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Dr. Azucena Gracia
Unidad de Economía Agroalimentaria y de los Recursos Naturales, Centro de Investigación y Tecnología Agroalimentaria de Aragón (CITA), Avda Montañana 930, Zaragoza 50059, Spain

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Research Keywords & Expertise

0 Food preferences and consumer behaviour
0 Economics of food policy and quality
0 Valuation methods
0 Food industry and food marketing
0 Sustainable rural economy

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Food preferences and consumer behaviour
Food industry and food marketing

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Journal article
Published: 13 August 2020 in Sustainability
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Local plant genetic resources are of vital importance for the resilience of the agroecosystems, especially under conditions of global climate change. The diversification of production using these resources is postulated as an alternative for the development of rural areas with non-optimal farming conditions and/or disadvantaged by depopulation. However, in order to sustainably utilize local genetic resources, their use has also to provide products accepted by consumers. The aim of this study was to evaluate consumer acceptance of a local purple carrot that is a Spanish landrace at risk of genetic erosion from Teruel, a province in the Aragón region seriously affected by depopulation and extreme weather conditions, to contribute to its sustainable recovery. Consumer preferences for carrots with different characteristics (color, price, variety, and production system) were studied, and their willingness to pay (WTP) for the local purple carrots was assessed. Data from a survey conducted in this Spanish region was used. We identified two segments of consumers with different willingness to pay, hedonic liking, and intention to purchase the purple local carrots. These traditional purple carrots would be accepted by the segment of consumers more willing to pay for and more likely to purchase these carrots. The traditional purple carrots should be promoted, emphasizing that they are produced by a local landrace whose purple color is due to anthocyanic pigments with known antioxidant properties.

ACS Style

Azucena Gracia; Ana María Sánchez; Francesc Jurado; Cristina Mallor. Making Use of Sustainable Local Plant Genetic Resources: Would Consumers Support the Recovery of a Traditional Purple Carrot? Sustainability 2020, 12, 6549 .

AMA Style

Azucena Gracia, Ana María Sánchez, Francesc Jurado, Cristina Mallor. Making Use of Sustainable Local Plant Genetic Resources: Would Consumers Support the Recovery of a Traditional Purple Carrot? Sustainability. 2020; 12 (16):6549.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Azucena Gracia; Ana María Sánchez; Francesc Jurado; Cristina Mallor. 2020. "Making Use of Sustainable Local Plant Genetic Resources: Would Consumers Support the Recovery of a Traditional Purple Carrot?" Sustainability 12, no. 16: 6549.

Journal article
Published: 19 May 2020 in Sustainability
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Improving food sustainability and reducing food waste are among the top challenges for achieving global sustainable development. In particular, changes towards more sustainable consumption are of vital importance in creating a more sustainable world. To shed light on these issues, we analyze to what extent and how consumers’ food preferences move towards more sustainable behavior. We assess the importance consumers attach to the following critical sustainable attributes of food related to food waste: (i) “Visual imperfections”, (ii) “washed/unwashed”, (iii) “size”, (iv) “locally produced”, and (v) “price”. We hypothesize that consumer preferences for these attributes are heterogeneous. Therefore, we segmented consumers into homogenous groups according to preferences for these sustainability attributes. To do this, we employed a direct ranking preference method using data gathered in an experiment conducted with consumers living in a mid-sized town in the northeast of Spain in 2018. The results suggest a high degree of consumer heterogeneity, and we identified four clusters according to the importance consumers attach to these attributes. The results are encouraging for the promotion of sustainability because different groups of consumers might prefer to purchase food products with different sustainable characteristics, such as locally grown, foods with visual imperfections, and minimally processed foods.

ACS Style

Azucena Gracia; Miguel I. Gómez. Food Sustainability and Waste Reduction in Spain: Consumer Preferences for Local, Suboptimal, And/Or Unwashed Fresh Food Products. Sustainability 2020, 12, 4148 .

AMA Style

Azucena Gracia, Miguel I. Gómez. Food Sustainability and Waste Reduction in Spain: Consumer Preferences for Local, Suboptimal, And/Or Unwashed Fresh Food Products. Sustainability. 2020; 12 (10):4148.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Azucena Gracia; Miguel I. Gómez. 2020. "Food Sustainability and Waste Reduction in Spain: Consumer Preferences for Local, Suboptimal, And/Or Unwashed Fresh Food Products." Sustainability 12, no. 10: 4148.

