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Consumers’ preferences for products derived from genetic improvements and innovations in plant breeding are often conditioned by technophobia and negative public imaginaries. The current study addresses this issue by analyzing consumers’ monetary preferences for a win-win innovation (generating gains for both private actors and the community) in the viticulture sector, namely fungus resistant grapes (FRG). The use of these grapes reduces the quantity of chemical inputs applied to vineyards, simultaneously improving firms’ economic performance. This study aimed to assess whether consumers prefer wines originating from FRG varieties to conventional wines. In particular, through an experimental online survey involving 627 Italian regular wine drinkers, the study compares individuals’ willingness to pay (WTP) for conventional wines with the WTP for two FRG wines produced with two different techniques: horticultural hybridization and genome editing. The study also assesses the potential effect of polarized media coverage on preferences by testing, in a between-subjects experimental design, two diverging (positive/negative) information scenarios, and the core drivers of these preferences. The findings suggest that respondents express a premium price for horticultural FRG wines compared to conventional wines (+9.14%) and a strong discount for genome edited FRG wines (–21.13%). The results also reveal that negative information reduces consumers’ WTP for horticultural FRG wines, while positive information increases their WTP for genome edited FRG wines. Last, the study highlights that individuals concerned with food sustainability issues and knowledgeable about wine are more likely to accept both FRG typologies. Overall, the study confirms the crucial role of appropriate information for market acceptance of innovations based on plant genetics to foster the adoption of sustainable pest-reducing practices in wine production.

The present study focused on an environmental scandal that occurred in Italy, the Land of Fires toxic waste scandal, which caused consumer concerns related to the safety of food produced in the affected region, as well as massive market reduction in products associated with the polluted area. Based on a representative sample of Italian households (N = 1134), this study applied an extended Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) model to analyze consumer purchases of regional food products after this environmental hazard. In addition to attitudes, subjective norms and perceived behavioral control, the model included risk perception, trust, and actual purchases. Using a structural equation model, our results provided support to the hypothesis that consumer perceptions of risk negatively impacted their purchase behaviors and suggested that increasing Italians’ trust in government information could reduce their perceived risk and, consequently, increase their intention to purchase regional food.

Microgreens are gaining increasing recognition among consumers, acclaimed for their freshness and health promoting properties associated with densely fortified secondary metabolites. These immature greens enhance human diet and enrich it with sharp colors and flavors. While numerous species are being tested for agronomic and nutritional suitability, consumer acceptance of appearance, texture, and flavor is critical for the microgreens’ marketplace success. This study investigates whether sensory attributes and visual appearance affect consumer preference for microgreens and their willingness to consume them. By means of a consumer test, the sensory attributes of 12 microgreens species were evaluated, wherein a partial least squares structural equation model was developed to link sensorial attributes to willingness to eat the product. The results showed that although visual appearance of the microgreens was largely appreciated, consumer acceptance overall was mainly determined by flavor and texture. In particular, the lower the astringency, sourness, and bitterness, the higher the consumer acceptability of microgreens. Among the 12 examined species, mibuna and cress scored the lowest acceptance by consumers, while Swiss chard and coriander were the most appreciated, being therefore good candidates to be introduced in Western country markets. In addition, both Swiss chard and coriander have been identified by previous literature as good dietary source of phenolic antioxidants.

The European Union is discussing the introduction of a mandatory front-of-pack label to address the rise in nutrition-related diseases. The Nutri-Score (NS) is the most supported candidate in the EU, despite some controversies exist. Specifically, the policy behind the NS system (i.e., the Farm to Fork Strategy—F2F) appears to conflict with the geographical indication (GI) policy, as the same products (GIs) are promoted for their superior quality by the GI policy and frequently classified as products to be avoided by the NS system. Moreover, the NS system, by encouraging the food industry to reformulate products to improve their nutritional quality, places the GIs in a disadvantageous position, due to their strict product specification. To explore the interactions between these two policies, this paper assesses the effect of the NS on retail prices of both GI and non-GI products in the French market, where this system is widely used. A hedonic price analysis was conducted on 254 raw hams (score D or E) through the estimation of a quantile regression model. Results highlight that the presence of the NS decreases the retail price of raw hams, limited to the high-priced segments. Interestingly, the negative effect is consistent for both GI and non-GI hams, suggesting that the GI label does not mitigate the impact of the NS.

