The impact of fat content,production methods and carbon footprint information on consumer preferences for minced meat

Growing concern over the environmental impacts and other credence characteristics of food has resulted in increasing interest in the quality attributes of meat products in Finland. The aim of this study was to provide information on the relative preferences of consumers for minced meat attributes. Using a choice experiment, we examined whether the meat type, method of production, fat content, price and presence of carbon footprint information have an impact on consumer choice. A low fat content was found to have a particularly positive effect on the choice of a minced meat product. The carbon footprint information had a significant impact on the meat type-specific consumer preferences: the popularity of beef products decreased and of pork products increased when the footprint information was presented to the consumers. Six heterogeneous consumer classes were identified with latent class analysis: price-conscious (23% of the respondents), fat content-conscious (23%), ideological but passive (17%), content with conventional (14%), beef-preferring (12%) and method of production -conscious consumers (11%). Consumers were generally willing to pay more for a low fat content, but the relative willingness to pay estimates were largely dependent on the consumer groups: premiums for organic and animal welfare-oriented production methods also existed. These attributes could thus represent good means for differentiating minced meat products. The impact of carbon footprint information on the willingness to pay estimates was relatively low.     

Different shades of grey: Compromise products to encourage animal friendly consumption

Contemporary production and consumption are often characterised by negative externalities, for example regarding animal welfare. Despite consumer concerns about animal welfare standards in livestock production systems, the market share of organic meat is still low. The current paper investigates to what extent a more differentiated product assortment including “compromise alternatives”, providing consumers with more options to trade-off animal welfare against other attributes, increases the choice share of meat produced at beyond-regulatory standards for animal welfare. Results from a choice experiment in The Netherlands reveal considerable heterogeneity in consumer preferences regarding the trade-off between animal welfare level and price level. Two out of six segments, typically consumers with a lower education level and shoppers at discount supermarkets, are not or hardly prepared to pay a price premium for welfare enhanced meat. Two other segments show a preference for small increases in animal welfare level and associated costs. The remaining two other segments seem to reflect “protestors” against mainstream meat production in that they hold negative attitudes, beliefs and feelings regarding the consumption of conventionally-produced meat, either by turning to meat produced at high animal welfare standards (including meat replacement products) or by reducing meat consumption. It is concluded that an assortment that better caters for this heterogeneity in consumer preference by including “compromise meat products” is of the benefit to both the individual consumer (preferences), the animal (animal welfare levels) and the meat sector (clientele).     

Understanding meat consumption in later life: A segmentation of older consumers in the EU

Protein intake is important for the maintenance of health, independence, and quality of life especially for older adults, yet the expanding older population is at risk of not consuming adequate levels. Notwithstanding its importance in terms of health, dietary protein choice has major ramifications for the state of the environment and for climate change, with meat holding the most weight in the environmental impact of diets. To support older consumers in making environmentally sustainable dietary protein choices, this study aims to gain deeper understanding of older consumers’ meat consumption behavior by profiling older consumer segments on the basis of their meat consumption and liking. Results were obtained through a 2019-survey among 2,500 community-dwelling older adults aged 65 years or above in Finland, Poland, Spain, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. Three segments of older consumers were identified by means of a two-step cluster analysis: heavy meat consumers, medium meat consumers, and light meat consumers. The segments differed significantly in several socio-demographics and background characteristics, appetite, protein intake, attitudes towards meat and plant-based ‘meat’ substitutes, and liking of protein sources other than meat. Health and sustainability food choice motives were important determinants for being classified as a medium or light meat consumer compared to a heavy meat consumer whereas food fussiness, sensory appeal, and familiarity were important determinants for being classified as a heavy meat consumer compared to a light meat consumer. Understanding older consumers’ meat consumption behavior has important implications for designing dietary strategies to meet older consumers’ protein needs in an environmentally sustainable way.     

