Older Consumers’ Readiness to Accept Alternative, More Sustainable Protein Sources in the European Union

Abstract

Protein-energy malnutrition (PEM) is a growing concern on account of an aging population and its negative health consequences. While dietary protein plays a key role in the prevention of PEM, it also plays a pivotal role in the environmental impact of the human diet. In search for sustainable dietary strategies to increase protein intake in older adults, this study investigated the readiness of older adults to accept the consumption of the following alternative, more sustainable protein sources: plant-based protein, insects, single-cell protein, and in vitro meat. Using ordinal logistic regression modeling, the associations of different food-related attitudes and behavior and sociodemographics with older adults’ acceptance to consume such protein sources were assessed. Results were obtained through a consumer survey among 1825 community-dwelling older adults aged 65 years or above in five EU countries (United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, and Finland). Dairy-based protein was generally the most accepted protein source in food products (75% of the respondents found its consumption acceptable or very acceptable). Plant-based protein was the most accepted alternative, more sustainable protein source (58%) followed by single-cell protein (20%), insect-based protein (9%), and in vitro meat-based protein (6%). We found that food fussiness is a barrier to acceptance, whereas green eating behavior and higher educational attainment are facilitators to older adults’ acceptance to eat protein from alternative, more sustainable sources. Health, sensory appeal, and price as food choice motives, as well as gender and country of residence were found to influence acceptance, although not consistently across all the protein sources. Findings suggest that there is a window of opportunity to increase older adults’ acceptance of alternative, more sustainable protein sources and in turn increase protein intake in an environmentally sustainable way in EU older adults.

Consumer Acceptance of Cultured Meat: An Updated Review (2018–2020)

“…Grasso, Hung, Olthof, Verbeke and Brouwer (2019) [27] Survey 1825 community-dwelling older adults (65+) in the UK, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, and Finland…”

“…Entomophagy, the practice of eating insects, has become a part of the alternative protein conversation for some-however, the evidence broadly suggests that this is less appealing to consumers than cultured meat [22,23,26]. This preference was observed in most studies which made the comparison (with the exception of Grasso et al [27]) and some authors report that consumers preferred cultured meat over eating insects even though they rated it as less natural and less healthy [23,26].…”

“…There are also several comparisons of cultured meat to plant-based meat. These generally find that plant-based meat is acceptable to more consumers at this time [22,26,27]. This may be because plant-based meat is more familiar to consumers [21]-indeed, as it is already available, some will have already eaten it.…”

Feasibility and acceptability of a milk and resistance exercise intervention to improve muscle function in community-dwelling older adults (MIlkMAN): Pilot study

“…leucine) and less is known about the role of whole foods rich in protein, such as milk and milk products, in sarcopenia [9,10]. Incorporating foods dense in nutrients beneficial for ageing muscle [11] within a balanced diet may inform the development of strategies to mitigate sarcopenia that are acceptable to older adults [12], and not reliant on nutritional supplements or pharmacotherapy.…”

The Multifaceted Dimensions of Food Choice and Nutrition

“…Providing culturally acceptable diets is part of the larger concept of sustainable diets and needs to be taken into account when developing the innovative foods of tomorrow. Although it is often believed that older consumers are inflexible in changing their dietary habits, such change can be achieved, e.g., starting with those older people who share a more "green" attitude [13]. In turn, changing population attitudes towards greener consumption could be a path of learning that may be extrapolated to mainstream consumers.…”