Within food plant cropping systems, microorganisms provide vital functions and ecosystem services, such as biological pest and disease control, promotion of plant growth and crop quality, and biodegradation of organic matter and pollutants. The beneficial effects of microorganisms can be achieved and/or enhanced by agricultural management measures that target the resident microbial biodiversity or by augmentation with domesticated and propagated microbial strains. This study presents a critical review of the current legislation and regulatory policies pertaining to the utilization of plant-beneficial microorganisms in the European Union (EU). For augmentative approaches, the nature of the intended effect and the product claim determine how a microbiological product is categorized and regulated, and pre-market authorization may be mandatory. Typically, microbial products have been incorporated into frameworks that were designed for evaluating non-living substances, and are therefore not well suited to the specific properties of live microorganisms. We suggest that regulatory harmonization across the sector could stimulate technical development and facilitate implementation of crop management methods employing microorganisms. Possible scenarios for regulatory reform in the longer term are discussed, but more investigation into their feasibility is needed. The findings of this study should serve as a catalyst for more efficient future use of plant-beneficial microorganisms, to the benefit of agriculture as well as the environment.

The adoption of circular bioeconomy (CBE) strategies in forest-wood supply chains is a possible avenue for the future of this sector. However, the uptake of CBE models may face several barriers in the coming years, particularly in disadvantaged forest areas lacking appropriate resources and a suitable business environment to start radical innovation pathways. Based on interviews with 29 representatives (business actors and other key informants) of the forest-food sector of the Salerno province (Italy), the current study investigated the main strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) involved in the transition of disadvantaged forest areas into a circular bioeconomy. Respondents also contributed to identifying the most suitable strategies in order to foster the CBE transition in the territory at hand. The paper offers an outlook for the potentialities of CBE in disadvantaged forest areas for policy actors, willing to bridge the gap between CBE agendas and territorial development challenges. The role of policy actors is particularly crucial, in order to patronize investments, stimulate improved know-how and cooperation, and fix policy inconsistencies related to biomass valorization.

This study aims at assessing if benefits, based on the economic performance of farms operating in an agro-food supply chain, are generated by a vertical coordination. A panel data (2008-2011) of durum wheat producers was used, namely the Italian Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN). Outcomes of coordinated and non-coordinated farms with equal farm and farmer characteristics were calculated through different economic performance measures. A propensity score-matching model was implemented to take account of the selection bias due to observed individual heterogeneity. The comparisons of average differences in farm economic performance indexes, including costs and profitability, show a coordination premium in competitiveness and profitability of Italian durum wheat farms.

Adoption rates of agroecological farming practices remain low amongst European farmers and vary from country to country, despite European or national policies aimed at achieving ‘sustainable agriculture’. Our study, based on the Theory of Planned Behaviour and conducted in eight European countries in 2023 with 268 farmers surveyed, examines behavioural drivers of adoption of agroecological practices in terms of attitudes, perceived behavioural control, social norms, perceived risk, and the role of formal and informal information sources. The main findings reveal three key points: 1) Farmers were more likely to adopt agroecological practices if they had a positive attitude towards them and felt confident in their ability to implement them whilst social pressure had only a limited impact on adoption. 2) Perceived risks associated with agroecological practices significantly reduced farmers’ willingness to adopt. 3) Formal sources of information had a significant positive effect on the perceived risks, whereas informal information sources did not. However, the latter had a significant positive effect on social pressures, suggesting that they influence farmers’ perceptions of what is socially expected by their communities. These findings imply that to accelerate the adoption of agroecological practices, policy and advisory services should focus on mitigating farmers’ risk perceptions through formal, evidence-based information, thereby fostering positive attitudes and a stronger sense of control.

Transitioning into a circular economy (CE) has been recently proposed as an agenda for reconciling global industrial systems with natural equilibria, but the current understanding of CE is ambiguous among scholars. Informed by recent growing CE literature, this study summarizes through three key propositions a set of indisputable insights emerging from the CE debate. In particular, the paper: remarks how CE takes stock of concepts of other schools of thought to drive policy interventions; depicts CE as a systemic transition of global industrial systems; and highlights the role of eco-effectiveness to upgrade business-centered approaches to sustainability. The proposed propositions are expected to contribute to reducing ambiguities in the CE debate and to convey coherence to future research.