Role of sustainability attributes and occasion matters in determining consumers’ beef choice

Does Consumers' Cultural Background Affect How They Perceive and Engage in Food Sustainability? A Cross-Cultural Study

Motivated by the evolving global food landscape and its detrimental impacts on society, the environment, and health, this research aims to understand consumer perceptions, preferences and involvement regarding sustainable food products and consumption practices. To this aim, three countries were chosen for their distinct economic, cultural, and demographic differences (Spain, Türkiye, and Colombia), enabling an exploration of how these factors influence sustainability perceptions. The results show high levels of awareness, knowledge, consumption, and willingness to switch to more sustainable habits, although differences between countries were also found (price sensitivity in Spain and demand for information regarding sustainable food in Colombia). In addition, a group of consumers has been identified that is influenced by health, shows positive behaviours and perceptions towards sustainable food, and is not price sensitive. The study is significant, as it addresses the information gap between consumers, producers, and policymakers regarding sustainable food awareness. It seeks to provide insights into cultural influences on sustainability perceptions and aims to assist in developing educational programs and policies to promote sustainable consumption.

Assessing consumers' preferences for beef and lamb meat linked to wildfire prevention services

Meat from silvopastoral systems, due to its provision of numerous ecosystem services such as wildfire risk reduction in Mediterranean forests, can address societal growing demands for meat produced with lower environmental impacts. Differentiation of meat from these systems may contribute to their economic sustainability and hence to reverse their decline in the Mediterranean. This study investigated consumer preferences and willingness-to-pay (WTP) for beef and lamb meat from silvopastoral systems associated to the provision of wildfire prevention service and explored two alternative ways of labelling this service. Through a choice experiment survey considering type of pasture, length of grazing period, production distance and price, we gathered data from 1209 meat consumers in two Spanish cities. We considered forest grazing with a target purpose as a level in the type of pasture attribute and it was presented either as grazing to prevent wildfires or grazing to reduce biomass in two alternative versions of the valuation survey. The random parameter logit model revealed the highest preferences and WTP towards nearby production distances, followed by targeted grazing and forest grazing, while the length of grazing period was less relevant. No significant differences in consumers WTP were found between conveying targeted grazing either as fire prevention or biomass reduction. Our findings also suggest that consumers' preferences varied with location, attitudes towards local food and environmental role of grazing and consumption habits. Knowledge gathered in our work contributes to understand consumers perceptions on the beneficial environmental impacts of meat production.

Environmental Impacts of High-Quality Brazilian Beef Production: A Comparative Life Cycle Assessment of Premium and Super-Premium Beef

When individual purchasing power increases in society, there is a trend toward a quantitative and qualitative increase in the consumption of products. Considering the magnitude of beef production in Brazil, environmental impacts are important factors for the domestic and international markets. This study assessed a Brazilian feedlot system characterized by high animal welfare standards that produces high-quality beef that is more marbled than that produced in grass-fed systems. We assessed the environmental impacts and compared premium and super-premium beef produced in a feedlot system using a partial Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). Data were collected directly on the property analyzed, considering environmental inputs and outputs and economic factors associated with the production stages of each line (premium versus super-premium). The results show that high-quality beef has, beyond a greater financial cost, an environmental cost, with the super-premium line producing a 286% higher carbon footprint, 297% more eutrophication, and three times higher acidification potential and land use than the premium line. The results of the environmental impacts agree with the results of production costs, reflecting a 282.82% higher production cost in super-premium than in premium animals. Footprints of 5.0323 kg, 4.7746 kg, and 8.8858 kg CO2 eq./kg live weight gain at the feedlot were found in the three lines.

The Importance of the Slaughterhouse in Surveilling Animal and Public Health: A Systematic Review

From the point of public health, the objective of the slaughterhouse is to guarantee the safety of meat in which meat inspection represent an essential tool to control animal diseases and guarantee the public health. The slaughterhouse can be used as surveillance center for livestock diseases. However, other aspects related with animal and human health, such as epidemiology and disease control in primary production, control of animal welfare on the farm, surveillance of zoonotic agents responsible for food poisoning, as well as surveillance and control of antimicrobial resistance, can be monitored. These controls should not be seen as a last defensive barrier but rather as a complement to the controls carried out on the farm. Regarding the control of diseases in livestock, scientific research is scarce and outdated, not taking advantage of the potential for disease control. Animal welfare in primary production and during transport can be monitored throughout ante-mortem and post-mortem inspection at the slaughterhouse, providing valuable individual data on animal welfare. Surveillance and research regarding antimicrobial resistance (AMR) at slaughterhouses is scarce, mainly in cattle, sheep, and goats. However, most of the zoonotic pathogens are sensitive to the antibiotics studied. Moreover, the prevalence at the slaughterhouse of zoonotic and foodborne agents seems to be low, but a lack of harmonization in terms of control and communication may lead to underestimate its real prevalence.

