Consumer Assessment of Sustainability Traits in Meat Production. A Choice Experiment Study in Spain

Abstract

Consumers are increasingly concerned about the way their food is produced. This is particularly relevant in the case of meat, due to the impacts that its production methods can have on greenhouse gas emissions and its role in climate change. In relation to this issue, the purpose of our research is to obtain more information on the consumer decision-making process for beef, in order to determine the relative importance of sustainability claims and traditional attributes, and identify consumer profiles with similar perceptions and intentions. A choice experiment was used to assess the influence of these attributes on consumers’ purchasing decisions. The results reveal that the best purchase choice for the consumer would be organic beef, produced in Spain, with an animal welfare label and eco-labelled. Later on, a cluster analysis was carried out using consumer beliefs and attitudes towards meat consumption as inputs, together with purchasing behaviour variables. A solution was obtained with three well-defined consumer segments showing different preference patterns: Cluster 1 (Male millennials indifferent towards environment or sustainability), Cluster 2 (Sustainability-concerned mature women) and Cluster 3 (Middle-aged meat eaters with established families). The results of this study are relevant to develop more appropriate strategies that may be adapted to the behaviour and expectations of eco-friendly food consumers.

The role of intrinsic and extrinsic characteristics of honey for Italian millennial consumers

“…Concern for the environment is growing among young people, and environmental awareness has been pinpointed as the most important feature identifying the millennial generation (Eldesouky et al, 2020;Thach and Olsen, 2006). In this direction, another study has underlined the function of the wording on labels, highlighting the importance given to terms such as: eco-friendly, recycled and "green"; all these terms seem to positively influence the perception of millennials, increasing the reputation of the producer (Annunziata et al, 2019;Smith, 2010).…”

How to Improve Food Quality in the Domestic Market: The Role of “Same Line Same Standard Same Quality”—Evidence from a Consumer Choice Experiment in China

“…This result is in consonance with those found by other researchers [15,38,42,71,72], who reported that consumers show greater preferences for organic food products than for conventional ones. The standards of organic production are widely known to consumers [73], and Chen et al found that Chinese consumers are willing to pay for tomatoes carrying organic labels from different countries/regions [43]. We also examined the interaction effects between the Santong claim and organic certification and found substitution effects between them.…”

sistemas agroalimentarios sostenibles, innovadores e inclusivos para una sociedad en transformación

“…Esto da una idea de lo complejo que resulta definir la sostenibilidad, y por añadidura, que lo entiendan los ciudadanos. El consumo de alimentos es una de las áreas que más influye en la sostenibilidad ambiental, aunque muchos consumidores no son completamente conscientes de la asociación entre su consumo y el impacto ambiental de la producción de alimentos (Eldesouky et al 2020). Por ello, los cambios hacia pautas de consumo más sostenibles, junto con las innovaciones tecnológicas, deberían formar parte de la solución del problema de la sostenibilidad.…”

“…Sonoda et al, (2018) encuentran que casi el 90% de los consumidores estaban interesados y dispuestos a pagar por carne de ternera con etiqueta de bienestar animal o ecológico. Más recientemente Eldesouky et al, (2020) determinan que la mejor opción de compra para el consumidor sería la carne de vacuno ecológica, producida en España, con etiqueta de bienestar animal y ecológica. Sin embargo, y hasta donde llega el conocimiento de estos autores, no se ha investigado el interés de los consumidores por carne procedente de ganado trashumante ni los aspectos de garantía que podría proporcionar un certificado que acreditase esta procedencia.…”

“…Although there are new dimensions (such as health, ethics) added to the sustainability concept, the three dimensions within the classical sustainability approach are: environmental (prevention of environmental degradation) economic (economic growth) and social (need of growth in order to eradicate poverty). Food consumption is one of the areas that has the greatest impact on environmental sustainability, although many consumers are not fully aware of the association existing between their food consumption and the environmental impact of food production (Eldesouky et al, 2020). On the other hand, the growing social concern for the environmental impact caused by the need to produce food in order to meet the world's demand has made consumers become increasingly interested in the way their food is produced and the production methods employed (Briggeman & Lusk, 2011).…”