331 

 

Journal homepage: www.fia.usv.ro/fiajournal 

Journal of Faculty of Food Engineering,  
Ştefan cel Mare University of Suceava, Romania  

Volume XIV, Issue 4- 2015, pag. 331  - 339. 

 

THE ROLE OF FUNCTIONAL FOOD IN THE IMPROVEMENT OF CONSUMER’S 

HEALTH STATUS 

 
*Katerina BOJKOVSKA1 , Elena JOSHEVSKA1, Nikolche JANKULOVSKI1, Gordana 

DIMITROVSKA1, Vangelica JOVANOVSKA1 
1Faculty of biotechnical sciences - Bitola.University „St. Kliment Ohridski” - Bitola   

Partizanska bb, Bitola, Republic of Macedonia,katerina.bojkovska@uklo.edu.mk, 

*Corresponding author 

Received September 5th 2015, Accepted December 15th 2015 

 

 

Abstract:  The main objective of this study is to present advances in understanding the 

relationship between nutrition and health that lead to the development of the concept of functional 

foods, which means a practical and new approach to achieve optimal health status by promoting 

the state of well-being and possibly reducing the risk of desease. For this purpose, the paper will 

look into the factors that influence consumers’ awareness of functional foods and their purchasing 

decisions of functional food products in the Republic of Macedonia.     

The challenge of understanding  the connection  between diet and health has resulted in the 

creation of a new  concept  of functional  products,  which  means  a new  practical  approach  

to balance  the diet  with  the aim  to achieve optimal health and possibility t o  reduce the 

risk of deseases. Functional foods are foods that provide health benefits beyond basic nutrition 

ones. Biologically active compounds in functional foods may impart health benefits or desirable 

physiological effects. Increasing awareness of healthier food choices, its possibilities and 

advantages, provides higher quality of life. However,  for a functional  food product to be 

good  and  widely  accepted,  it is necessary  to  link  research,  marketing  and  relevant  

feedback  information obtained by monitoring  consumers’ attitudes towards functional  

product, i n  o r d e r  t o  meet consumers’ expectations. One important fact in the whole 

concept of functional foods is informing consumers about the possibilities of functional foods,  

but  any  information  relating  to  health  must  necessarily  be  true,  attractive,  simple  and  

intelligible  to  the consumer s o  that the concept of functional foods b e i n g  a b l e  i n  

continuing to get developped.  

 

Keywords: functional food, consumer health, consumer buying behavior, marketing. 

 

1. Introduction 
 

Food preference is determined by both 

nutrition and pleasure derived from food 

consumption. With the development, the 

"society of abundance" faces new 

challenges such as increasing costs for 

health care, extension of the life span of 

individuals, and the new scientific 

knowledge and new technologies lead to 

significant changes in the lifestyle. Due to 

all these, functional food plays a major role 

in improving the standard of living, 

balancing and maintaining maximum 

physiological functions, in preserving 

health and reducing the risk of diseases [1, 

2]. Changes of consumer’s attitudes about 

diet and the connection between diet and 

health can be achieved by placing an 

emphasis on targeted and balanced diet, 

maximizing physiological functions of the 

body in order to reduce the risk of disease 

or formulating functional food as an 

important source of specific nutrients from 

which are of great importance [2]. 

http://www.fia.usv.ro/fiajournal


Food and Environment Safety - Journal of Faculty of Food Engineering, Ştefan cel Mare University - Suceava 

Volume XIV, Issue 4  – 2015 

 

Katerina BOJKOVSKA, Elena JOSHEVSKA, Nikolche JANKULOVSKI, Gordana DIMITROVSKA, Vangelica 

JOVANOVSKA, The role of functional food in the improvement of consumer’s health status, Food and Environment Safety, 

Volume XIV, Issue 4 – 2015, pag. 331 – 339 

332 
 

Although there is no existing unique and 

regulatory definition for functional foods, 

the scientific community agrees that those 

foods include a variety of foods and food 

components which are believed to improve 

overall health and well-being, reduce the 

risk of specific diseases, or minimize the 

effects of other health concerns. One of the 

most comprehensive definitions states that 

food can be regarded as functional “if it is 

satisfactorily demonstrated to affect 

beneficially one or more target functions of 

the body” [3]. Besides the usual foods seen 

as functional, like fruits and vegetables 

with their healthful components, breads 

and cereals made of whole grains, milk 

with its high intake of calcium, fortified 

foods and beverages, functional foods can 

also include dietary supplements. 