Food Credence Attributes: A Conceptual Framework of Supply Chain Stakeholders, Their Motives, and Mechanisms to Address Information Asymmetry

Food credence attributes (e.g., food safety, organic, and carbon neutral production methods) are quality characteristics of products that cannot be assessed by buyers at the point of sale without additional information (e.g., certification labels). Hence, the ability to access credence attributes of a particular product can result in a situation termed as asymmetric distributed information among supply chain stakeholders (e.g., producers, processors, wholesalers, retailers, consumer) where one party of a market transaction is in possession of more information about a product than the other party. This situation can lead to potential inefficiencies, e.g., misinformation, risk of food borne illness, or opportunistic behavior such as fraud. The present study sought to develop a conceptual framework that describes a) the motivation for key stakeholders to participate in the market for food credence attributes, b) the type of food credence attributes that key stakeholders provide, and c) current mechanisms to address the issue of information asymmetry among the stakeholders in the food system. The study was conducted using an integrative literature review. The developed framework consists of two components: a) the food supply chain and b) the attribute assurance system among which multiple links exist. The findings suggest that retailers, processors, NGOs, and government authorities are influential stakeholders within the supply chain of food credence attributes by imposing food quality standards which can address information asymmetry among food actors. While the credence attribute assurance system (e.g., food standards, third party food attribute assurance providers) can potentially address the issue of asymmetric information among market stakeholders, a range of issues remain. These include food standards as a potential market entry barrier for food producers and distributors, limited food standard harmonization, and communication challenges of food attribute assurance (e.g., consumers' signal processing, signal use and trust). The syntheses presented in this study contributes to stakeholders' (e.g., supply chain actors, scientists, policy makers) improved understanding about the components of the credence food system and their integration as well as the drivers for change in this system.

Consumer awareness of sustainable supply chains: A choice experiment on Parma ham PDO

The food system produces emissions at all stages, from agriculture and its inputs, and the livestock sector is nowadays one of the most significant contributors to environmental problems. The European swine production system is mainly intensive and generates high external costs such as water and air pollution. As a response to these emerging issues, there is a growing interest in the relationships between marketing and sustainability, with people that have begun to pay much more attention to health, environmental friendliness, and quality of products. The aim of this study is to understand if there is a market for a high-quality "Parma ham PDO", produced in sustainable supply chain at an environmental, health and animal welfare level. In this paper, we use discrete choice experiments to investigate Italian consumer's preferences and their willingness to pay (WTP) for Parma ham PDO with different characteristics, amongst which the use of air scrubber technology reducing pollutants emissions. Results seem to encourage the pork industry in better exploring pollutant emissions' reduction, showing a consumers' willingness to pay for this production technology. Similarly, results of this study can suggest the existence of a niche market for this typology of production.

Brazilians' attitudes to meat consumption and production: Present and future challenges to the sustainability of the meat industry

Brazil is a main global producer, exporter, and consumer of farm animal products. Information about the knowledge and attitudes of Brazilian citizens and consumers towards the different dimensions of meat production sustainability can support policy discussions and guide the industry to adopt production systems compatible with societal expectations. Here we provide a historical, social, and economic overview of meat production and consumption in Brazil, review the scientific literature on Brazilian public attitudes towards meat production and consumption, and discuss some actions Brazil is taking to develop more sustainable production systems. We show that Brazilians expect affordable meat products with high organoleptic, sanitary, nutritional qualities and produced under high ethical standards. The pace of discussions and changes in policies and in meat production systems needs to accelerate to follow domestic and international demands and the changes in ethical expectations of society. Constructive dialogue between all interested stakeholders, including citizens and consumers, needs to be fostered to design more sustainable meat production systems.

