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Consumer Perception and Attitude toward Insects for a Sustainable Diet

SIMPLE SUMMARY: In this study, the relationship of a sustainable diet and insect consumption is refined. The main objective is to analyse consumer perception of food sustainability and attitudes towards food consumption and the effect on the environment and their willingness to include insects as a...

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Autores principales: Simeone, Mariarosaria, Scarpato, Debora
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: MDPI 2021
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8780164/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/35055881
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/insects13010039
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author Simeone, Mariarosaria
Scarpato, Debora
author_facet Simeone, Mariarosaria
Scarpato, Debora
author_sort Simeone, Mariarosaria
collection PubMed
description SIMPLE SUMMARY: In this study, the relationship of a sustainable diet and insect consumption is refined. The main objective is to analyse consumer perception of food sustainability and attitudes towards food consumption and the effect on the environment and their willingness to include insects as a sustainable solution to reduce meat consumption in their diet. These results provide important insights to guide consumers to consider the use of food alternatives and for policy makers. Targeting the right consumers is necessary to create a market for insect-based food. This research contributes to addressing global food security and sustainability through raising the awareness of the benefits of insects as food in the consumers’ minds. Recommendations are included to improve the communication of the advantages of this food type. ABSTRACT: The main objective of this research paper is to understand consumer knowledge and perception of insects for food. Primary data was collected using a questionnaire conducted in Rome, and the data was analysed using a probit model in order to understand consumers’ attitudes to include insects as a sustainable solution to meat consumption in their diet. We connected the participants with a willingness to consume insects with those that are critical, informed, and concerned about the environment. This study shows that insects’ consumption and social acceptance is very low even for people who have a greater sensitivity to sustainable diets. Suggestions are included to improve the communication of this food type to raise awareness in the consumers’ minds. This research continues the debate on sustainability and global food security.
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spelling pubmed-87801642022-01-22 Consumer Perception and Attitude toward Insects for a Sustainable Diet Simeone, Mariarosaria Scarpato, Debora Insects Article SIMPLE SUMMARY: In this study, the relationship of a sustainable diet and insect consumption is refined. The main objective is to analyse consumer perception of food sustainability and attitudes towards food consumption and the effect on the environment and their willingness to include insects as a sustainable solution to reduce meat consumption in their diet. These results provide important insights to guide consumers to consider the use of food alternatives and for policy makers. Targeting the right consumers is necessary to create a market for insect-based food. This research contributes to addressing global food security and sustainability through raising the awareness of the benefits of insects as food in the consumers’ minds. Recommendations are included to improve the communication of the advantages of this food type. ABSTRACT: The main objective of this research paper is to understand consumer knowledge and perception of insects for food. Primary data was collected using a questionnaire conducted in Rome, and the data was analysed using a probit model in order to understand consumers’ attitudes to include insects as a sustainable solution to meat consumption in their diet. We connected the participants with a willingness to consume insects with those that are critical, informed, and concerned about the environment. This study shows that insects’ consumption and social acceptance is very low even for people who have a greater sensitivity to sustainable diets. Suggestions are included to improve the communication of this food type to raise awareness in the consumers’ minds. This research continues the debate on sustainability and global food security. MDPI 2021-12-29 /pmc/articles/PMC8780164/ /pubmed/35055881 http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/insects13010039 Text en © 2021 by the authors. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
spellingShingle Article
Simeone, Mariarosaria
Scarpato, Debora
Consumer Perception and Attitude toward Insects for a Sustainable Diet
title Consumer Perception and Attitude toward Insects for a Sustainable Diet
title_full Consumer Perception and Attitude toward Insects for a Sustainable Diet
title_fullStr Consumer Perception and Attitude toward Insects for a Sustainable Diet
title_full_unstemmed Consumer Perception and Attitude toward Insects for a Sustainable Diet
title_short Consumer Perception and Attitude toward Insects for a Sustainable Diet
title_sort consumer perception and attitude toward insects for a sustainable diet
topic Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8780164/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/35055881
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/insects13010039
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