Papers by Giovanni Sogari
Foods, 2022
The effects of population increase and food production on the environment have prompted various i... more 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 entomo...
Toward a reduced meat diet: University North American students' acceptance of a blended meat-mushroom burger
Meat Science, 2022
Reduction of meat intake and increase in vegetable consumption have attracted considerable attent... more Reduction of meat intake and increase in vegetable consumption have attracted considerable attention from researchers and food businesses. We conducted a field experiment in a university canteen with the aim of investigating the main behavioral factors determining the consumption of a blended meat-mushroom burger. 296 students who consumed the blended burger completed a structured survey including hedonic and attitudinal questions. We then contacted the same sample after 1 month to measure their reported behavior. Our results show that providing information highlighting the sustainability attributes of mushrooms has the most significant and positive impact on acceptability in comparison to information related to nutrition and indulgence. In addition, the participants' beliefs about the health and sustainable benefits of mushrooms positively impact their attitude toward the blended burger. This then significantly influences their behavioral intention to purchase the product, which proves to be a good predictor of the consumption behavior. Our findings suggest marketing opportunities arising from blending plant-based ingredients with meat products.
The yield of several commodity crops is provided in large part by genetically modified crops in N... more The yield of several commodity crops is provided in large part by genetically modified crops in North and South America. However, reservations exist in Europe due to possible negative effects on human health or environment. This paper aims to analyse the current research priorities identified in EU countries and to engage European stakeholders into the formulation of future common research needs regarding the effects of the possible adoption of commercially available and forthcoming genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in the areas of socio-economics, human and animal health, and environment. Additionally, it aims to identify the requirements for sharing available research capacities and existing infrastructures. First a mapping exercise of existing research activities in Europe was performed. A questionnaire was developed on a web-based platform and submitted to national focal points to collect information from EU Member States. Information was collected from 320 research projects...
Determinants of Blended Meat Product Purchase Intention--Model
Identifying "Boom and Bust" Cycles
How information affects consumers’ purchase intention and willingness to pay for poultry farmed with insect-based meal and live insects
Journal of Insects as Food and Feed, 2021
The opportunity to use insects as protein sources for poultry has many environmental advantages. ... more The opportunity to use insects as protein sources for poultry has many environmental advantages. Moreover, the administration of insects to poultry can provide animal welfare and health benefits, allowing the expression of their natural behaviour, reducing aggression, and supplying nutrients. However, there is limited research on consumer’s acceptance of farmed animals fed with insects. Our study aims to understand consumers’ attitude towards, intention to purchase, and willingness to pay (WTP) for meat obtained from a farmed duck fed on: (1) an insect-based meal; and (2) live insect diet. We conduct an online survey of 565 Italian meat consumers, including an information treatment regarding the sustainability and nutrition benefits of using insects as feed. Our results demonstrate that providing more information about the positive effects of using insects in feed production may motivate those more interested in environmental issues to purchase insect-fed duck meat products. Compare...
Il presente studio si propone di esaminare il ruolo dei social media nel comportamento di acquist... more Il presente studio si propone di esaminare il ruolo dei social media nel comportamento di acquisto del vino da parte dei consumatori tra le generazioni millennial e non millennial. I risultati mostrano la capacità dei social media di aumentare la consapevolezza sulla sostenibilità e, di conseguenza, influenzare il comportamento di acquisto del vino da parte dei consumatori (segmento di prezzo più alto). Da una prospettiva di marketing, le aziende devono migliorare la loro capacità di condividere e comunicare le proprie attività ambientali attraverso i social media.
The aim of this study was to investigate how sensory‐liking attribute perceptions (appearance, ta... more The aim of this study was to investigate how sensory‐liking attribute perceptions (appearance, taste and organoleptic characteristics) can change between a readily visible vs a processed insect product before and after tasting. Results indicate that texture and appearance of the insect are perceived as stronger barriers than the taste attribute. Moreover, both unprocessed and processed insect‐based products generate more positive perceptions after tasting compared to expectations. The positive experience of tasting products with both visible and processed insect may lead consumers to reconsider their initial negative expectations and attitude towards entomophagy.
Foods, 2021
Healthy food choices are crucial for a healthy lifestyle. However, food choices are complex and a... more Healthy food choices are crucial for a healthy lifestyle. However, food choices are complex and affected by various factors. Understanding the determinant factors affecting food choices could aid policy-makers in designing better strategies to promote healthy food choices in the general public. This study aims to evaluate the food choice motivations and to segment consumer groups, according to their food choice motivations, in a sample of 531 Italian consumers (collected by convenience sampling), through offline and online survey platforms. K-means cluster analysis was applied to identify consumer groups using six food choice motivation categories (health, emotional, economic and availability, social and cultural, environmental and political, and marketing and commercial). The results suggest that the strongest determinants for the food choices of Italian consumers are Environmental factors and Health. Two consumer profiles were identified through the segmentation analysis: Emotiona...
