Perception of consumers and companies on the use of sustainable packaging in grocery retail industry

Environmental concerns and the need to incorporate the concept of sustainability into everyday life, have led people and companies to search for eco-friendly ways and lifestyles. The use of sustainable packaging is one of these ways, which has led companies to work on the development of new materials, new shapes, reducing volume and transport, or packaging with multiple uses. Consumers behaviours also demonstrate an environmental concern that leads to more criteria choice of packaging or even the adoption of own packaging usage, namely when buying in bulk. The grocery retail industry, due to the size, has been pioneers in incorporating these principles of sustainability into its business plan. In recent years in Portugal, private labels sold under the retailer´s brand have started to gain market share and are also incorporating these principles of sustainability. The perception that consumers and companies have of the more sustainable form of production and how this impacts consumer choice are recent areas of study. The present work intends to be a contribution to this analysis by studying both perspectives, consumers, and companies on the perception that each one has about the use of sustainable packaging in the grocery retail market. The study on consumer´s perception was performed by quantitative methods applying an online survey and the analysis on companies´ perception on sustainable packaging was carried out through in-depth interviews complemented with document analysis. The results gathered suggest that most consumers and companies are aware of environmental sustainability, perceive it as an on-going development, with results already achieved. Both are aligned with sustainability criteria, but there is still room for improvement, both in consumer behaviour and in corporate communication.As preocupações ambientais e a necessidade de incorporar o conceito de sustentabilidade na vida quotidiana, tem levado consumidores e empresas a procurar formas e estilos de vida ecofriendly. Em particular, a utilização de embalagens sustentáveis tem pressionado as empresas a reconsiderar os processos existentes, como o desenvolvimento de novos materiais, novos formatos, redução de volume e transporte, ou embalagens com múltiplos usos. Relativamente aos consumidores, também tem sido demonstrada uma preocupação ambiental através da escolha mais criteriosa de embalagens ou mesmo a adoção de embalagem própria, nomeadamente na compra a granel. A indústria do retalho, pela sua dimensão, tem sido pioneira na incorporação destes princípios de sustentabilidade no plano estratégico da empresa. Nos últimos anos, em Portugal, as marcas próprias, vendidas sob a marca do retalhista, começaram a ganhar mercado e incorporam, muitas vezes, os princípios de sustentabilidade. A perceção que consumidores e empresas têm da forma de produção mais sustentável e como isso impacta a escolha do consumidor são áreas de estudo recentes. O presente trabalho pretende ser uma contribuição para esta análise, através do estudo das duas perspetivas, consumidores e empresas, na perceção sobre o uso de embalagens sustentáveis em geral e, particularmente, no mercado de marcas próprias. O estudo da perceção do consumidor foi realizado por métodos quantitativos, aplicando um questionário online e a análise da perceção das empresas sobre embalagens sustentáveis foi realizada por meio de entrevistas complementadas com análise documental. Os resultados sugerem que consumidores e empresas estão conscientes da necessidade de sustentabilidade ambiental, compreendem-na como um desenvolvimento contínuo, com resultados já alcançados. Ambos estão alinhados com os critérios da sustentabilidade, mas há ainda campo para melhorias, quer no comportamento dos consumidores, quer na comunicação por parte das empresas

Mixed fermentation with Metschnikowia pulcherrima using different grape varieties

The study and use of non-Saccharomyces yeasts to wine improvement and diversification has gained considerable relevance in recent years. The present work reports a pilot-scale winery assay of mixed fermentation with a commercial strain of Metschnikowia pulcherrima, tested in five white and nine red grape varieties. Two modalities were assayed, one with the addition of M. pulcherrima at time zero and addition of Saccharomyces cerevisiae after 24 h, and a control using only S. cerevisiae at time zero. Fermentation was monitored by daily measurement of density and temperature. Wine physicochemical analysis was performed after winemaking and repeated after four years of aging. Variance and multivariate analysis were used to examine these data. Triangle and ranking tests were performed on the wines obtained, using an experienced sensory panel. Alcoholic fermentation proceeded smoothly until there was complete consumption of the sugars. M. pulcherrima in mixed fermentation, although mainly recommended for white wine, was also tested for red wines. These wines generally presented higher glycerol, reducing sugars and total dry matter, and lower alcohol content, in line with the current market trend. Significant sensory di erences among modalities were only obtained for three varieties. Results emphasized that grape variety is a relevant factor in studies with non-Saccharomyces yeastsinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Wine fingerprinting using a bio-geochemical approach