Journal article
Published: 08 May 2020 in Food Quality and Preference
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Nutritional claims (NCs) and health claims (HCs) on food products have been introduced as interpretative aids to simplify the information provided on food labelling. However, HCs have been criticised for being unappealing and an information overload on food packages. We aimed to explore whether adding a HC to the associated NC is a good strategy or information overload in a close-to-real non-hypothetical choice experiment with real products and real payments. Consumers’ valuation of two NCs and HCs in breakfast biscuits is measured in two treatments. Treatment A communicates NCs and tests for the external ecological validity of the experiment, while treatment B communicates both, the NC and the associated HC. Results from the willingness to pay estimates showed that consumers are willing to pay premiums for the fat-related HC in addition to the NC while not for the claims related to the fibre content.

ACS Style

Petjon Ballco; Francesc Jurado; Azucena Gracia. Do health claims add value to nutritional claims? Evidence from a close-to-real experiment on breakfast biscuits. Food Quality and Preference 2020, 85, 103968 .

AMA Style

Petjon Ballco, Francesc Jurado, Azucena Gracia. Do health claims add value to nutritional claims? Evidence from a close-to-real experiment on breakfast biscuits. Food Quality and Preference. 2020; 85 ():103968.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Petjon Ballco; Francesc Jurado; Azucena Gracia. 2020. "Do health claims add value to nutritional claims? Evidence from a close-to-real experiment on breakfast biscuits." Food Quality and Preference 85, no. : 103968.

Journal article
Published: 13 February 2020 in Foods
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Multiple quality labels that signal whether a particular food has special characteristics relating to geographical origin or production method have become standard within European food policy. The aim of this paper was to investigate how two of these labels in particular influence consumers’ food choices. We assessed consumers’ preferences for an extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) displaying EU quality labels and focus on whether they are complements or substitutes. In order to do so, we used a discrete choice experiment (DCE) to estimate main and two-way interactions effects with data from a self-administrated survey in a Spanish region. Results indicate that while consumers positively value both the Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) and the organic labels, the valuation for PDO is almost double that of the valuation of the organic label. Furthermore, the findings show that for a majority of consumers considered both labels substitutes, while a small group considered them complements. These findings can help producers identify an optimal labelling strategy to maximize returns on certification investments.

ACS Style

Luis Pérez Y Pérez; Azucena Gracia; Jesús Barreiro-Hurlé. Not Seeing the Forest for the Trees: The Impact of Multiple Labelling on Consumer Choices for Olive Oil. Foods 2020, 9, 186 .

AMA Style

Luis Pérez Y Pérez, Azucena Gracia, Jesús Barreiro-Hurlé. Not Seeing the Forest for the Trees: The Impact of Multiple Labelling on Consumer Choices for Olive Oil. Foods. 2020; 9 (2):186.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Luis Pérez Y Pérez; Azucena Gracia; Jesús Barreiro-Hurlé. 2020. "Not Seeing the Forest for the Trees: The Impact of Multiple Labelling on Consumer Choices for Olive Oil." Foods 9, no. 2: 186.

Journal article
Published: 21 November 2019 in Nutrients
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As a result of increased consumer awareness, demand for healthier food products is increasing day by day. Consumers seek healthier versions of food products which they relate to reduced presence of unhealthy components or increased presence of healthy ones. As a result, the food industry has not only increased the variety of products available but also uses nutritional claims to signal the presence of more substances. As an average consumer at the supermarket devotes just a few seconds to selecting each product, they are only able or willing to process that information that immediately attracts their attention or that is felt to be more important to them. This paper analyses how consumers rank different nutritional claims for two processed cereal products. Five claims were chosen to reflect the current market landscape of availability, and that relates to both “healthy” (i.e., fiber) and “unhealthy” (i.e., fat) substances. We use a direct ranking preference method with data from a survey conducted with consumers in a Spanish region in 2017. Results show that the ranking of claims differs between the two products (biscuits and pastries) and across consumers. However, consumers prefer those that show reduced presence of unhealthy substances above those that highlight the presence of healthy ones. Therefore, policy to maximize the impact of nutritional labelling should be product-specific.

