Does Consumer Behaviour on Meat Consumption Increase Obesity? - Empirical Evidence from European Countries

The study shows the association between consumer behavior on meat consumption and obesity of individuals in the European countries. Consumer behavior in terms of meat consumption and life-style has significant impact on obesity which is defined by Body Mass Index (BMI) calculated as kilogram per meter square. The primary sample survey which was conducted online, received the voluntary response from European nationals. The study finds that increasing proportion of meat in the meal has significant positive association in increasing the BMI. The study shows that age and meat consumption have significant positive association with increasing BMI, however, education, income and hours of physical exercise have negative association with increasing BMI. In order to analyze the complex and causal relationship among the variables, an econometric regression technique has been used. As the dependent variable BMI is an ordered categorical variable, ordered logistic model is used to analyze the model.