How does animal welfare taste? Combining sensory and choice experiments to evaluate willingness to pay for animal welfare pork

Although consumers show considerable interest in higher animal welfare, the market share for such products remains low. To provide consumers with a choice regarding different levels of animal welfare, animal welfare labels have been developed. Such product options are intended to serve as intermediate products between conventional products and more expensive organic options that are often associated with high animal welfare standards. This study aims to evaluate whether information about animal welfare practices affects consumers’ liking and willingness to pay (WTP) for a pork product. Using a within-subject design with three evaluation rounds (blind, expectation, and full information) we combine hedonic liking where subjects rate four different types of ham with a choice experiment. Hams differ in the animal husbandry conditions during the rearing and fattening process: conventional rearing, a specific treatment of mother sows, a general animal welfare label, and organic production. Results show an effect of information on consumers’ sensory evaluation of the different products, although products were evaluated to be similar in the blind condition. Consumers rated the organic product higher than those with animal welfare labels while the conventional option had the lowest liking scores. Results from the choice experiment concur with the hedonic rating. Estimates indicate that consumers are willing to pay more for ham bearing a general animal welfare or organic label in the expectation and full information condition. Consequently, information regarding animal welfare affects both consumers’ hedonic liking and WTP for ham.     

Consumer understanding of sustainability concept in agricultural products

The term “sustainability” is based on three main pillars: environment, society and economy. To achieve sustainable development, agriculture is one of the main fields to be considered and it is key to address economic, environmental and ethical problems. Besides, consumers are increasingly demanding foods produced under sustainable practices and aiming to get involved in the process of enhancing food sustainability. Under such premises, a study was carried out with more than 3600 consumers in 6 countries (Brazil, China, India, Mexico, Spain and USA). Participants were asked questions organized in two main topics: general sustainability and willingness to pay on different food categories. In general, results showed that consumers thought that a sustainable product is “environmentally friendly”, “healthier”, has been grown using “few chemicals” and “have better quality”. More than 30% of consumers in the US and Spain were not willing to pay more for sustainable products. This percentage decreased to 20% in China, Mexico and Brazil and reached the lowest value in India (~14%). The main conclusion is that consumers are not fully aware of the importance of sustainability; in general, consumers tend to associate sustainable production with just organic farming and higher quality.     

Role of sustainability attributes and occasion matters in determining consumers’ beef choice

This study aims to evaluate the influence of socio-environmental attributes on the purchase intention of and the willingness to pay for beef, based on data from Brazilian consumers, using a discrete choice analysis model. Different consumption situations were analysed to check the influence of functional versus recreational/hedonic beef choice. Sixteen (16) hypothetical products were generated in eight (8) scenarios regarding the different socio-environmental attributes of beef. The findings confirm the importance of animal welfare and traceability in the decision-making process for beef purchase. The frequency of consumption, gender, and the presence of a known/familiar brand also influence the beef choice when making a functional (day-to-day) purchase, compared to a recreational/hedonic (barbecue) purchase. The study suggests that the beef industry and retailers should better explore various aspects of greenhouse gas emissions and animal welfare and highlight them in their communication strategies. Investigating the trade-offs between socio-environmental attributes allows a more in-depth evaluation of these attributes and contributes to the literature.     

Consumer willingness to pay for quality attributes of fresh seafood: A labeled latent class model

We applied a labeled choice experiment (LCE) to investigate consumer demand and choice behavior for fresh seafood in a retail market. The LCE was conducted for a large number of seafood alternatives (i.e., seafood species) labeled by the respective seafood name (e.g., cod, salmon, mussels). Consumer heterogeneity in preference was expressed by estimating a labeled latent class model with alternative-specific effects, which varies choice probability and model parameters over seafood alternatives and across classes. The willingness to pay (WTP) for extrinsic attributes (e.g., product form, production method, and country of origin), and the rank ordered-intrinsic value were estimated for each seafood alternative within classes and the entire market. The WTP estimate in our study is expected to be more accurate than those derived from studies based on single product alternatives because the LCE allows respondents to evaluate choice alternatives through both attribute judgment and alternative comparison. Exploring a variety of product alternatives is also meaningful to firms with multiple products (e.g., fresh seafood retailers) or firms with many direct competitors.     

