Health beliefs, label orientation and consumer behaviour toward red and processed meats: implications for sustainable diets in South Africa

Purpose Growing health concerns are reshaping global dietary patterns, yet little is known about how consumers in sub-Saharan Africa perceive and respond to health information regarding red and processed meat. This study aims to examine how perceived health risk, health consciousness and label orientation influence consumers’ meat consumption behaviour. Design/methodology/approach A structured questionnaire was administered to 400 adult consumers across selected South African cities. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, factor and explorative analysis, correlation, multiple regression and mediation analysis (PROCESS Model 4). Findings Factor analysis identified two health-consciousness dimensions, label and outlet health/quality concern and product safety and welfare concern, explaining 39.2% of variance. Sociodemographic factors were significantly associated with label knowledge and preference for ethical products (p < 0.05). Health consciousness was positively associated with meat reduction (ρ = 0.375, p < 0.001), while perceived health risk correlated negatively with views of red meat (ρ = −0.178, p = 0.002). Regression analysis confirmed that health consciousness (β = 0.294, p < 0.001) and perceived health risk (β = 0.250, p < 0.001) independently predicted reduction in red meat consumption. In bivariate analysis, label orientation was positively associated with reduction intention (β = 0.16, p = 0.006). Mediation analysis further revealed that health consciousness significantly mediated the relationship between label orientation and meat reduction (indirect effect = 0.07, 95% confidence interval [0.03, 0.12]). Originality/value This article demonstrates strong originality by applying the health belief model to examine red and processed meat consumption within a sub-Saharan African context – a perspective rarely explored in existing literature. It uniquely integrates health risk perception, health consciousness and label orientation to explain consumer behaviour, offering fresh empirical insights beyond the predominantly high-income country focus. The findings challenge assumptions of uniform dietary transition patterns by showing that South African consumers tend to reduce rather than substitute meat intake in response to health concerns, thereby advancing understanding of cultural and contextual differences in sustainable diet adoption.