ACS Style

Azucena Gracia; Jesús Barreiro-Hurlé; Barreiro- Hurlé. Making Sense of Information Overload: Consumer Ranking of Nutritional Claims in Cereal Based Products. Nutrients 2019, 11, 2858 .

AMA Style

Azucena Gracia, Jesús Barreiro-Hurlé, Barreiro- Hurlé. Making Sense of Information Overload: Consumer Ranking of Nutritional Claims in Cereal Based Products. Nutrients. 2019; 11 (12):2858.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Azucena Gracia; Jesús Barreiro-Hurlé; Barreiro- Hurlé. 2019. "Making Sense of Information Overload: Consumer Ranking of Nutritional Claims in Cereal Based Products." Nutrients 11, no. 12: 2858.

Journal article
Published: 13 November 2019 in Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services
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The objective of this research is to examine whether there is a relationship between the value of attributes based on the market price and on consumer utilities. To address this objective, the results from a hedonic price (HP) approach are combined with the actual consumer utilities from a real choice experiment (RCE) for extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) attributes. The results indicate that the origin of production attribute positively influences consumer utility and it is also positively related to market EVOO prices. Conversely, the PDO quality certification positively influences consumer utility and willingness to pay, although it is not related to EVOO prices in the real market.

ACS Style

Petjon Ballco; Azucena Gracia. Do market prices correspond with consumer demands? Combining market valuation and consumer utility for extra virgin olive oil quality attributes in a traditional producing country. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services 2019, 53, 101999 .

AMA Style

Petjon Ballco, Azucena Gracia. Do market prices correspond with consumer demands? Combining market valuation and consumer utility for extra virgin olive oil quality attributes in a traditional producing country. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services. 2019; 53 ():101999.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Petjon Ballco; Azucena Gracia. 2019. "Do market prices correspond with consumer demands? Combining market valuation and consumer utility for extra virgin olive oil quality attributes in a traditional producing country." Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services 53, no. : 101999.

Journal article
Published: 19 October 2019 in Food Quality and Preference
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As an extension of the current strategies employed to evaluate new products/attributes, this research presents a more realistic approach and obtains more accurate results through the combination of real choice experiments (RCEs) and sensory analysis. Two RCEs are carried out to mimic a real shopping scenario before and after experiencing the taste of extra virgin olive oils (EVOO) with a new attribute. Regular EVOO consumers evaluated the products under three different stages: i) purchase stage (i.e., evaluation based on search and credence attributes); ii) consumption stage (i.e., tasting to familiarise with the experience characteristics); iii) re-purchase stage (i.e., re-evaluating the products after the taste experience). Results indicate that in a typical purchase process, consumers form taste expectations based on quality certification attributes while after experiencing the real taste of the product, preferences change. These changes are also reflected in the willingness-to-pay (WTP) estimates given before and after tasting. The findings reveal that combining sensory analysis and RCEs is a promising strategy for the evaluation of new products/attributes.

ACS Style

Petjon Ballco; Azucena Gracia. An extended approach combining sensory and real choice experiments to examine new product attributes. Food Quality and Preference 2019, 80, 103830 .

AMA Style

Petjon Ballco, Azucena Gracia. An extended approach combining sensory and real choice experiments to examine new product attributes. Food Quality and Preference. 2019; 80 ():103830.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Petjon Ballco; Azucena Gracia. 2019. "An extended approach combining sensory and real choice experiments to examine new product attributes." Food Quality and Preference 80, no. : 103830.

Journal article
Published: 02 March 2019 in Nutrients
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The Nutrition and Health Claims Regulation (NHCR) EC No 1924/2006 aims to provide an appropriate level of consumer protection whilst supporting future innovation and fair competition within the EU food industry. However, consumers’ interpretation of health claims is less well understood. There is a lack of evidence on the extent to which consumers are able to understand claims defined by this regulatory framework. Utilising the Multiple Sort Procedure (MSP), a study was performed (N = 100 participants across five countries: Germany, the Netherlands, Slovenia, Spain and the United Kingdom) to facilitate development of a framework of health-related claims encompassing dimensions derived from consumers. Our results provide useful insight into how consumers make sense of these claims and how claims may be optimised to enhance appropriate consumer understanding. They suggest consumers may not consciously differentiate between a nutrition claim and a health claim in the way that regulatory experts do and provide insight into where this might occur. A consumer-derived typology of health-related claims based on three key dimensions is proposed: (1) Familiarity with the nutrient, substance or food stated in the claim; (2) statement type in terms of simplicity/complexity; (3) relevance of the claim, either personally or for a stated population group.

