Customers' awareness and knowledge of using irradiation technology processed foods in Egyptian restaurants: an exploratory study

الملخص EN

The pace of dealing with innovative technologies in the food industry requires be of quality procedures to maintain food safety, especially when restaurants use food products that have been processed with one of the modern technologies in food making, they will face different reactions and questions from customers about this innovative technology.

The research aims to know the extent of awareness and knowledge of Egyptian restaurants customers and their willingness to eat foods processed with irradiation technology.

To achieve the research aim, an electronic questionnaire was designed and distributed randomly to a sample of customers in Egyptian restaurants, 500 valid responses were received for statistical analysis by SPSS V.28.

The results indicated that customers in Egyptian restaurants do not have enough information about food processed with technology irradiation to accept the experience of eating food processed with technology irradiation in the future.

Therefore, customers' acceptance and confidence in food processed with technology irradiation is the major obstacle to the marketing process of this new technique in Egyptian restaurants.

Based on the results, some recommendations were suggested and directed to food science professionals, factory owners, restaurant owners, chefs, food establishments, and government.

One of the main recommendations was that Egyptian customers must be made aware of irradiation technology processed foods through the media and institutional publicity for the sustainability and safety of food, nutrition, and health of irradiation technology processed foods through the dissemination of sufficient information about irradiation technology processed foods by food science professionals.