Consumers perception and acceptance of innovative food and production systems

Modifying dietary habits is needed to tackle health and sustainability issues, and to help provide sufficient, nutritious, safe, accessible, and affordable food to a growing population. The agrifood system is called to produce healthy food with sustainable technologies. Innovative foods (e.g. biofortified foods, etc.) and production systems (e.g. hydroponic systems, etc.) are challenging consumers’ trust, acceptance, being exposed to neophobia or rejection of new foods and technologies. Consumers' awareness and information, social norms, and other psychological constructs (e.g. self and social identity, trust in institutions, etc.) are expected to moderate consumers’ perception and acceptance of new healthy and sustainable foods and production systems. In this context, the analysis of consumers’ behavior and its drivers helps to assess the effectiveness of communication strategies, including front-of-pack (FOP) labels, to guide consumers’ choices towards more sustainable and healthy options.

Given this context, UNIPR, UNIB, UNINA, UNICT and UNIPI will conduct studies investigating consumers’ perception, acceptance, and willingness to purchase novel food products (e.g. biofortified products, like potatoes with selenium or oranges with iodine – UNICT), food products with innovative labeling systems (e.g. dual labeling systems with nutrition and environmental indications – UNIPR), or food produced with new techniques (e.g. vegetables grown with hydroponic systems and "fermented" vegetables through the use of biotechnology – UNIBA). The data will be collected with questionnaires and surveys (UNIPR, UNIBA), with the application of theoretical frames (Theory of planned behavior – UNINA) or experiments (conjoint, eye tracking, etc.) (UNICT, UNIPR), preceded by the analysis of the literature (UNIPR, UNIBA). UNIBA-UNIPR will analyze legislative policies and legal tools aimed at improving the consumer education to safe and healthy diet.

The task will provide insights to develop systems, strategies and tools to communicate innovative attributes, e.g. nutritional value and sustainable performance of food products. The effectiveness of labeling systems will be assessed. UNINA will evaluate how labels can communicate and help new and old consumers to make more conscious and eco-friendly choices. UNIPR will investigate the impact of a dual system (e.g. nutria-, eco-label), and their combination on perceived healthfulness and sustainability. UNIBA will propose strategies to communicate the value of innovative food for safe, healthy and environment preservation, and will develop guidelines on responsible and sustainable product purchasing. UNICT will verify the acceptance and preferences towards biofortified food (e.g. selenium potatoes, iodine citrus fruits, etc.) to identify preferences and informed food choices across segments. Industries and businesses could gain insights on how to develop FOP labels and/or reformulate their products.