Concept of functional food 

The concept of balanced diet is a result of 

long research in the field of science of food 

and nutrition. A balanced diet is the most 

important support for the recommendations 

of dietary intake of certain nutrients. The 

beginning of the 21st century, however, 

puts the science of food in front of new 

challenges [4]. 

Food is no longer viewed only from the 

point of view of a need for adequate intake 

for proper growth, development and 

regeneration of the body. Food today has 

got a leading role in the quality of human 

life. For these reasons, balancing a diet 

grows at a level for optimal diet balancing, 

which focuses on optimizing the daily 

intake of both nutrients and nonnutritive 

components of food, in order to promote  

health and to reduce the risk of chronic, 

non-contagious diseases. Functional food 

plays an important role in the concept of 

optimally balanced diet. In 1998, the 

Japanese government set up a project in 

which they conducted research on the 

potential positive function of food in order 

to reduce the costs of medical treatment. 

The category of food with potential 

positive health effects, which occurs as a 

result of this research, is known as "food 

for specific non-medical purposes" 

(FOSHU food). This food category 

appeared in 1991 and is expected to exert 

certain, beneficial health effects as a result 

of the presence of certain components.  

FOSHU (Food for Specified Health Uses) 

includes the set of rules for specific health 

statements for functional food [5, 6, 7, 8]. 

According to the Ministry of Health 

of Japan, FOSHU is [8]: 

• Food that is expected to have 

specific health impacts due to its 

composition or food from which 

allergens are removed; 

•   Food in which the influence of 

additives or removed substances is 

scientifically validated and permits 

the claims about specific positive 

effect on health is obtained.  

In most countries there are no legal 

definitions of the term "functional food" 

and the boundaries between conventional 

and functional food are challenge even for 

nutritionists and food technologists [9, 10]. 

Also, there are several different definitions 

for functional food (FF). One of the 

definitions that explain the concept of FF 

in a simple way is the definition which 

stipulates that some food can be called 

"functional" if in addition to its basic 

nutritional values, it affects one or more 

target functions of the body in a positive 

and satisfying way by reducing the risks of 

developing certain diseases [8]. Functional 

food can improve the overall health of the 

body, reduce the risk of various diseases, it 

can even be used during the treatment of 

certain disease states [9, 7]. IFIC 

(International Food Information Council) 

has given a definition which states that: 

Functional food is that food which 

provides greater health benefits than basic 

nutrition. FUFOSE (The European 

Commission Concerted Action on 

Functional Food Science in Europe) has 



Food and Environment Safety - Journal of Faculty of Food Engineering, Ştefan cel Mare University - Suceava 

Volume XIV, Issue 4  – 2015 

 

Katerina BOJKOVSKA, Elena JOSHEVSKA, Nikolche JANKULOVSKI, Gordana DIMITROVSKA, Vangelica 

JOVANOVSKA, The role of functional food in the improvement of consumer’s health status, Food and Environment Safety, 

Volume XIV, Issue 4 – 2015, pag. 331 – 339 

333 
 

given the unique features of functional 

food: 

• should be conventional and 

daily food; 

• the possibility of consumption 

as a part of normal diet; 

• natural (as opposed to 

synthetic) with components that can be 

naturally found in the food or added to 

the food to a greater amount of the 

concentration specific to the food; 

• has a positive effect on 

physiological functions; 

• can improve the overall health 

and reduce the risk of disease; 

• has confirmed and 

substantiated health claims. [8, 3] 

Functional food may not necessarily be 

functional for the entire population and the 

combination of individual biochemical 

needs with specific food components can 

affect the progress in understanding the 

interaction between genes and diet. 

