Acceptance of Insects and In Vitro Meat as a Sustainable Meat Substitute in Germany: In Search of the Decisive Nutritional-Psychological Factors

Abstract

A further intensification of industrial agriculture alone cannot be a viable solution to sustainably feed a steadily growing world population in the future. Besides technical innovations, individual eating habits must become more sustainable. The production of insects and in vitro meat offers several advantages over the production of conventional meat, such as lower CO2 emissions and land use as well as reduced water consumption. Due to the great sustainability potential, interest in both meat alternatives has not only increased significantly in the media and science in recent years, but also large companies in the food industry, such as Nestlé and Wiesenhof, have already recognized their economic potential. Whether the two meat alternatives will prevail in Germany in the future depends-apart from technical and legal factors-strongly on the acceptance of potential consumers. It has already been shown that disgust and fear of novel foods have a negative influence on the acceptance of insects and in vitro meat as food. In addition, it has already been investigated to what extent other nutritional and environmental psychological factors, such as attitudes towards edible insects and in vitro meat, sensation seeking or sustainability consciousness, might have an influence on the acceptance of both meat alternatives. In addition to an overview of selected sustainability and health indicators of both meat alternatives, the book chapter primarily focuses on the above-mentioned environmental and nutritional-psychological factors influencing the acceptance of edible insects and in vitro meat in Germany.