Abstract

Research on functional foods has expanded rapidly, yet findings on what drives consumer acceptance remain fragmented. To synthesize and organize the most common predictors of functional food acceptance and propose a unified, theory-driven framework, we conducted a review of reviews that built upon our prior scoping review and incorporated two additional reviews published through 2025. We then conducted a secondary-level synthesis of the primary studies cited within these reviews to refine construct definitions and strengthen the evidence base. Seven factors, grounded in the Theory of Planned Behavior and the Value–Attitude–Behavior model, were identified as key influences on consumer acceptance of functional foods: knowledge, value, health consciousness, subjective norm, self-efficacy, attitude, and purchase intention. The proposed conceptual framework serves as a roadmap for both research and practice, illustrating the key factors and the relationships among them that shape consumer acceptance. By applying this framework, researchers and industry professionals can enhance consumer perceptions of food health innovations, increase purchase intentions, and ultimately contribute to improved public health. In addition to these seven factors, product characteristics and consumers’ socio-demographic attributes should also be considered when evaluating acceptance of different types of functional food products.

Keywords: Functional Foods, Consumer Acceptance, Value–Attitude–Behavior (VAB), Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB)

How to Cite:

Lu, P., Parrella, J. A. & Leggette, H., (2025) “Mapping the Path to Functional Food Acceptance: A Framework Based on the Value-Attitude-Behavior Model and Theory of Planned Behavior”, Journal of Applied Communications 109(4).