However, it is very important to 

understand the distinction between food 

and medicine. If indications for the 

treatment or prevention of certain diseases 

are recognized in a product, then the 

product is a medicine and a certain degree 

of toxicity is tolerant, but if indications for 

treatment or prevention of certain diseases 

are not recognized in the product, then it is 

a food and in this case, in normal amounts 

it must not cause any toxic effects. 

 

Economic aspects of the development of 

functional food 

 

 The market of functional food 

Functional food market is constantly 

changing and the competition in winning 

consumers is growing relentlessly and 

bluntly. Key factors affecting the purchase 

of products represent a recurring cycle that 

shows the relationship between quality, 

price, convenience and ease of preparation 

and of course, a positive impact on health, 

which means that Functional food or 

Functional food manufacturers must find a 

response to consumers’ demands for 

convenient and easy preparation, positive 

health impact and of course, the good taste. 

Also, it should not be forgotten that 

consumers are not willing to compromise 

at the expense of taste, in favour of a 

positive impact on health [11]. To be an 

excellent Functional food product, it must 

offer special health properties, and at the 

same time when compared with 

conventional food, it must develop its own 

strategy by linking research and marketing 

[9]. 

It is necessary to monitor consumers’ 

attitude towards a product so that it is 

possible, to a measurable way, to establish 

the idea of products and that the new 

product meets consumer’s expectations 

and that all information relating to health 

are truthful and attractive. By tracking 

consumer’s attitudes, the development of 

new methods of market research and 

consumer’s preferences large losses in 

investments can be reduced [12]. 

 

Development and marketing of 

functional food 

Functional food is a sustainable food 

category on the market due to long-term 

trends in the society, such as socio-

demographic trends [13,14,15] which 

imply a higher life standard, longer life 

expectancy, better health care, higher level 

of education in a large part of the 

population, and more. Scientists and, most 

importantly, consumers are beginning to 

accept the fact about the connection 

between health and nutrition [7].  

Consumers are more and more informed 

about health aspects of proper nutrition and 

willingly accept the changes in their eating 

habits [16, 17].  

The aspect in which functional food helps 

preserving the overall health status and/or 

reduces and prevents the risk of developing 



Food and Environment Safety - Journal of Faculty of Food Engineering, Ştefan cel Mare University - Suceava 

Volume XIV, Issue 4  – 2015 

 

Katerina BOJKOVSKA, Elena JOSHEVSKA, Nikolche JANKULOVSKI, Gordana DIMITROVSKA, Vangelica 

JOVANOVSKA, The role of functional food in the improvement of consumer’s health status, Food and Environment Safety, 

Volume XIV, Issue 4 – 2015, pag. 331 – 339 

334 
 

certain diseases is not negligible. It is also 

beyond doubt that increasing awareness of 

health food choices, its possibilities and 

advantages indirectly provides increased 

quality of life, and affects the reduction of 

the mortality rate, which in the end is of 

economic and public interest [14, 18]. It 

should be taken into account that the prices 

of functional food are higher than those of 

conventional food which seems to be of 

interest for all the participants in the 

supply chain [19]. The development of 

new functional components and 

technological solutions can be expensive 

and it requires a large research effort.This 

involves identification of the functional 

components and determining their 

physiological impact; development of 

suitable matrix products, determination of 

the bioavailability of functional 

components and their potential changes 

during processing and preparation of the 

products, consumer’s education and 

clinical studies on the safety and efficacy 

of the product to obtain approval for use of 

claim about the positive health impact [19, 

17]. 

All these represent a multi-stage process in 

which commercial, academic and legal 

inputs or legal interests are required, all 

with the aim of achieving recognition and 

acceptance by consumers [14]. The 

acceptance of the concept of functional 

food and better understanding of its 

determinants by the consumers has been 

identified as a key factor for market 

orientation towards functional food, 

product development driven by the 

feedback from customers and market 

opportunities [4, 20]. The acceptance of 

functional food or such product by 

consumers depends largely on the socio-

demographic factors such as level of 

education, place of residence, presence of 

children in the household, gender and age. 