ACS Style

Charo E. Hodgkins; Bernadette Egan; Matthew Peacock; Naomi Klepacz; Krista Miklavec; Igor Pravst; Jure Pohar; Azucena Gracia; Andrea Groeppel-Klein; Mike Rayner; Monique M. Raats. Understanding How Consumers Categorise Health Related Claims on Foods: A Consumer-Derived Typology of Health-Related Claims. Nutrients 2019, 11, 539 .

AMA Style

Charo E. Hodgkins, Bernadette Egan, Matthew Peacock, Naomi Klepacz, Krista Miklavec, Igor Pravst, Jure Pohar, Azucena Gracia, Andrea Groeppel-Klein, Mike Rayner, Monique M. Raats. Understanding How Consumers Categorise Health Related Claims on Foods: A Consumer-Derived Typology of Health-Related Claims. Nutrients. 2019; 11 (3):539.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Charo E. Hodgkins; Bernadette Egan; Matthew Peacock; Naomi Klepacz; Krista Miklavec; Igor Pravst; Jure Pohar; Azucena Gracia; Andrea Groeppel-Klein; Mike Rayner; Monique M. Raats. 2019. "Understanding How Consumers Categorise Health Related Claims on Foods: A Consumer-Derived Typology of Health-Related Claims." Nutrients 11, no. 3: 539.

Article
Published: 22 January 2018 in Packaging Technology and Science
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The use of vacuum packaging for fresh meat with low rate of turnover in the supermarket shelves, as it is the case of lamb meat in Spain, is recommended. Because the amount of mandatory information on fresh-meat labels has increased, there is a need to design new labels to enhance the support for this information. Therefore, to anticipate the consumer's acceptance of vacuum packaging and the preferences for newly designed labels is of vital importance. This is the objective of the paper; in particular, it measures the consumers' relative importance of the vacuum packaging and different labels in relation to other important lamb-meat characteristics (type of cut, price, and regional indication). To do that, a choice experiment was used and an error-component random-parameter model with correlated errors was estimated. Results suggest that consumers positively value all of the attributes except for the new designed labels. In particular, consumers positively value the vacuum packaging but to lesser extent than other lamb-meat attributes such as the type of cut, the protected geographical indication certification, and the price. However, consumers only value the vacuum packaging in the case of fresh lamb meat with a protected geographical indication certification. Moreover, this valuation is higher for older consumers who use, to a higher extent, their own direct appraisal of the meat and the information on the label when shopping and give less importance to the presence of liquid around the meat.

ACS Style

María Teresa Maza; Azucena Gracia; Moez Saied. Consumers' valuation of two packaging aspects for fresh lamb meat: Vacuum and information labels. Packaging Technology and Science 2018, 31, 123 -132.

AMA Style

María Teresa Maza, Azucena Gracia, Moez Saied. Consumers' valuation of two packaging aspects for fresh lamb meat: Vacuum and information labels. Packaging Technology and Science. 2018; 31 (3):123-132.

Chicago/Turabian Style

María Teresa Maza; Azucena Gracia; Moez Saied. 2018. "Consumers' valuation of two packaging aspects for fresh lamb meat: Vacuum and information labels." Packaging Technology and Science 31, no. 3: 123-132.

Journal article
Published: 01 January 2018 in Journal of Cleaner Production
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The aim of the paper is to analyse biodiesel market acceptance in Spain. In particular, we study the intention to use biodiesel by Spanish diesel car drivers and the factors explaining this intention. To achieve this goal, we developed a model of the intention to use biodiesel based on the Theory of Planned Behaviour but extended in two ways. The first one consists of the inclusion of two new predictors of the intention to use (environmental self-identity and biodiesel knowledge) and the second, the extension of the model to take into account the two barriers in the adoption of biodiesel in the market (potential price premium and limited availability in the petrol stations). This model has been specified as an ordered probit and estimated using data from a survey conducted in Spain. Results indicated that apart from the attitudes towards biodiesel use, the most important factors explaining the intention to use biodiesel are the biodiesel knowledge and the environmental self-identity, in other words, the new predictors in the Theory of Planned Behaviour model. In addition, the effects of all the factors (attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioural control, biodiesel knowledge, environmental self-identity and socio-demographic characteristics) on the intention to use were different, depending on the price and the availability of the biodiesel in the market. Thus, we can conclude that to analyse the intention to use biodiesel, different price and availability scenarios should be taken into account. Empirical results indicated that to increase biodiesel use, the best option is to increase biodiesel knowledge and environmental self-identity.

