This international study involving seven European countries (Italy, UK, Finland, France, Spain, Greece, Turkey) was conducted to explore the relevant reasons that affect both consumer and non-consumer perceptions of sheep and goat meat. Laddering and means–end chain theory were applied. The results indicate that consumers associate sheep and goat meat with a unique taste, authenticity and natural production, linked with values such as health and enjoyment of life. In contrast, non-consumers mainly feel disgusted when they think and feel about these meats, and do not associate any specific health benefits to their consumption, disliking their taste, odour and fat content. This study is based on qualitative research. Only analytical generalizations are possible, expanding the theory on what drives consumer behaviour when purchasing meat. No previous means–end chain studies are available in the literature regarding small ruminants’ meat consumer preferences.

Eco-labels are crucial in helping consumers make sustainable food choices. However, previous literature has shown that eco-labels lack visibility and, frequently, are not easy for consumers to see. The main goal of the present study was to analyse the influence of aquaculture eco-labels’ visual elements—size and saliency—on consumers’ visual attention and choice. The study uses an eye-tracking methodology, together with a choice experiment and a semiotic analysis. A word association (WA) task was used to explore how each eco-label’s graphic design influenced consumers’ perceptions. Sixty-one consumers’ eye movements were tracked while choosing smoked salmon and seabass products carrying different eco-labels. The results showed that size and saliency largely influence visual attention. The choice of aquaculture products was influenced only by the size of the eco-labels. According to the WA task, the shape, the symbols and the language in which the claim was written influenced consumers’ preferences. The findings contribute to marketing and food research, suggesting which visual elements should be considered to increase consumers’ interest in eco-labels.

Food consumption in Europe is changing. Red meat consumption has been steadily decreasing in the past decades. The rising interest of consumers for healthier and more sustainable meat products provides red meat producers with the opportunity to differentiate their offers by ecolabels, origin and health claims. This international study analyses the European consumer preferences for red meat (beef, lamb and goat) in seven countries: Finland, France, Greece, Italy, Spain, Turkey and the United Kingdom. Through a choice experiment, 2900 responses were collected. Mixed multinomial logit models were estimated to identify heterogeneous preferences among consumers at the country level. The results indicate substantial differences between the most relevant attributes for the average consumer, as well as their willingness to pay for them in each country. Nevertheless, national origin and organic labels were highly valued in most countries.

This study aims to investigate the influence of wine-bottle design and the position of labels on consumers’ visual attention in digital contexts. Two within-subjects experiments combined with implicit eye-tracking measures were implemented in Italy. The visual attention of twenty-four participants was measured using areas of interest metrics while being asked to view two differently shaped bottles in three orientations. Subsequently, four examples of each bottle type were displayed, positioning an organic logo in different areas. Attention and interest measures were captured and analysed using a factorial repeated-measures ANOVA. The results show that the shoulder is the bottle’s first and most fixated part. Significant differences in participants’ attention and interest were found according to the interaction of bottle type and bottle part, as well as bottle part and orientation. Furthermore, exploring the inclusion of an organic logo on different bottle parts provided consistent results. Wine producers and marketers could benefit from bottle anatomy and morphology to identify the best place to display essential information to capture the consumer’s visual attention and interest.

The lack of sufficient information about organic seed production and use is among the key factors affecting the development of the organic seed market in the EU. Currently, only very basic organic seed market data are being reported at the country level. Those available from each member state are seldom comparable over time between countries and sometimes even within one country. This study provides the first overall statistics on European organic seed supply and demand. Estimates of the organic seed demand and supply of twelve important crops in EU organic agriculture are provided by developing and testing innovative approaches to improve data collection and analysis, such as multiple imputation (MI) techniques to estimate missing values. The estimates are based on data extracted from official EU datasets from 2014 to 2018 and collected by an online survey of 756 farmers, as well as various expert assessments across the EU. The results were provided by four EU geographical regions, with a specific focus on wheat, lucerne, carrot, and apple. Although strong sector and regional differences currently characterise the organic seed market, organic seed demand considerably exceeds supply for most crops. Generally, farms in the central and northern regions revealed a higher organic seed supply than those in the southern and eastern regions, and organic seed supply is higher for wheat than other crops. A significant output of this study is the development of recommendations to improve methodologies to increase the transparency and availability of organic seed market data.