On the basis of the socio-demographic 

factors it can be stated that typical 

consumers of functional food are persons 

with higher levels of education, older 

people and people with health problems 

who must adhere to a specific diet regime. 

From the point of view of gender, women 

are more frequent consumers and they are 

more interested in functional foods than 

men [17]. 

 

2. Matherial and methods  

 

Considering the fact that the subject of this 

research is consumer’s behavior towards 

functional food in the Republic of 

Macedonia, the main group consists of 

respondents aged over 18 years. 

The research was conducted on a sample 

case. The research involved participants 

from the northeast and southwest of the 

Republic of Macedonia. 

500 questionnaires that were defined as a 

target group were made for the survey, but 

relatively low turnout of participants 

always occurs with the use of written 

surveys. Thus, from the total number of 

500 distributed surveys (450 electronic and 

50 physical) only 313 surveys were 

answered and only those involved in the 

further analysis, which is of 62.6%. From 

all the respondents, only 198 respondents 

answered that they were familiar with the 

concept of functional food, which 

represents 63.26% of their total number. 

The respondents who were not familiar 

with the term were excluded from further 

analysis. Statistical methods were used in 

the analysis of data collected by polling. 

When determining the demographic and 

socio-economic features, distribution of 

respondents by place of residence, gender, 

age, qualification and monthly income was 

determined. Within the analysis of ordinal 

variables, the selected indicators of 

descriptive statistics were calculated, while 

the nominal variables were determined by 

the respective distributions. Hi-square test 

was applied to test reliability of the 



Food and Environment Safety - Journal of Faculty of Food Engineering, Ştefan cel Mare University - Suceava 

Volume XIV, Issue 4  – 2015 

 

Katerina BOJKOVSKA, Elena JOSHEVSKA, Nikolche JANKULOVSKI, Gordana DIMITROVSKA, Vangelica 

JOVANOVSKA, The role of functional food in the improvement of consumer’s health status, Food and Environment Safety, 

Volume XIV, Issue 4 – 2015, pag. 331 – 339 

335 
 

selected features. Statistically significant 

differences are considered the differences 

confirmed at the level of p<0.05. 

 

3. Results and discussion  

Part of the questionnaire contained 

questions related to the consumer’s 

familiarity with the concept of functional 

food and their buying habits associated 

with such products. As previously pointed 

out, 198 of the 313 subjects included in the 

study (63.26%) have heard of the term 

"functional food". Table 1 contains the 

distribution of respondents considering 

their position on what the term "functional 

food" means for them. 
Table 1  

The distribution of respondents due to the perception of the term "functional food" 

 

The perception of the term “functional 

foods” 

Number of 

respondents 

Percentage 

Healthy food 

Food with specific benefits to the body 

Expensive food 

All above 

17 

144 

1 

36 

8.59 

72.73 

0.51 

18.18 

Total 198 100.00 

    

For most of them the term “functional 

food” means food with certain benefits for 

the system. Only one respondent thinks 

that “functional food” is expensive food.  

Table 2 presents the distribution of 

respondents according to the defined 

characteristics (residence, gender, age, 

education and monthly income) and the 

perception of the term "functional food". 

The table also lists the results of hi-square 

test for independence of the features that is 

used to examine the relationship between 

the defined features and the term 

"functional food". Since only one person 

had a position that functional food is 

expensive food, in order to satisfy the 

assumptions of the tests, that answer was 

neglected in the analysis. 

In all the groups analyzed there are persons 

who perceive functional food as food with 

specific benefits to the body. Among the 

respondents from the northeast part of 

Macedonia, as well as those from the 

southeast, the number of persons who 

perceive the term "functional food" as all 

together (healthy food, food with specific 

benefits to the body and expensive food) is 

higher, while the number of those who 

perceive the functional food only as a 

healthy food is lower. The same 

characteristic was registered by the 

distribution of responses by gender. 

