Heuristics and consumer choice of plant-based substitutes for animal meat and milk

This study examines how consumers make food choices under information overload, focusing on the role of simple decision rules in shaping demand for plant-based substitutes for animal meat and milk. Using an experimental survey of 500 consumers in China, two time-pressured choice scenarios involving substitutes for animal meat and milk products are implemented. Respondents were required to select between conventional animal-based products and their plant-based substitutes and to report the heuristic strategy relied upon when making the decision. Strategies are classified into five categories, including popularity cues, familiarity cues, social consultation, criteria-based rules and satisficing. The results show that consumers rely heavily on heuristics when facing complex choice environments, but the effects of these strategies differ across product contexts. In the meat substitutes scenario, criteria-based and satisficing strategies are strongly associated with a higher likelihood of choosing plant-based meat, relative to reliance on popularity cues. In contrast, heuristic type has weaker and less consistent effects in the milk scenario, suggesting that social and contextual factors dominate individual decision rules in this setting. Across both scenarios, higher decision confidence is a robust predictor of plant-based choice and is itself associated with familiarity, social, and satisficing strategies. These findings indicate that uptake of plant-based substitutes for animal meat and milk depends less on stable preferences and more on how consumers simplify complex information. Policies and market strategies that reduce cognitive burden, including simplified labels, visible plant-based options, and clear product comparisons, may be more effective in supporting shifts towards sustainable diets.