The consumption behavior during the pandemic in Italy. Food delivery and its implications on food nutritional quality

The emerging food delivery (FD) is gaining importance in meal distribution, as it is rapidly becoming a mainstream component in consumption habits, especially after the pandemic period. In Italy, the market value of FD grew by +59% between 2020 and 2021 and by +20% between 2021 and 2022. However, what is delivered cannot always be defined as healthy and quality and may therefore represent a form of metabolic food waste, i.e., an excessive intake of nutrients and kilocalories. Therefore, in the light of the above, this study aims to assess the consumption trends related to FD in Italy during the pandemic period and how these may have affected food quality. The results show how consumer loyalty is closely dependent on product or service quality, perceived value and customer trust. However, while there has been a trend towards healthier consumption patterns, Italians sometimes prefer foods such as pizza, burgers, sushi, Cantonese rice, in which the nutrient breakdown is not always in line with healthy eating guidelines. In this sense what is being penalised is nutritional quality, as Italians may not always give importance to the correct distribution of nutrients. This research, therefore, could make a better understanding of the importance of nutritional quality of FD