According to the hi-square test there is no 

statistically significant relationship 

between the place of residence and the 

perception of the term "functional food". 

Also, there is no statistically significant 

dependence between the gender and the 

perception of the term "functional food". 

The existence of statistically significant 

relationship between age and perception of 

the term "functional food" is confirmed by 

hi-square test. In all age groups, as already 

noted, most respondents answered that 

functional food is food with certain 

benefits to the body. These respondents 

were most prevalent in the older age group, 

and least prevalent in the young age group. 

Regarding the other respondents, the 

youngest respondents in greater number 

have perceived the term "functional food" 

as being all previously stated (healthy 

foods, foods with specific benefits to the 

body and expensive food). In the older 

group, the number of respondents who 



Food and Environment Safety - Journal of Faculty of Food Engineering, Ştefan cel Mare University - Suceava 

Volume XIV, Issue 4  – 2015 

 

Katerina BOJKOVSKA, Elena JOSHEVSKA, Nikolche JANKULOVSKI, Gordana DIMITROVSKA, Vangelica 

JOVANOVSKA, The role of functional food in the improvement of consumer’s health status, Food and Environment Safety, 

Volume XIV, Issue 4 – 2015, pag. 331 – 339 

336 
 

perceived functional foods as healthy food and as all stated was equal. 
 

Table 2  

Distribution of respondents according to the defined characteristics and the perception of the term 

"functional food" with the results by the chi-square test 

 
 

 

 

Characteristics 

Perception of the term "functional food"  

 

 

Chi-square test 

 

 

Healthy food 

 

 

Food with particular 

benefits for the 

organism 

 

 

 

As all together 

Residence 

Northeast part of 

Macedonia 

Southwest part of 

Macedonia 

 

14 

(12.39%) 

3 

(3.57%) 

 

80 

(70.80%) 

64 

(76.19%) 

 

19 

(16.81%) 

17 

(20.24%) 

 

X2=4.842 

p=0.089 

Gender 

Male 

 

Female 

 

4 

(4.44%) 

13 

(12.15%) 

 

70 

(77.78%) 

74 

(69.16%) 

 

16 

(17.78% 

20 

(18.69%) 

 

 

X2=3.882 

p=0.144 

Age 

under 24 

 

25-38 

 

39 or more 

 

8 

(10.53%) 

7 

(8.75%) 

2 

(4.88%) 

 

46 

(60.53%) 

61 

(76.25%) 

37 

(90.24%) 

 

22 

(28.95%) 

12 

(15.00%) 

2 

(4.88%) 

 

 

X2=13.621 

p=0.009 

Education 

University education 

 

Secondary education 

 

11 

(13.10%) 

6 

(5.36%) 

 

63 

(75%) 

80 

(71.43%) 

 

22 

(11.90%) 

26 

(23.21%) 

 

 

X2=6.74 

p=0.035 

 

 
Monthtly income 

(denars) 

less than 10.000,00 

 

10.000,00-30.000,00 

 

to 30.000,00 or more 

 

 

7 

(11.67%) 

2 

(2.47%) 

8 

(14.29%) 

 

 

30 

(50.00%) 

73 

(90.12%) 

41 

(73.21%) 

 

 

23 

(38.33%) 

6 

(7.41%) 

7 

(12.50%) 

 

 

 

 

X2=33.338 

P<0.001 

 

 

  

According to the hi-square test, there is 

statistically significant relationship 

between the professional qualification and 

the perception of the term "functional 

food". The percentage of persons who 

associate functional food with healthy food 

with specific benefits for the body was 

equal in both groups. But, compared with 

those who had secondary education, 

among those with university education, 

there were people who perceived the 

functional food as healthy food. The 

percentage of people with secondary 

education who experienced functional food 

as all stated was greater than the group of 

respondents with university education. 

The hi-square test confirmed the existence 

of a statistically significant relationship 

between the monthly income and the 

perception of the term "functional food". 