Importance of additional information,as a complement to information coming from packaging,to promote meat substitutes: A case study on a sausage based on vegetable proteins

Scientific literature has shown that a partial replacement of meat-based foods with plant-based foods would be beneficial for public health and the environment. However, both lack of sensory attractiveness and lack of consumer awareness regarding benefits of rebalancing diets in favor of plant protein partially explain the low market shares for meat alternatives. In the context of a possible substitution of a meat product (pork-based sausage) by a visually very close counterpart based on vegetable proteins, the objective of this work was to study the possibility of changing consumer preferences towards the plant-based product by gradually providing information concerning the health or environmental consequences of producing and consuming both types of products. We studied consumers’ preferences after a blind tasting, after a tasting in the presence of the packaging, and after the dissemination of two stages of information. The assessment of consumer preferences was carried out using purchase preferences (PP) and willingness to pay (WTP). After the blind tasting, PP were clearly oriented towards the meat product. After the tasting with packaging information, the gap between the two products narrowed, but PP were still turned towards the meat product. The dissemination of a first informative message about either health or the environment was not enough to modify consumers' WTP. Adding a second message concerning health led to an equivalence of the two products studied in terms of WTP and PP. The combination of the two environmentally informative messages also made it possible to obtain an equivalence of the WTP for both products, but the PP were still turned towards the pork product. This suggests that the impact of additional information depends on the information disseminated. Overall, these results militate in favor of the dissemination of information presenting the consequences of the consumption of meat-based or vegetable protein-based products.     

生鲜农产品营养标签认知及消费意愿调查

目的 探讨消费者对生鲜农产品营养标签的认知和消费意愿,为推动生鲜农产品营养标签发展提供参考。方法 通过线上调查收集682份有效问卷,运用描述性统计和logistic回归分析消费者对生鲜农产品营养标签的认知、消费意愿及其影响因素。结果 电商平台是生鲜农产品销售的重要渠道,预包装和精美包装生鲜农产品需求正逐渐增长,超过75%的消费者购买食品时经常查看营养标签。88.9%的消费者期望生鲜农产品标识营养标签,并关注营养功能声称、糖含量、维生素和矿物质、植物化学物等内容,消费者偏好营养成分的定量标注方式和营养成分表的标示形式。不同身份和月收入的消费者对生鲜农产品营养标签消费意愿及溢价支付意愿存在显著差异（P<0.05）。整体上,有88.56%和91.94%的消费者对生鲜农产品营养标签具有不同程度的消费意愿和溢价支付意愿。结论 消费者对生鲜农产品营养信息有较强了解需求,期望生鲜农产品标示营养标签并愿意支付溢价,对推动生鲜农产品营养标签发展具有现实意义和市场潜力。     

Consumer preferences for the use of an innovative digital menu solution in public food service settings in four European countries

Consumer preferences for the use of an innovative menu solution in public canteen services in the UK, Greece, France, and Denmark were investigated. Participants from both control and test groups were first introduced to the FoodSMART app through a video clip as well as verbal explanations. The control group filled a questionnaire evaluating their preferences for the use of a technical menu solution in public food services straight away, whereas the test group had the opportunity to experience the app adapted to a daily canteen menu in real-time before completing the questionnaire. The data collected was examined in both country-specific and collected manners. Participants in all four countries valued the canteen food quality the most, especially food hygiene, sustainability, safety, and freshness. Their preferences for other features such as app functions, information provision, and ethical issues varied in different countries. The knowledge gained from this study provides valuable lessons for the future design of a food-quality-focused digital menu solution in canteen services adapted to the specific country and population context to promote informed consumer food choices.     

The wine headache: Consumer perceptions of sulfites and willingness to pay for non-sulfited wines

A panel of 223 alcohol consumers recruited in a liquor store participated in a survey/best–worst experiment investigating perceptions on sulfites and willingness to pay for non-sulfited wines. We find that 34% of our sample experiences headaches after consuming moderate amounts of wine, and sulfites are the most frequently attributed cause. Based on a rank ordered logit estimation of best–worst choices, headache syndrome sufferers are willing to pay a ceteris paribus premium of $1.23 per bottle to avoid added sulfites. However, results from a (logit) model of purchase intentions suggest that quality and price are most important, with differentiating labels (no sulfite added, organic) playing only a marginal role. Marketing implications for the wine industry are offered, and negative perceptions toward sulfites are contextualized within the hypothesis of a “lightning rod” effect induced by the “contains sulfites” warning label.     

