Insects as Feed for Farmed Poultry: Are Italian Consumers Ready to Embrace This Innovation?

Menozzi, Davide; Sogari, Giovanni; Mora, Cristina; Gariglio, Marta; Gasco, Laura; Schiavone, Achille

doi:10.3390/insects12050435

Cited by 27 publications

(27 citation statements)

References 37 publications

(73 reference statements)

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“…Participants' segmentation showed cluster "ready" being the largest. Results are in agreement with a previous Italian study, where the majority of respondents stated that they were ready to accept insects in animal feed [30,37]. Results indicate that the consumption intention of the "ready" cluster toward eggs from insect-fed hens can be supported by the indication of product origin, especially if perceived as local.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Italian Consumers’ Readiness to Adopt Eggs from Insect-Fed Hens

Lippi

Predieri

Chieco

et al. 2021

Animals

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Demand for eggs from laying hens is increasing as the world population continues to grow. The use of insects as animal feed is a strategic opportunity to find a new innovative, economic and sustainable source of protein. The aim of this study was to evaluate the Italian consumer inclination for eggs produced with the use of insect-fed hens. The investigation on consumers’ readiness to adopt eggs from insect-fed hens was carried out through an online survey conducted on 510 participants. Survey results outlined four different clusters on the basis of the willingness to buy/eat eggs fed with insects: “ready” (40.1%), “environmentalist” (24.3%), “cautious” (21.7%), and “reluctant” (13.9%). “Ready”, “environmentalist”, and “cautious” were quite favorable to the use of insects as feed stuffs and share drivers for product choice: cheap, organic, and with an explicit indication of use of insects. On the other hand, for the “reluctant”, the diet based on insects was the main negative factor influencing product acceptance. This cluster also showed the highest level of neophobia. Italian consumers showed a considerable level of readiness to accept insects as feed material for egg production, which should be reinforced with further information on the origin and the environmental benefit of using insects.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Italian Consumers’ Readiness to Adopt Eggs from Insect-Fed Hens

Lippi

Predieri

Chieco

et al. 2021

Animals

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“…Several studies have stressed the importance of providing transparent information to increase consumers' awareness of farming practices in aquaculture (e.g. Altintzoglou et al, 2010;Pieniak et al, 2013) and to increase their acceptance of insects as food (Mancini et al, 2019;Sogari et al, 2019b) and feed (Menozzi et al, 2021;Sogari et al, 2022;Spartano and Grasso, 2021). The reduction of information asymmetries is even more important when psychometric indicators reveal those traits that are more vulnerable or sceptical towards a new product.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Consumer attitude and acceptance toward fish fed with insects: a focus on the new generations

Baldi

Mancuso

Peri

et al. 2022

JIFF

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Since global demand for aquaculture products is expected to increase dramatically in the near future, policymakers and companies are considering the adoption of insect-based feed, which is more economically viable and environmentally sustainable than fish or vegetable-based meals currently used. Nonetheless, fish farmed with insects are still perceived as innovative products by consumers, and further studies exploring these demand-side concerns must be conducted to make sure a market for such products exists. This study focuses on the factors that can favour the acceptance of farmed fish fed with insects of a sample of young Italians. In particular, within the theoretical framework adopted in this analysis, we let acceptance be expressed by different dimensions, each potentially influenced by individual factors, such as socio-economic characteristics, as the provision of information on the nutritional and environmental benefits of insect-based feed for aquaculture, and as consumer psychometric indicators. In this respect, we use the by-dimensional definition of environmental attitude proposed by environmental psychologists, that considers attitude toward environmental protection and toward nature. In this survey, we reached 482 consumers, aged less than 40, using social networks. A Factor Analysis was performed to identify the different dimensions of the acceptance process. We then applied the Rasch model on consumers’ reported behaviours toward environmental protection or nature to retrieve their environmental attitudes. We performed a Seemingly Unrelated Regression to assess the importance of socio-demographic, information, and psychometric variables on the different dimensions of acceptance. Results indicate that the use of psychometric variables to study the acceptability of an innovative food product seems particularly appropriate. In addition to the role of environmental attitude, acceptance is also explained by some socio-demographic variables, with men and younger consumers being more inclined to accept the product. Acceptance is also higher among informed respondents, confirming the importance of reducing information asymmetries.

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“…From the literature, it seems that consumers will have higher acceptance of using insects as feed for farmed animals than as food for human consumption [32]. In fact, in a recent study, Menozzi et al [50] found that there is a potential consumer interest in considering insects as a protein substitute in the poultry sector.…”

Section: Consumer Acceptance Of Insects As Foodmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring the Future of Edible Insects in Europe

Mancini

Sogari

Diaz

et al. 2022

Foods

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The effects of population increase and food production on the environment have prompted various international organizations to focus on the future potential for more environmentally friendly and alternative protein products. One of those alternatives might be edible insects. Entomophagy, the practice of eating insects by humans, is common in some places but has traditionally been shunned in others, such as European countries. The last decade has seen a growing interest from the public and private sectors to the research in the sphere of edible insects, as well as significant steps forward from the legislative perspective. In the EU, edible insects are considered novel foods, therefore a specific request and procedure must be followed to place them in the market; in fact, until now, four requests regarding insects as a novel food have been approved. Insects could also be used as feed for livestock, helping to increase food production without burdening the environment (indirect entomophagy). Market perspectives for the middle of this decade indicate that most of the demand will be from the feed sector (as pet food or livestock feed production). Undoubtedly, this sector is gaining momentum and its potential relies not only in food, but also in feed in the context of a circular economy.

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Insects as Feed for Farmed Poultry: Are Italian Consumers Ready to Embrace This Innovation?

Cited by 27 publications

References 37 publications

Italian Consumers’ Readiness to Adopt Eggs from Insect-Fed Hens

Italian Consumers’ Readiness to Adopt Eggs from Insect-Fed Hens

Consumer attitude and acceptance toward fish fed with insects: a focus on the new generations

Exploring the Future of Edible Insects in Europe

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