence. Emotions can increase or decrease food intake. Loss of trust or willingness to take risks can prevent a reorientation of the product. Health problems, economic conditions, a lack of knowledge about food or the appearance of food can discourage consumption. People travel to see new places, discover new destinations, and discover new tastes. This emerges from one of the results of the study. Interest in new foods has a positive impact on local food consumption. In this study, the findings and results are important because of the identification of the influence of psychological factors such as fear and confidence on local food consumption intention through mediation of fear of trying new foods and interest in new foods, and the limited number of such studies.