RT info:eu-repo/semantics/article
T1 Drivers and inhibitors in the acceptance of meat alternatives: the case of plant and insect-based proteins
A1 De Koning, Wim
A1 Dean, David
A1 Vriesekoop, Frank
A1 De Aguiar, Luis Kluwe
A1 Anderson, Martin
A1 Mongondry, Philippe
A1 Oppong Gyamfi, Mark
A1 Urbano López de Meneses, Beatriz
A1 Gómez Luciano, Cristino Alberto
A1 Jiang, Bin
A1 Hao, Wendy
A1 Eastwick, Emma
A1 Jiang, Zheng (Virgil)
A1 Boereboom, Anouk
K1 Fobias
K1 Psicología  - Aspecto social
K1 Structural equation modeling
K1 Proteins
K1 Proteínas
K1 Food - Biotechnology
K1 Alimentos - Biotecnología
K1 Willingness to try
K1 Neophobia
K1 Neofobia
K1 61 Psicología
K1 3309 Tecnología de Los Alimentos
K1 3102 Ingeniería Agrícola
AB Insects as an alternative protein source has gained traction for its advantageous environmental impact. Despite being part of many traditional food cultures, insects remain a novelty in Western cultures and a challenging concept for many. Even though plant-based protein alternatives are not facing the same barriers, product unfamiliarity and limited exposure hinder adoption, which could be detrimental to growth within the food sector. This study is aimed at evaluating plant- and insect-based proteins as alternative dietary proteins. A model indicating the drivers of consumer attitudes towards meat-alternative proteins and consumer willingness to try, buy, and pay a premium was tested. Further, 3091 responses were collected using surveys in nine countries: China, USA, France, UK, New Zealand, Netherlands, Brazil, Spain, and the Dominican Republic. Structural Equation Modelling was used to analyze the data. We found that consumer’s behavioral intentions towards both plant-based and insect-based alternatives are inhibited by food neophobia but to an extent, are amplified by the perceived suitability and benefits of the protein, which in turn are driven by nutritional importance, environmental impact, healthiness, and sensory attributes for both alternatives. The expectation of the nutritional value of meat is the strongest (negative) influence on perceived suitability/benefits of plant-based protein and willingness to try, buy, and pay more for plant-based proteins, but it only has a relatively small impact on the suitability/benefits of insect-based protein and no impact on willingness to try, buy, and pay more for insect-based proteins. Overall, we conclude that consumer adoption towards meat alternatives is complex and is strengthened by the perceived suitability/benefits of the protein and general importance of perceived food healthiness and sustainability. Conversely, adoption is hindered by dietary factors and the experiential importance of meat and food neophobia.
PB MDPI
SN 2304-8158
YR 2020
FD 2020
LK https://uvadoc.uva.es/handle/10324/58991
UL https://uvadoc.uva.es/handle/10324/58991
LA eng
NO Foods, 2020, Vol. 9, Nº. 9, 1292
NO Producción Científica
DS UVaDOC
RD 15-jun-2024