Food safety attitudes and government policy trust in the relationship between health literacy and consumer’s food consumption behaviours

Purpose Attitudes and trust in government play a critical role in ensuring compliance with health and food safety policies. While health literacy is known to affect healthy food consumption, it may also shape people’s attitudes and trust in government. Following Taiwan’s controversial 2021 decision to allow imports of pork containing ractopamine, this study examined the relationships between health literacy, trust in government policy, food safety attitudes and consumer behaviours towards pork meat products. Design/methodology/approach This cross-sectional study was conducted in a city in southern Taiwan in March 2022. A total of 674 participants were recruited to complete the questionnaires. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) was used to analyse the relationships among self-rated health literacy, government policy trust, food safety attitudes and consumer behaviours towards pork meat products. Findings The results revealed that health literacy was significantly associated with government policy trust, food safety attitudes and consumer behaviours towards pork meat products without ractopamine. A lower level of government policy trust was significantly associated with increased food safety concerns, which further influenced consumer behaviours towards pork meat products without ractopamine. Originality/value To the best of our knowledge, the complex interplay between health literacy, government trust, food safety attitudes and consumer’s food consumption behaviours remains unclear. This study helps fill the gap in the literature.