The wine sector is a billion euro business and therefore subjected to multiple attempts of fraudulent practices. This requires the development of rapid and reliable methods to detect such situations. Several methodologies have been developed based on the chemical profiles of the wines, but they are limited due to the environmental conditions that cannot be controlled. The use of DNA-based detection systems are an emergent research field that have been extended to a wide variety of food products and are still the most reliable methods for varietal identification. However these methods are not suitable for geographical determination. Soil related fingerprints have a primary role considering that there is a relationship between the elemental composition of wine and the composition of the provenance soil. WineBioCode is a project aiming to define the best strategy for wine authenticity based on a multidisciplinary approach. Two DNA-based strategies have been developed based on Real-time PCR and a label free optical biosensor platform. Both platforms enabled successful identification of specific DNA-targets when applied to Vitis vinifera L., and can be applied throughout the grape-wine chain. The methods are complementary and can be used in different situations, according to the requirements. The geographical evaluation has been assessed by the strontium 87Sr/86Sr isotope ratio determination involving soil evaluation in the vineyards followed by its assay in the wine samples. The results are being integrated in order to establish the best procedure to be undertaken for wine fingerprinting, including varietal composition and geographical origin, therefore fulfilling the requirements of the geographical denominations in wine certificatio

Genetic diversity of the grapevine (Vitis vinifera L.) cultivars most utilized for wine production in Portugal

Portugal is very rich in grapevine biodiversity but nowadays only a small number of cultivars (13 black and 3 white) with defined enological characteristics are being used. However, there are still 51 cultivars with significant expression in the country which have a great potential to be used in the establishment of new vineyards. Considering the importance of identifying and understanding the genetic relatedness of the main cultivars used for wine making in Portugal, those cultivars were genotyped with the 6 SSRs loci VVMD5, VVMD7, VVMD27, VrZag62, VrZag79 and VVS2 that are recommended by the Office de la Vigne et du Vin for the elaboration of the worldwide database containing the alleles of all the known grapevine cultivars. A total of 49 alleles were detected with an average allele number of 8.17 per locus. The SSR profile of the 51 cultivars, at the 6 evaluated loci, indicates that all can be distinguished from each other. In addition, this study produces information on the relationship of these 51 grapevine cultivars with cultivars of other important Mediterranean wine producing regions

Use of fortified pied de cuve as an innovative method to start spontaneous alcoholic fermentation for red winemaking

Background and Aims: Some wineries, in order to promote the growth of yeasts able to ferment grape musts, traditionally produce wines using the ‘pied de cuve’ method. The aim of the present work was to study the performance of fortified pied de cuve (FPdC) prepared by addition of wine. Method and Results: Two FPdCs were prepared with the addition of wine at 1.5 and 3% (v/v) of ethanol to the musts and allowed to spontaneously ferment. The FPdCs were then added to fresh bulk musts in order to accelerate the spontaneous alcoholic fermentation (AF). Interestingly, several Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains isolated during the pied de cuve preparation were detected at the highest concentration throughout AF. The chemical composition of the wines conformed to commercial regulations. The volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were mainly represented by diethyl succinate and ethyl lactate, as well as by hexanol and isoamyl alcohol. Principal component analysis of the chemical parameters, VOCs and sensory data showed that the use of experimental pied de cuve influenced positively the composition of the final wines. Conclusion: The FPdC had no negative impact on the microbiological and chemical composition of wines, but it affected the diversity of the species S. cerevisiae present during AF and the sensory profile of the final wine. Significance of the Study: This study provided evidence that FPdC accelerates spontaneous AF and influences the sensory profile of red wines