The largest percent is that of respondents 



Food and Environment Safety - Journal of Faculty of Food Engineering, Ştefan cel Mare University - Suceava 

Volume XIV, Issue 4  – 2015 

 

Katerina BOJKOVSKA, Elena JOSHEVSKA, Nikolche JANKULOVSKI, Gordana DIMITROVSKA, Vangelica 

JOVANOVSKA, The role of functional food in the improvement of consumer’s health status, Food and Environment Safety, 

Volume XIV, Issue 4 – 2015, pag. 331 – 339 

337 
 

who perceive functional food as food with 

specific benefits to the body, determined 

among those who earn between 10 000,00 

and 30000,00 per month. Such persons are 

less recorded in the lowest profitable 

group. In the group with the least income, 

the number of persons who stated that they 

associate the term "functional food" with 

all stated (healthy food, food with specific 

benefits to the body and expensive food) is 

significant. The percentage of respondents 

who perceive functional food as a healthy 

food was the highest among respondents 

whose monthly income amounted to 

30.000,00 denars or more. The 

questionnaire contained two questions 

related to the participation in the buying of 

functional food and functional beverages. 

Respondents' answers to these questions 

were measured on Likert scale which has 4 

degrees (1 – never, 2 - occasionally, 3 – 

often, 4 - regularly). 

Table 3 contains selected indicators from 

the descriptive statistics (arithmetic mean, 

median, mode, standard deviation and 

coefficient of variation) calculated for the 

two mentioned variables. 

Table 3  

Selected descriptive statistical indicators relating to the frequency of purchase 

 

Frequency of 

purchase 

Arithmetic 

mean 

Median Mode Standard 

deviation 

Coefficients of 

variation 

Functional food 2.35 2.00 2.00 0.71 30.18 

Functional beverages 2.05 2.00 2.00 0.69 33.52 

 

Although there are conflicting opinions on 

the use of mean and its key indicators in 

the case of measured variables on the 

Likert scale, we applied them in the 

analysis in order to facilitate decision 

making. Based on the calculated arithmetic 

mean it can be concluded that respondents 

buy more functional food than functional 

beverages. In both cases, the median had 

the same value. According to the median, 

half of the respondents expressed purchase 

frequency of functional food and 

functional beverages by 2 or lower, and the 

other half by 2 or higher. And, in both 

cases the mode has a value of 2. Thus, 

most respondents answered that they 

bought functional food and functional 

beverages. The standard deviation and 

coefficient of variation suggest that the 

degree of variability in the response to 

both questions can be considered small. 

Table 4 contains the distribution of 

respondents according to the category of 

functional food that they usually buy. 
Table 4  

Distribution of respondents considering the category of functional foods usually bought 

 

Categories of functional food Number of respondents Percentage 

Dairy products 

Products enriched with omega-3 

fatty acids 

Fruit juices 

Other products 

All above 

70 

 

27 

46 

15 

35 

36.27 

 

13.99 

23.83 

7.77 

18.13 

Total 193 100.00 

 

The results showed that five respondents 

who had heard of the term "functional 

food" never bought such products.  

Most respondents answered that they 

usually bought dairy products as functional 

food, which make up more than a third of 

the respondents.  The next respondents are 



Food and Environment Safety - Journal of Faculty of Food Engineering, Ştefan cel Mare University - Suceava 

Volume XIV, Issue 4  – 2015 

 

Katerina BOJKOVSKA, Elena JOSHEVSKA, Nikolche JANKULOVSKI, Gordana DIMITROVSKA, Vangelica 

JOVANOVSKA, The role of functional food in the improvement of consumer’s health status, Food and Environment Safety, 

Volume XIV, Issue 4 – 2015, pag. 331 – 339 

338 
 

those who answered that they buy fruit 

juices. 

All stated (dairy products, products 

enriched with omega-3 fatty acids, fruit 

juices and other products) are usually 

bought by less than the fifth of the 

respondents. The number of persons who 

answered that they usually buy other 

products was the least.  

