Attitudes of Young Tri-City Residents toward Game Meat in the Context of Food Neophobia and a Tendency to Look for Diversity in Food

Game meat consumption in Poland is very low (~0.08 kg/person/year), leading to environmental pollution from exported surplus. Questionnaires were administered via the PAPI method and analyzed using chi-square tests of independence, with sociodemographic factors (gender, age, education, financial situation, diet, and prior game meat consumption) as differentiating variables. Reliability was confirmed via Cronbach's alpha (required >0.60). The majority of respondents (76.6%) showed ambivalent attitudes toward game meat, 16.34% had positive attitudes, and 7.06% had negative attitudes. Regarding food neophobia, 51.43% showed medium neophobia and 43.05% showed low neophobia. Over half of respondents (55.85%) were highly inclined to seek variety in food. The authors conclude that respondents demonstrate sufficient neophilia and variety-seeking to be receptive to game meat, and that low consumption is primarily attributable to insufficient knowledge and awareness rather than aversion. Limitations include the convenience sample of young urban residents, reliance on self-reported attitudes rather than actual purchasing or consumption behavior, and the cross-sectional design. The authors suggest that educational campaigns about the nutritional value of game meat and the ecological necessity of hunting could shift ambivalent attitudes toward positive ones.