Consumer willingness to pay for shelf life of high-temperature,short-time-pasteurized fluid milk: Implications for smart labeling and food waste reduction

Food waste in the United States was valued at $285 billion in 2019, representing 70% of all food surplus; dairy and eggs alone represented 15.90% of food surplus. Milk is the fifth most consumed beverage in the United States, and therefore its contribution to food waste has significant economic and environmental ramifications. Smart labels that provide precise spoilage information for fluid milk may help reduce food waste in fluid milk, but it is unclear if consumers will accept or pay for this novel technology. This paper examines consumer preferences for high temperature, short time pasteurized fluid milk shelf life and smart date labels and tests how information about the environmental impact of fluid milk food waste affects consumers' acceptance and willingness to pay. We used a choice-based conjoint study administered in an online survey, along with a between-subject experiment to measure preferences under different information treatments about the environmental impact of food waste. Our results suggest that consumers' valuations of extended shelf life and an ecolabel is positive; however, using the smart label creates disutility for consumers, thereby hindering acceptance of new labeling technology that may facilitate food waste reduction in the milk industry. These findings imply that retailers should find alternative means to enhance the communication of precise shelf life information and its role in reducing food waste.     

The role of beliefs in purchasing process of functional foods

This study utilizes food values in conjunction with willingness to pay (WTP) measures to identify consumers’ subjective beliefs about functional foods. We conducted a non-hypothetical, second price experimental auction (i.e., a Vickrey auction) to estimate WTP for a new functional snack made with white lupine and citrus fiber. A sample of 156 consumers was surveyed in Catania, Sicily (Italy) in July 2015. The findings of the economic experiment reveal a WTP premium for the new functional snack, a premium which depends on functional components but also on other characteristics that go beyond intrinsic healthy properties. Consumers’ WTP for functional foods significantly varies with food values related to origin, safety, naturalness, price, etc., which implies consumers have different subjective beliefs about functional and non-functional foods. These findings have implications for the food sector attempting to design and promote consumption of functional foods, and suggest health is not the only factor motivating functional food purchases.     

Comparison of two different strategies for investigating individual differences among consumers in choice experiments. A case study based on preferences for iced coffee in Norway

Two different strategies for investigating individual differences among consumers in choice experiments using the Mixed Logit Model are compared. The study is based on a consumer study of iced coffees in Norway. Consumers (n = 102) performed a choice task of twenty different iced coffee profiles varying in coffee type, production origin, calorie content and price following an orthogonal design. Consumer attributes, such as socio-demographics, attitudes and habits, were also collected. Choice data were first analyzed using the Mixed Logit Model and then two different approaches were adopted for investigating consumer attributes. The first strategy, called one-step strategy, includes the consumer attributes directly in the Mixed Logit Model. The second strategy, called multi-step strategy, combines different methods of analysis such as Mixed Logit Model based on the design factors only, followed by Principal Component Analysis and Partial Least Squares regression to study consumer attributes. The two approaches are compared in terms of data analysis methodologies, outcomes, practical issues, user friendliness, and interpretation. Overall, we think the multi-step strategy is the one to be preferred in most practical applications because of its flexibility and stronger exploratory capabilities.     

Consumer attitude towards sodium reduction in meat products and acceptability of fermented sausages with reduced sodium content