 

 

4. Conclusion 

 

Functional food is a promising and 

dynamic part of the food industry that is 

rapidly evolving thanks to a better 

understanding of the close connection 

between diet and health.Therefore, it is 

necessary to develop a new approach on 

the development of new products for 

consumers. The presentation of functional 

food is not successful unless it is not 

carried out simultaneously with successful 

informing of consumers. The information 

and the increased awareness of the 

opportunities of healthy eating allow easier 

choice in buying the products and their 

inclusion in the daily diet. With an 

increasing demand for a healthy lifestyle 

and general well-being, food and drink 

manufacturers are provided with 

opportunities to reformulate their products 

to address the needs on this emerging 

market. Among these ones, 

fortified/functional food and drinks has 

been the most dynamic and fast moving 

category of new product development on 

the health and wellness market. Although 

the enhanced health benefits attracted 

consumers’ attention, concerns on the 

artificial ingredients and effectiveness of 

the health benefits have formed negative 

attitudes towards functional products. 

Thus, the understanding of factors which 

influence consumers’ perceptions and 

acceptances of functional food is essential 

for food and drink manufacturers in their 

New Product Development (NPD) 

strategies making. Factors that affect the 

increasing development of functional 

products are aging population, increasing 

costs for Health care, autonomy in health 

care and awareness and desire to improve 

personal health, new research and 

scientific evidence that diet can change the 

frequency and progression of a disease. 

In the conducted research, for most of the 

respondents the term "functional food" is 

food with certain benefits to the body. 

A frequency of respondents is made 

according to the defined characteristics 

(residence, gender, age, education and 

monthly income) and the perception of the 

term "functional food". Most respondents 

answered that they buy occasionally 

functional food and functional beverages. 

The standard deviation and the coefficient 

of variation suggest that the degree of 

variability in the response of both 

questions may be considered small, 

suggesting that the trend of functional food 

is accepted. 

Most of the respondents stated that they 

mostly buy dairy products as functional 

food. This was the case of more than a 

third of the respondents. Then, there come 

the respondents who answered that they 

buy fruit juices. 

It can be concluded that functional food as 

a product among the consumers of the 

Republic of Macedonia was accepted, but 

there are significant differences depending 

on the place of residence, monthly income, 

age and education of the consumers who 

have a major influence on the purchase 

decision. 

However, functional food for the 

Macedonian food industry is a promising 

category primarily due to the greater 

expressiveness and close connection 

between food and health, the innovation in 

the food industry, and the consumer’s 

awareness. 



Food and Environment Safety - Journal of Faculty of Food Engineering, Ştefan cel Mare University - Suceava 

Volume XIV, Issue 4  – 2015 

 

Katerina BOJKOVSKA, Elena JOSHEVSKA, Nikolche JANKULOVSKI, Gordana DIMITROVSKA, Vangelica 

JOVANOVSKA, The role of functional food in the improvement of consumer’s health status, Food and Environment Safety, 

Volume XIV, Issue 4 – 2015, pag. 331 – 339 

339 
 

The information and the increase of the 

awareness for healthy diet options 

influence the decision making of 

purchasing products and of more frequent 

and regular usage. For this purpose, the 

Macedonian food industry should take 

maximum advantage of their potential and 

adapt to the European and world trends to 

produce functional food and thus, to 

increase the financial results, but also to 

influence the change of Macedonia 

customers’ food habits. 

 

5. References 
 

[1]. MILNER J., Functional foods: the US 
perspective, American Journal of Clinical 

Nutrition, 71 (1654S– 1659S), (2000)  

[2]. ROBERFROID, M., Global view on 
functional foods: European perspectives, British 

Journal of Nutrition, 88(Suppl. 2) (S133–S138), 

(2002)  

[3]. DIPLOCK AT., AGGETT P., ASHWELL M., 
BORNET F., FERN E., ROBERFROID M., 

Scientific concepts of functional foods in Europe, 

Consensus document. British Journal for Nutrition, 

81 (Suppl 1): 1-27, (1999) 

[4]. ARES, G., GÁMBARO, A., Influence of 
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