Survey of molecular methods for the typing of wine yeast strains

A survey of the genetic polymorphisms produced by distinct methods was performed in 23 commercial winery yeast strains. The microsatellite typing, using 6 different loci, an optimized interdelta sequence analysis and RFLP of mitochondrial DNA generated by the enzyme Hinf I had the same discriminatory power: among the 23 commercial yeast strains, 21 distinct patterns were obtained. Karyotype analysis originated 22 patterns, thereby allowing the discrimination of one of the three strains that were not distinguished by the other methods. Due to the equivalence of the results obtained in this survey, any of the methods can be applied at the industrial scale.Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) - POCTI/BIO/38106/2001 (Eixo 2, Medida 2.3, QCAIII - FEDER).Instituto de Cooperação Científica e Tecnológica Internacional (ICCTI) - grant nº 657 C2.Comunidade Europeia (UE) - contract number QLK4-CT-2001-51873

Dissemination of wine-related yeasts by migratory birds.

The present work was undertaken to evaluate the con-tribution of migratory birds in the environmental dis-semination of yeasts. Four sites (Mazara del Vallo,Lampedusa, Ustica and Linosa), representing themain stop-over points in Sicily, were analysed duringspring and autumnal bird migration and 349 birds(belonging to 10 families) were ringed and analysedfor yeast presence. A total of 125 yeasts were isolated and identified by a multiple genotypic approach, con-sisting of restriction fragment length polymorphism(RFLP) of 5.8S rRNA gene and 26S rRNA andsequencing of D1/D2 domain of the 26S rRNA gene,which resulted in the recognition of 18 species,including the technological relevantSaccharomycescerevisiaewhich were characterized at strain levelapplying three techniques (interdelta analysis, mini-satellite analysis based on the separate amplificationof three genes and microsatellite multiplex PCR ofpolymorphic microsatellite loci). The evaluation of thepersistence of livingS. cerevisiae in birds for about12 h from ingestion of inoculated feed allowed theconclusion that yeasts with technological potentialare disseminated during migration

Survey of yeast diversity during wine bottling processes using restriction analysis of 26S ribosomal DNA (rDNA)

Background and Aims: Microbiological stability of bottled wine is largely dependent on the bottling process as the last technological operation. In this survey yeast contamination was monitored and characterized during wine bottling. Methods and Results: Samples of wine, apparatus surfaces and bottles were collected. Yeast counts were recorded and colony morphotypes differentiated. Isolates were characterized by restriction enzyme digests of PCR amplified regions of 26S rDNA. For unknown patterns DNA sequencing was performed. The presence of Z. bailii and T. delbrueckii in the filling tubes was also confirmed in the final product. Another important point of contamination was the corker jaws. Conclusions: A great diversity of yeast species was found, indicating that these habitats are prone to microbial development. Significance of the study: Evaluation of the level and diversity of yeast contamination during wine bottling allowed to alert producers for the need to evaluate and control microbial contamination

<i>Saccharomyces cerevisiae</i> Diversity in <i>Arbutus unedo</i> L. Fermentations in Association with the Volatile and Sensory Similarities of the Distillates

The fermentation of Arbutus unedo L. fruit is traditionally carried out in the production of spirits. The present study followed the spontaneous fermentation of A. unedo fruit harvested in October and December 2019 by two producers from the central region of Portugal. The microbiota was studied, and although a great diversity of indigenous yeasts was found, S. cerevisiae isolates could still be grouped into eight clusters, and a good separation between producers was achieved. Based on the results of a multivariate analysis of the physical-chemical and volatile composition of the distillates, a distinction between the distillates from the two producers was determined. Moreover, these findings are corroborated by the similarities in flavor that were found. Along with the variability found in the distillates, S. cerevisiae isolates could be clustered and associated with each producer. On the other hand, the differentiation of the harvesting period was not so clear. The characterization of the indigenous yeasts associated with the fermentation process of Arbutus unedo L. fruit can serve as an important contribution to the preservation of the specific characteristics of its distillates