The impact of innovation level and emotional response on upcycled food acceptance

Abstract

In the context of overproduction and overconsumption that has peaked in recent decades, 40% of the food produced in Canada is wasted, half of which is lost along the supply chain. The circular economy is presented in political and scientific circles as a new sustainability paradigm whose implementation could reduce this waste problem and where food waste could be recovered and reintegrated into the supply chain. However, its concrete application and its appropriation by the population still seem to come up against numerous obstacles, such as consumer acceptability. This research has three main objectives. Identify the variables likely to explain the acceptability as well as to better understand the role of perception and the emotional response of upcycled foods and environmental motivations in the decision to purchase these products and finally, to test the effect of the level of innovation on the purchase intention of these products. 1014 Quebec consumers were surveyed, and three ordinal logistic regression models were implemented, one for each level of innovation, and were then used to compare acceptability between the three levels. Results showed that acceptability is strongly influenced by food neophobia, perceived usefulness and attitude towards these products. Emotions of admiration and disgust also influence the intention to consume these products. Fear, on the other hand, has a negative effect on acceptability only when it comes to radical food innovation. This effect even exceeded the effect of food neophobia. Risk aversion, however, did not show any significant relationship with intention.