Nutrients, 2020
Seafood products are important sources of protein and components of a healthy and sustainable die... more Seafood products are important sources of protein and components of a healthy and sustainable diet. Understanding consumers’ preferences for fish products is crucial for increasing fish consumption. This article reports the consumer preferences and willingness to pay (WTP) for different fish species and attributes on representative samples in five European countries (n = 2509): France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the UK. Consumer choices were investigated for fresh fish in a retail market under hypothetical situations arranged by a labelled choice experiment conducted for seven fish species: Cod, herring, seabass, seabream, salmon, trout, and pangasius. The results show the highest premiums for wild-caught fish than farm-raised alternatives. Ready-to-cook products are generally preferred to whole fish, whereas fish fillet preference is more species-specific. The results show positive premiums for a sustainability label and nutrition and health claims, with high heterogeneity across c...
Nutrients, 2019
Health messages may be an important predictor in the selection of healthier food choices among yo... more Health messages may be an important predictor in the selection of healthier food choices among young adults. The primary objective of our study is to test the impact of labeling whole grain pasta with a health message descriptor displayed at the point-of-purchase (POP) on consumer choice in a campus dining setting. The study was conducted in a large US college dining venue during lunch service; data were collected during a nine-week period, for a total of 18 days of observation. Each day, an information treatment (i.e., no-message condition; vitamin message; fiber message) was alternated assigned to whole grain penne. Over the study period, the selection of four pasta options (white penne, whole grain penne, spinach fettuccine, and tortellini) were recorded and compiled for analysis. Logistic regression and pairwise comparison analyses were performed to estimate the impact of health messages on diners’ decisions to choose whole grain penne among the four pasta types. Our results ind...
Foods, 2019
This study provides a framework of the factors predicting the intention of eating an insect-based... more This study provides a framework of the factors predicting the intention of eating an insect-based product. As part of the study, a seminar was carried out to explore how the provision of information about ecological, health, and gastronomic aspects of entomophagy would modify consumer beliefs regarding insects as food. Before and after the informative seminar, two questionnaires about sociodemographic attributes and beliefs about the consumption of insects as food were given. Participants were then asked to carry out a sensory evaluation of two identical bread samples, but one was claimed to be supplemented with insect powder. Results showed that perceived behavioral control is the main predictor of the intention, followed by neophobia and personal insect food rejection. The disgust factor significantly decreased after the participants attended the informative seminar. Sensory scores highlighted that participants gave “insect-labelled” samples higher scores for flavor, texture, and ...
Animals, 2019
Recently, insects have received increased attention as an important source of sustainable raw mat... more Recently, insects have received increased attention as an important source of sustainable raw materials for animal feed, especially in fish, poultry, and swine. In particular, the most promising species are represented by the black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens, HI), the yellow mealworm (Tenebrio molitor, TM), and the common house fly (Musca domestica, MD). Although rapid development is expected, insects remain underutilized in the animal feed industry mainly due to technical, financial, and regulatory barriers. In addition, few works have analyzed consumer and stakeholder points of view towards the use of insects as animal feed. In this article, we summarize the main findings of this body of research and provide a discussion of consumer studies regarding the consumption of animals fed with insects. Our review suggests that consumer acceptance will not be a barrier towards the development of this novel protein industry. Furthermore, we conclude that it will be of interest to unders...
Nutrients, 2018
Overweightness and obesity rates have increased dramatically over the past few decades and they r... more Overweightness and obesity rates have increased dramatically over the past few decades and they represent a health epidemic in the United States (US). Unhealthy dietary habits are among the factors that can have adverse effects on weight status in young adulthood. The purpose of this explorative study was to use a qualitative research design to analyze the factors (barriers and enablers) that US college students perceived as influencing healthy eating behaviors. A group of Cornell University students (n = 35) participated in six semi-structured focus groups. A qualitative software, CAQDAS Nvivo11 Plus, was used to create codes that categorized the group discussions while using an Ecological Model. Common barriers to healthy eating were time constraints, unhealthy snacking, convenience high-calorie food, stress, high prices of healthy food, and easy access to junk food. Conversely, enablers to healthy behavior were improved food knowledge and education, meal planning, involvement in ...
