Eureka! Institutional Repository

Greece is one of the European countries with the highest consumption rates of fresh fish. Consumption patterns are changing significantly due to the constantly changing patterns that arise due to socioeconomic permutations. In this case, consumers are the liaison between supply and demand, and understanding their preferences for seafood and how fishery products are processed can help improve the conditions under which they are marketed, processed and preserved. However, on the behavioral side, little is known about the determinants of consumption. With this research we aim to identify the behaviors, attitudes and sociopolitical motivations of consumers regarding the consumption of fish, studies the consumer behavior of the respondents towards seafood products and the methods of their modification, as well as to identify potential distinct consumer groups. It also investigates possible connections between consumer characteristics and marketing aspects of fishery products, after a long period of crisis, from which new consumers are believed to have emerged: more demanding, informed, supportive and connected. For this purpose, a special questionnaire was designed, which was randomly filled out by: 853 in various regions of Greece. Consumers responded to issues such as: monthly income, money they spend to enrich their diet with seafood products, frequency of consumption, their behavior regarding seafood products and methods of modifying them, as well as the place of consumption and procurement them, but also the perception of the effects that seafood consumption has on the health of the consumer public. The majority of consumers answered that they consumed 3-4 servings of seafood per month. They buy seafood from the fishmonger ( 63,7%), and consume it at home (83,9%), spending 10- 20 euros each month, preferring domestic seafood (61,2%) and lean fish (4,05) and processed smoked fish ( 3,50), men more often consume processed seafood products, while as age increases, the more often participants prefer seafood or seafood products. Seafood that is rich in σ-3 is most preferred (4,61) , agreeing that seafood has many benefits and that is why it is essential for health (51,5%). At the present given moment they consider that the prices of fish are expensive (53,9%), while the prices of processed seafood are normal (50,1%) .