Against the backdrop of the coronavirus pandemic, the popularity of non-cash payments has grown throughout the world, but the trend is fraught with danger: with the growth in the use of non-cash payments, spending on junk food has also increased. This connection was established by scientists from the University of Chicago, reports EurekAlert !.
Scientists have explained that most people experience negative feelings about the loss of savings, when it happens graphically. On the other hand, when a person pays with a card or makes an online payment, it is more difficult for him to imagine how the amount of money decreases.
In other words, the lower level of excitement caused by cashless payments can distract consumers from the risks of their decisions. This applies, in particular, to unhealthy food, which in the long term can be harmful to health.
In early January, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) announced that global prices for basic food products and raw materials in 2020 have broken a record for the past three years.
It is noteworthy that FAO began to associate the rise in food prices exclusively with the pandemic, which mainly led to some disruptions and delays in supplies. According to experts, price dynamics depends on the ratio of supply and demand.