International Journal of Gastronomy and Food Science, 2017
Edible insects as a food source might help feeding poor developing countries and at the same time... more Edible insects as a food source might help feeding poor developing countries and at the same time be a complementary food/ingredient for developed countries. However, in the Western countries the majority of people refuse the idea of eating insects, for mainly cultural reasons. The main purpose of this study is to investigate the expectations about entomophagy from a specific target group (foodies) composed by people studying Gastronomy and Food Science. The study was held at the University of Parma (Italy) in April 2015 and consisted in a student engagement with a so-called "bug banquet" with a cookie made with "insect flour". Results show that almost all the sample tasted the product and is willing to try other edible insects in the future. Curiosity is the most important reason to choose to try the cookie made with cricket flour; whereas negative opinions of family members and friends and the disgust factor may prevent Western consumers from eating insects in the future. However, whether edible insects will increase their acceptability will also depend heavily on market availability (regulatory framework), food category (e.g., bakery product with insect flour) marketing strategies, gastronomy (preparation), culinary trends and education.
Nutrients, 2015
Although fruit and vegetable consumption is highly recommended for a healthy and balanced daily d... more Although fruit and vegetable consumption is highly recommended for a healthy and balanced daily diet, several European countries do not meet these recommendations. In Italy, only 45% of young people are consuming at least one portion of vegetables per day. Therefore, this paper aims to understand the main determinants of vegetables consumption among young adults to suggest possible intervention strategies. A cross-sectional study was conducted on a samples of Italian students (n = 751), using the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) as a conceptual framework. A structural equation model (SEM) was developed to test the TPB predictors for vegetable consumption, and the role of background factors (socio-demographic and personal characteristics) in improving the TPB model's explaining power. Overall, 81% and 68%, respectively, of intentions and behaviour variance is explained by the TPB model. Socio-demographic and personal characteristics were found to influence intentions and behaviour indirectly by their effects on the theory's more proximal determinants. Interventions should be targeted to improve perceived behavioural control (PBC), attitudes and subjective norms that significantly affect intentions. Tailored interventions for male students, enrolled in courses other than food science, and doing less physical activity may have a larger effect on behavioural change.
Sustainability in the food sector: the case study of Italian wine
One of the main challenges of the future will be to feed a worldwide population of 9 billion peop... more One of the main challenges of the future will be to feed a worldwide population of 9 billion people by 2050. To achieve this goal, the agro-food system will have to value those farming systems that produce high quality food and at the same time protect the ecosystem in which we live. After all, the agriculture sector strongly effects our environment, which has been recently subject to severe impacts, such as the increase of greenhouse gases, the formation of photochemical smog, contributing to fresh and marine waters pollution, general toxicity of the soil and intensive consumption of resources (often nonrenewable). Moreover, issues such as malnutrition, food waste, food and feed safety as well as loss of biodiversity, energy shortage and climate change are just some of the signals that suggest the need for greater attention to the choices of food production and consumption. The challenge to feed the planet in a more sustainable way is also the core value of Expo Milano 2015 “Feedin...
Vino sostenibile: l’atteggiamento dei consumatori italiani
Consumer attitude towards sustainable wine in Italy
Un esperimento di coinvolgimento pubblico in tema di biotecnologie
La crescita della domanda di alimenti, delle transazioni a livello globale e i cambiamenti dettat... more La crescita della domanda di alimenti, delle transazioni a livello globale e i cambiamenti dettati dall'innovazione tecnologica nelle industrie alimentari, hanno profondamente modificato negli ultimi decenni il rapporto tra produttore e consumatore accrescendo il potenziale rischio di asimmetria informativa. In parallelo, i nuovi interventi legislativi sulle questioni agricole e alimentari hanno coinvolto solo marginalmente l'opinione pubblica nel processo decisionale. Negli ultimi anni, molti decisori politici si sono trovati d'accordo nell'auspicare il coinvolgimento più ampio delle comunità nella definizione delle priorità nel processo decisionale (Rowe, et al. 2008). Tali comunità includono diversi stakeholder, tra questi i rappresentanti dei cittadini e dei consumatori, i gruppi di interesse ambientale e dell'industria, ecc. In questo contesto si inserisce anche una sensazione diffusa di allontanamento dei cittadini dai processi politici formali, che si riflette in una generale sfiducia nelle azioni dei governi e nella loro efficacia. Pertanto, l'impiego di metodi per il coinvolgimento dei cittadini nella partecipazione pubblica può rappresentare un valido supporto per la definizione delle strategie e delle linee di indirizzo delle politiche messe in atto dai governi.
Uploads
Papers by Giovanni Sogari