Funded under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP), Mission 4 Component 2 Investment 1.3, Theme 10.
Funded under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP), Mission 4 Component 2 Investment 1.3, Theme 10.
Highlights
Spoke 01
The Work Package approached food behaviour as a context-dependent process shaped by economic, social and institutional conditions. Sustainability of dietary habits was analysed in relation to the broader food environment, recognising that access to sustainable diets depends not only on individual preferences or information availability, but also on income, market structures and policy frameworks.
Research activities adopted a user-centred approach based on direct stakeholder engagement. Participatory methodologies, including citizen juries, hybrid forums and living labs, were used to collect empirical data and facilitate collective discussion on the conditions enabling or limiting the adoption of sustainable diets. These processes supported the identification and systematisation of key determinants influencing consumer behaviour across different stages of food-related decision-making.
A first research line focused on economic and structural determinants of food choices. Analyses examined how purchasing power, price dynamics and policy instruments influence dietary patterns, highlighting the role of incentives and regulatory tools in supporting access to healthier and more sustainable food options. Evidence confirmed that socioeconomic constraints significantly affect food choices, with lower-income groups more likely to rely on energy-dense and low-cost foods.
A second axis addressed the interaction between innovation and consumer behaviour. The Work Package mapped product, process and technological innovations related to sustainable foods, analysing how these developments interact with consumer perceptions, acceptance and regulatory frameworks. Particular attention was devoted to novel food technologies and their role within sustainable food systems.
From a methodological perspective, WP 1.3 contributed to defining analytical frameworks and participatory approaches for understanding and influencing dietary behaviour. These outputs provide tools for public decision-makers and private stakeholders to design more effective strategies supporting the transition towards sustainable eating patterns.
WP 1.3 framed the adoption of sustainable diets as a governance challenge, requiring coordinated action across public policies, market actors and social practices to address environmental, economic and social dimensions of food systems.
Applying stakeholder engagement methods (e.g., citizen juries, hybrid forums) to explore new models for improving consumer rights, gender equality and young people employment in food businesses.
Subsidising quality food consumption (e.g., geographical indication, organic): analysis of alternative forms of public intervention to support consumers’ healthy and sustainable choices, with specific focus on fragile population groups (e.g., elderly, low income).
Consumers perception on food innovation: analysis of consumers social and cultural acceptance of new foods (including novel food and reformulated foods), new technologies, combined with innovative distribution channels, new packaging for multiple sustainable objectives, and efficient communication systems (in connection with Spoke 4).
Sustainable decision-making definition of a Decision Support System by means of multi-criteria toolset to design fair governance decisions.
List of determinants influencing consumers' choices when buying, preparing, and consuming food within their food environment (M24)
List of determinants influencing the purchasing power of consumers and the ability of public authorities to support the consumption of quality food and healthy dietary models through incentive mechanisms (M24)
List of innovations (process, product, technological and communication) related to sustainable foods that impact on consumer choices and list of the legislative interventions involved in their management and regulation (M24)
List of determinants and methodologies that enter the decision-making process and are used in SSD systems to support public and private stakeholder decisions (M24).