Lowering salt content in meat products is possible from a technological and sensorial point of view, although little information is available about the consumers' attitude and acceptance of these products. Attitude towards low salt meat products, following the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) proposed by Ajzen, was evaluated by 392 consumers. Acceptability of small calibre fermented sausages with 50% molar substitution of NaCl by six different mixtures of KCl (0-50%) and K-lactate (0-50%) and the control (22g NaCl/kg) was determined by 98 consumers. The preference of the previous best two treatments was compared to the batch control by 279 consumers. In general consumers had a positive attitude towards low salt meat products, being higher for women than for men. Women showed stronger ideas and higher Perceived Control on the Behaviour towards reduced sodium meat products than men. Smokers showed lower intense beliefs than non-smokers. Consumers with a basic level of education were more affected by what other people important for them thought they should do. The final model obtained using the Theory of Planned Behaviour showed a good predictive capacity (R(2)=0.60) and a good internal consistency. Regarding the acceptability study, batches with substitution levels of 50% and 40% by K-lactate, showed lower overall acceptance than the control batch. Significant differences in acceptability were found regarding the gender and place of residence of the consumers. The preference study showed no differences between the batch control and batches with 50% KCl and 40% KCl + 10% of K-lactate substitution levels. According to these results and from a sensorial point of view, it is possible to reduce NaCl content in small calibre fermented sausages by 50% and obtain a product acceptable for consumers.     

Regional variation in the hedonic evaluation of lamb meat from diverse production systems by consumers in six European countries

This paper describes the responses of consumers in six European countries (Greece, Italy, Spain, France, Iceland and United Kingdom) tasting meat from twelve different local types of lambs produced in those same six countries. Animals represented 10 breeds and crossbreeds, three sexes, several diets composed of either milk, concentrates and various forages as main ingredients and different slaughter ages, from 1 and 12 months, and carcass weights, from 5.5 to 30.4 kg. Tests were conducted by 36 volunteer families in each of the six countries involved in the study. Families were asked to roast the joints using their own cooking criteria, evaluating (from “dislike extremely” to “like extremely”) flavour, tenderness, juiciness and overall liking. Also the cook was asked to rate the odour during cooking. Country and lamb type and their interaction were statistically significant for all the variables analysed. Results suggest a link between the assessments of a given lamb type and the consumers’ culinary background, showing clear associations between country and lamb type preferences. It was possible to separate, independently of the country, different groups of families with similar preferences. Five family groups, which included 88 families (40.74%), had a clear Mediterranean origin and preferred types of lamb fed either milk or mainly concentrate diets. Seven family groups, which included 93 families (43.06%) with a clear northern origin, preferred types reared on grass or with grass included in the diet. The rest of the groups (four) that included 35 families (16.20%) had no clear composition (northern or Mediterranean), and they had a wider taste preference. It can clearly be seen that there are two categories of consumers of lamb in the analysed European market: those who prefer “milk or concentrate taste” and those who prefer “grass taste”.     

Preferences of European dairy stakeholders in breeding for resilient and efficient cattle: A best-worst scaling approach

Including resilience in the breeding objective of dairy cattle is gaining increasing attention, primarily as anticipated challenges to production systems, such as climate change, may make some perturbations more difficult to moderate at the farm level. Consequently, the underlying biological mechanisms by which resilience is achieved are likely to become an important part of the system itself, increasing value on the animal's ability to be unperturbed by variable production circumstances, or to quickly return to pre-perturbed levels of productivity and health. However, because the value of improving genetic traits to a system is usually based on known profit functions or bioeconomic models linked to current production conditions, it can be difficult to define longer-term value, especially under uncertain future production circumstances and where nonmonetary values may be progressively more important. We present the novel application of a discrete choice experiment, used to investigate potential antagonisms in the values of genetic improvements for 8 traits to dairy cattle system stakeholders in Europe when the production goal was either efficiency or resilience. A latent class model was used to identify heterogeneous preferences within each production goal, and postestimation was used to identify associations between these preferences and sociodemographic characteristics of respondents. Results suggested 3 distinct latent preference classes for each production goal. For the efficiency goal, yield and feed efficiency traits were generally highly valued, whereas for the resilience goal, health and robustness traits were generally highly valued. In both cases, these traits generally carried a low value in the other production scenario. Overall, in both scenarios, longevity was highly valued; however, the value of this trait in terms of resilience will depend on phenotyping across diverse environments to sufficiently capture performance under various anticipated system challenges. Additionally, results showed significant associations between membership of latent preference classes with education level and profession. In conclusion, as resilience becomes increasingly important, it is likely that a continued reliance on the short-term economic value of traits alone will lead decision makers to misrepresent the importance of some traits, including those with substantial contextual values in terms of resilience.