MED-LINKS WP1 T1.3 Consumer Attitudes Focus Group

This dataset, developed as part of the MED-LINKS (Data-enabled Business Models and Market Linkages Enhancing) project, financed by Section 2, 2020 of the Prima Programme (Horizon 2020), contains the reports collected between February to April 2023 through some Focus Groups conducted on consumer attitudes and preferences for fruit and vegetables in Egypt, Greece and Italy

Suggesting the Best Bundle for Dairy Products Based on Consumers' Purchase Behavior

Product bundling can be attractive for consumers and also be profitable as a marketing strategy. Based on the importance of this promotion strategy, this study estimated the effect of features on consumers\u2019 purchase preferences among 16 dairy products available in the assortment of a popular brand by using a d-level nested logit model. Data about consumer preferences were collected from a sample of dairy products consumers in Sari City, Iran in 2018. By using the results of preferences, this study ran an optimisation algorithm according to a maximum profit criterion and suggested the best bundle for dairy products. Based on the algorithm results, the bundle including 4 out of the 16 available products had the maximum expected profit. This paper found that the profit of selling this product bundle is higher than the profit that could be obtained by selling these products separately

Factors Affecting Consumers' Dairy Products Preferences

Choice models represent a valid approach for the analysis of consumers' preferences as these models offer an opportunity to investigate many aspects that influence consumer behaviour. This study with the purpose of investigating consumers' preferences and their affecting factors were conducted by using the nested logit model in Sari, Iran in 2018. The results revealed that yoghurt, milk and cheese had the most preferences among the dairy products and consumers had more tendencies towards using low fat than full-fat dairy products. The results of factors affecting dairy products choice indicated that price and family cost decreased the probability of products being chosen, and age, education and attention to exercise variables increased this probability. Marketing mixed variables (4p) also had a significant effect on the choice of dairy products

Analyzing consumer perceptions about food safety by applying the food-related lifestyle approach

Food safety standards remain a major concern for consumers, especially in developing and emerging economies, due to gaps in the capacities of food safety enforcement institutions and limited investments from private sector actors. This study analyzes consumer behavior and food safety-related lifestyles in Kosovo, a post-communist emerging economy. Consumer groups were identified according to their food- related lifestyle using the classical 2-stage segmentation approach of factor analysis as well as cluster analysis. The study findings indicate that almost 2/3 of the surveyed consumers are fairly or very concerned about food safety. The results reveal that highly educated female consumers are more concerned about personal health risks, food safety-related content, and related diseases. This study provides interesting insights for food safety policymakers as well as the agroindustry on how to promote food safety consumer awareness effectively with targeted communication strategies

Consumer preferences and willingness to pay for clams with sustainability certification in Mediterranean countries

For some types of seafood, such as clams, there are now sustainability certificates that guarantee their sustainable production. However, their consumption may be associated with some ethical and sustainability concerns, as clams are harvested in ways that may be harmful to the environment. The aim of this study is therefore to investigate consumers’ sustainability concerns based on their purchasing preferences and WTP for clams with sustainability certification in three Mediterranean countries—Italy, Spain and Croatia. Data were collected online and consumer preferences were elicited using a labelled discrete choice experiment. The results show that in general all consumers prefer clams from their country of origin, while there are differences in their appreciation for the sustainability certification. While Croatian consumers are not very interested in the current Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) sustainability certification, consumers in Spain are willing to pay a higher price for it. At the same time, consumers in Italy are more interested in new certifications such as Responsible Fisheries Management (RFM). These results could be of interest to clam production and distribution companies trying to advance their corporate social responsibility activities and positioning

Review of factors affecting consumer acceptance of cultured meat

Concerns about animal welfare and sustainable meat production are growing among consumers. The awareness of carbon emissions linked to livestock and ethical concerns have triggered interest in more sustainable meat alternatives, among which cultured meat (also known as laboratory grown meat) is a recent entry. Like any new food, the ultimate success of cultured meat depends on consumer acceptance. This study analyses the peer reviewed literature on consumer attitudes towards cultured meat to synthesize the existing evidence and identify priorities for future research. A systematic literature review was undertaken using the Web of Science, Science Direct and Scopus databases over 2008-2020, resulting in a final number of 43 articles meeting our selection criteria. The most important factors influencing consumer acceptance/rejection of cultured meat include public awareness, perceived naturalness, and food-related risk perception. Ethical and environmental concerns prompted consumers to be willing to pay a premium price for purchasing meat substitutes, but not necessarily cultured meat. Also, food neophobia and uncertainties about safety and health seem to be important barriers to uptake of this technology. Availability of other alternatives such as plant-based meat substitutes and product features, such as price and sensory appeal, are considered determinants of consumer reception of this technology. The effect of demographic factors is mixed. More research on the interrelationships between livestock production, food security, and alternative meat products is recommended

Evaluation transaction costs of obtaining formal facilities by farmers

The main reason why farmers lack access to formal financial are concerned to limitations of high transaction costs in the system of credits. The objective of this study is to estimate transaction costs of obtaining credits in formal financial institutions provide facilities by farmers in Golestan Province. Data were gathered from farmers selected through simple random sampling in Golestan province in 2011. Our findings suggest that payments to the guarantor، direct and opportunity cost of obtaining facilities are the largest costs that farmers have to pay for obtaining facilities of financial resources. To reduce transaction costs، increasing banking productivity، flexibility on credit payments، facilitation of the lending process especially in obtaining securities، and mechanization of operations are recommended

MED-LINKS WP1-T1.3 Consumer Attitudes Segmentation in Short Supply Chains

This dataset, developed as part of the MED-LINKS (Data-enabled Business Models and Market Linkages Enhancing) project, financed by the PRIMA 2020 Section 2 (Horizon 2020), contains the responses collected between 26/05/2023 and 16/06/2023 through a Computer Assisted Web Interview conducted on consumer attitudes and preferences for fruit and vegetables in France, Greece and Italy

Applying Blockchain Technology for Food Traceability

Food traceability had been welcomed to address some concerns related to food scares or fears. Efficient food traceability helps government agencies and those who produce and sell food, in the event of a foodborne illness outbreak or contamination event, quickly find the source of the food contamination. However, traditional food traceability systems are facing problems such as many actors in the food production system (including farmers, food processing companies, and retailers) as well as a lack of technical infrastructures for synchronized food safety monitoring across the food system. Recent research provided ample evidence of the potential of emerging digital advancements such as blockchain technology to alleviate traditional food traceability shortcomings. Blockchain technology is an immutable digital data management system for storing and retrieving generated and linked data in a network (known as blocks). Blockchain with its immutable structure has gained momentum in different industries. There are four major areas in that blockchain could make the food supply chain more efficient. These areas include ensuring data accuracy, improving the efficiency of the food supply chain, enabling smart agriculture, and monitoring food safety. In this entry, the role of blockchain technology in all these areas will be discussed