Fire Eaters: Exploring Consumer Preferences for Labeling Extensive Livestock Products Providing Wildfire Prevention Services

Extensive livestock grazing has proved to be a valuable tool to reduce wildfire risk in Mediterranean landscapes. Meat from herds providing wildfire prevention services exhibit sustainability traits that can appeal to ethical consumers and find a suitable niche in local markets. This study assesses the preferences of a consumer sample in the province of Girona (north-eastern Spain) for different lamb meat labeling options from herds providing wildfire prevention services. The aim is to disentangle consumer profiles, providing evidence for improved product labeling. This may increase the added value and the viability of small farms providing this service. Employing a latent class modeling approach, we explore how meat consumption patterns and socioeconomic features may contribute to explain preferences for different meat labeling options. Our results have identified three consumer profiles: traditional rural consumers relying on trust with producers, younger consumers more akin to new labeling schemes, and urban consumers that support local butchers as a trusted information source. Different labeling mechanisms may work in a complementary way to arrive to different audiences of potential consumers. Geographical indication labels can serve as a good departure point, complemented with information cues on environmental factors related to wildfire protection.

Quality Multiverse of Beef and Pork Meat in a Single Score

The rationale behind this review is the potential of developing a single score tool for meat quality evaluation based on visual and sensorial assessments of fresh meat. Based on the known sensory wheel concept, the first step was to create quality wheels capturing most common intrinsic and extrinsic quality cues of pork and beef outlined in the latest scientific papers. This resulted in identifying meat color, sensory characteristics and fat content as the most important intrinsic quality cues of fresh beef and pork. Furthermore, the highest number of studies showed the importance of price, certification logos and brand for beef quality evaluation. According to recent articles, price, breed, animal welfare and a veterinary certificate are the most important extrinsic attributes for pork consumers. The second step was to develop a single-score tool named the “Meat quality index”. It has been developed in line with published approaches of different total quality index concepts used in the food sector, providing insights into its application in the meat sector. As a result, this review proposes a unique approach in using quality index application, through the consumer’s preferences aspect of fresh meat.

Exploring Purchasing Determinants for a Low Fat Content Salami: Are Consumers Willing to Pay for an Additional Premium?

Consumers today are increasingly moving toward healthier lifestyles and food purchasing habits. This new awareness has also prompted the meat industry, usually indicted for the use of harmful compounds and ingredients such as additives, salt, and fat, to introduce innovative measures to meet demand. This study aims to assess consumer willingness to pay an additional price premium (APP) for a healthy salami by identifying which factors are more likely to have an effect on the willingness to purchase, such as socio-demographic and product and market-related attributes. An Ordered Logit model has been applied to define factors influencing consumers' willingness to pay for a low-fat salami. Results show a favorable consumer acceptance of reduced-fat salami conveyed by the willingness of consumers to pay an additional price for this product and confirm that the health awareness of consumers is an important driving force in cured meat marketing strategies.

Local vs. International Hamburger Foodservice in the Consumer’s Mind: An Exploratory Study

Fast-food chains are everywhere and every day millions of people choose to have a break in a fast-food outlet. However, in recent years some local hamburger foodservice chains outside of the well-known international fast-food chains have found success by leveraging products linked with their territory. How do consumers value the service received in an international, rather than a local, fast-food outlet? This aspect is under-investigated in the literature, but is relevant in order to capture the main and most important differences between the two systems. Through a structured survey, consumers’ perceptions of both international and local hamburger foodservice outlets in the Turin Metropolitan area (Italy) were measured and analysed. The results indicate that consumers generally have a break in an international fast-food restaurant, but the value assigned to local fast-food chains is higher than that assigned to international ones. Specifically, local fast-food chains are appreciated for particular aspects related to the supply chain (animal welfare, ethical and social aspects, the origin of the raw materials, and some other characteristics of the food). The findings contribute to a more in-depth understanding of consumer behaviour, and give an insight into the relevance of the local aspects as opposed to the international ones.

Knowledge, Utility, and Preferences for Beef Label Traceability Information: A Cross-Cultural Market Analysis Comparing Spain and Brazil

The consumer environment determines consumers' buying behavior and product preferences, and understanding these factors allows businesses in the industry to identify market demands. In view of the different contexts, Spain and Brazil, there are differences in the consumption of beef, in the production and the regulatory process concerning beef, and in particular the traceability system. The traceability system is mandatory in Spain and voluntary in Brazil. From these prerogatives, this cross-cultural study carried out through a self-administered questionnaire with 2132 Spanish and Brazilian beef buyers/consumers, aimed at comparing and understanding the familiarity with the bovine traceability system and traceability information of the label as a food security indicator. It is concluded that traceability information is well received by consumers as an attribute of credibility, and consumers are interested in ensuring that the item they buy is of known and reliable origin. But more incentives may help clarify the advantages of purchasing food with certified traceability, making it more effective for consumers to use this knowledge.