**Background:** Food sustainability is a multidimensional concept encompassing environmental, economic, social, and cultural dimensions. Food professionals (dietitians, food scientists, technologists) are uniquely positioned to influence sustainability across the food chain. However, little research has examined sustainability perceptions among food science students, particularly in Spain. This study aimed to analyze perceptions of food and food sustainability among college students of Human Nutrition and Dietetics (HND) and Food Science and Technology (FST) at the University of Barcelona.
**Methods:** An exploratory, descriptive cross-sectional study using mixed methods was conducted between May 2020 and September 2021. The qualitative phase involved two online focus groups (total n=13 students: 5 HND, 8 FST) held via Zoom in October/November 2020, led by an anthropologist. Discussions were transcribed verbatim and analyzed thematically using Atlas-Ti. Based on these insights and prior literature, a fully structured questionnaire was developed, reviewed by 20 experts, and pilot-tested with 30 students. The final questionnaire contained 31 multiple-choice/Likert-scale questions and one open-ended question. It was administered online via Survey Monkey (April–May 2021). Of 385 responses, 300 complete responses (78.0%) were analyzed. Statistical analysis used SPSS v.24 with chi-square tests (significance at p<0.05).
**Key Results:** Participants (80.3% female; mean age 21.25±3.16 years) were evenly split between HND (n=151) and FST (n=149). In the free-association task, no sustainability-related words were associated with "food"; the most frequent categories were "hedonic and gustatory" (35.1%) and "food" (28.1%). HND students associated food more with hedonic/gustatory terms (41.3% vs 28.9%, χ²=4.90, p=0.026), while FST students associated it more with "food" category terms (36.9% vs 19.3%, χ²=11.66, p=0.001). In self-assessed diet, 90.0% agreed their diet was "healthy" (higher in HND, χ²=9.88, p=0.021), 89.3% "pleasant and convivial", and 86.3% "Mediterranean" (higher in FST, χ²=9.77, p=0.044). Only 40–50% agreed with sustainability-related descriptors ("ecological and natural", "responsible and socially committed"). The top influences on food choices were "pleasure and taste" (25.9%) and "nutritional composition" (24.5%); "ecology, environment, and animal welfare" was selected by only 8.4% but was significantly more important for women (9.8% vs 2.6%, χ²=6.89, p=0.009). Food concerns were highest for plastic use (78.0%), food waste (77.7%), and fish contamination (74.0%). FST students showed higher concern for hygiene and contamination issues; HND students for obesity. Women showed higher concern for most items. For a sustainable diet, the top three aspects were "not wasting food" (22.5%), "consuming Km0/local products" (18.9%), and "consuming fresh and seasonal products" (16.9%). Social/economic dimensions (e.g., fair trade: 2.4%) were rarely selected. No significant deepening of sustainability understanding was observed in advanced vs first-year students.
**Clinical Implications:** This study reveals a critical gap: food science students are concerned about sustainability but do not translate this into dietary practices, which remain driven by pleasure, taste, and health. Academic training did not significantly broaden students' conceptualization of sustainability beyond environmental aspects. Given these students' future roles as dietitians and food technologists, there is an urgent need to integrate holistic, multidimensional sustainability education into food science curricula, including social and economic dimensions. Gender differences suggest that targeted approaches may be needed. The findings support calls for transdisciplinary training and stronger links between academia and sustainability-focused organizations and policy.