Journal of Applied Botany and Food Quality 94, 176 - 181 (2021), DOI:10.5073/JABFQ.2021.094.021 1 Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Nis, Serbia 2 Department of Mechanic, Faculty of Mechanic, University of Nis, Serbia 3 Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Nis, Serbia Impact of COVID pandemic on attitude and prevalence of plant-based food products consumption in Serbia Dragana Pavlovic 1 *, Jelena Matejic 1 , Ivan Pavlovic 2 , Milica Veljkovic 3 (Submitted: June 10, 2021; Accepted: October 25, 2021) * Corresponding author Summary COVID pandemic infuence on eating behavior and dietary habits with respect to various plant-based foods in Serbia were estimated by an anonymous questionnaire. Most examinees agree that fruits and vegetables contribute to strengthening immunity and that herbal medicines and natural products have benefcial effects on health. Around 55% of examinees consider their diet balanced, and 4% have started to drink herbal teas more often when the pandemic started. Garlic and ginger were the most frequently reported newly included plants in examinees’ diet. The attitudes toward plant-based food products are not strongly dependent on the education level. The age and previous dietary habits of examinees have great infuence in the current frequency of consuming fruits, vegetables, herbal teas, spices, and dietary supplements. There was a signifcant shift toward greater use of herbal teas and dietary supplements, especially among the population that has already consumed them occasionally. Somewhat concerning is the fact that around half of respondents use dietary supplements without the recommendation of an expert. People with good dietary habits and the elderly were most prone to improving their diet. Roughly 15% of all respondents now have the same habits as before the pandemic, although they improved their diets temporarily at the beginning of COVID pandemic. Keywords: dietary style, fresh and processed, plant-based products, winter food, self-reported data. Introduction The COVID (SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus) pandemic presents a global issue – a great threat to global public health that affects almost every segment of human life. Apart from the quarantine and self-isolation of many individuals that promoted unhealthy behavior, pandemic has affected dietary habits and eating behavior alongside personal attitudes and food preferences (Ruiz-Roso et al., 2020; sidoR and Rzymski, 2020; ChaaRi et al., 2020). A balanced, optimal diet supports and enhances the immune system function both by providing an effective response against pathogens and by resolving infections in a shorter time, avoiding any further complications (Childs et al., 2019). The intake of plant-based foods may also enhance the diversity of nutrients that reach the gut and support the gut microbiome (Childs et al., 2019). Nutrition and proper diet can promote the functioning of the immune system as a preventive measure by reducing both infammation and oxidative stress, as well ensuring that the body is in the strongest possible state to battle the virus (ChaaRi et al., 2020; aman et al., 2020). World Health Organization (WHO) especially encourages consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables through general nutrition advice for adults during the COVID outbreak: to eat fresh and unprocessed foods, moderate amounts of fat and oil, less salt and sugar, and to drink enough water every day (WHO, 2021). Thus, one of the main solu- tions to promote health should be through healthy eating (shi and yan, 2020). Some people are prone to including herbal teas, spices, and dietary supplements both as a replacement or in addition to their regular diet (hamulka et al., 2020). Traditionally, pickled vegetables have played a signifcant role in the dietary habits of the European population, especially during the winter (Jeločnik et al., 2019). Processed fruits and vegetables are convenient because they are available throughout the year regard- less of the season and could supply consumers’ needs for all nutri- ents since they have a similar concentration of those compounds as fresh equivalents. In some cases, the nutrients from canned food are more readily digestible than those of the fresh equivalents. Also, processed plant-based food can be stored for extended periods of time without the need for refrigeration and presents useful pantry food to stock in case people cannot go grocery shopping for various reasons (FeatheRstone, 2016). The last fact was very important during the quarantine and self-isolation due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In the light of these considerations and the general impressions of dietary changes during the past period, this study aims to highlight the infuence of the COVID-19 pandemic on: i) eating behavior and dietary habits changes with respect to various plant-based foods; ii) frequency of consumption of herbal teas and dietary supplements; iii) quantity of traditionally pickled plant-based food prepared for winter period, and iiii) the general attitude toward diet, plant-based food, natural products, and dietary supplements. Materials and methods A cross-sectional study was performed using an anonymous online questionnaire that contained 16 open-ended and closed-ended ques- tions. In addition to fresh, frozen, and processed fruits and vegetab- les, herbal spices and herbal teas are also considered plant-based food products for the purposes of this research. The questions in the sur- vey were related to the general attitude towards these products, and the frequency of their use before and during the COVID pandemic in the region of Serbia. Most of the questions were multiple-choice, allowing respondents to select a pre-specifed answer. Self-perception on diet and lifestyle changes from the beginning of the pandemic was also recorded, and in the last question, examinees had to specify how much they agree/disagree with some claims. Data collection was carried out through a structured questionnaire in Serbian created in Microsoft Forms (Microsoft 365). The original questionnaire in Serbian, the English translation and the results are available as data set at P avloviC et al. (2021). The questionnaire was modeled based on our previous survey on attitude and prevalence of bee product usage in pediatric pulmonology patients (Živanović et al., 2019). The study was conducted by the ethical principles of the Helsinki declaration. Ethical Committee of the Faculty of Medicine, University of Nis, Serbia, approved the investigation. The invitation to participate in the survey was shared by e-mail, Viber, or by social