ACS Style

Azucena Gracia; Jesus Barreiro-Hurle; Luis Pérez Y Pérez. Overcoming the barriers for biodiesel use in Spain: An analysis of the role of convenience and price. Journal of Cleaner Production 2018, 172, 391 -401.

AMA Style

Azucena Gracia, Jesus Barreiro-Hurle, Luis Pérez Y Pérez. Overcoming the barriers for biodiesel use in Spain: An analysis of the role of convenience and price. Journal of Cleaner Production. 2018; 172 ():391-401.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Azucena Gracia; Jesus Barreiro-Hurle; Luis Pérez Y Pérez. 2018. "Overcoming the barriers for biodiesel use in Spain: An analysis of the role of convenience and price." Journal of Cleaner Production 172, no. : 391-401.

Journal article
Published: 04 December 2017 in British Food Journal
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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate Spanish consumer preferences for several food-labelling schemes on semi-cured, pasteurised sheep milk cheese. In particular, the authors used three labels regulated by the European Union regulation (European organic logo, protected denomination of origin (PDO) and nutritional fat content), and the remaining four have been introduced to the European food market by private initiatives (local, carbon footprint, food miles and animal welfare). Design/methodology/approach A Best-Worst Discrete Choice approach was applied in Spain during Fall 2011 by administrating a survey to 549 consumers. Findings The results suggest that the most valued labels are the PDO, followed by the organic logo and the nutritional panel. The least valued are food-miles labelling and carbon foodprint labels, while local-origin labels and animal welfare are in the middle position. Originality/value This study is the first to value consumer preferences for cheese products bearing several public and private European food-labelling schemes since literature on consumer preferences for food labels has only dealt with a comparison of a few (two or at most three) food-labelling schemes. In addition, the added value of this paper is also the use of the BWC approach that has the advantage of providing the best way to discriminate the degree of importance given by respondents to each food labels by overcoming the problem of bias caused by differences in the use of rating scales.

ACS Style

Tiziana De-Magistris; Azucena Gracia; Jesus Barreiro-Hurle. Do consumers care about European food labels? An empirical evaluation using best-worst method. British Food Journal 2017, 119, 2698 -2711.

AMA Style

Tiziana De-Magistris, Azucena Gracia, Jesus Barreiro-Hurle. Do consumers care about European food labels? An empirical evaluation using best-worst method. British Food Journal. 2017; 119 (12):2698-2711.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Tiziana De-Magistris; Azucena Gracia; Jesus Barreiro-Hurle. 2017. "Do consumers care about European food labels? An empirical evaluation using best-worst method." British Food Journal 119, no. 12: 2698-2711.

Journal article
Published: 13 February 2017 in Nutrients
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The presence in the market of food products with nutritional claims is increasing. The objective of this paper is to assess consumers’ valuation of some nutritional claims (‘high in fiber’ and ‘reduced saturated fat’) in a European country and to test for differences among consumers. An artefactual non-hypothetical experiment was carried out in a realistic setting (mock/real brick-and-mortar supermarket) with a sample of 121 Spanish consumers stratified by gender, age, and body mass index. A latent class model was specified and estimated with the data from the experiment. Results indicate that consumers positively valued both nutritional claims, but the valuation was heterogeneous, and three consumer segments were detected. Two of them positively valued both nutritional claims (named ‘nutritional claim seekers’), while the third segment’s valuation was negative (named ‘nutritional claim avoiders’). This last segment is characterized by being younger males with university studies who give the least importance to health, natural ingredients, and the calorie/sugar/fat content when shopping. They pay less attention to nutritional information, and they stated that they use this information to a lesser extent. These consumers showed the least interest in healthy eating, and they reported that they do not have health problems related to their diet.

ACS Style

Francesc Jurado; Azucena Gracia. Does the Valuation of Nutritional Claims Differ among Consumers? Insights from Spain. Nutrients 2017, 9, 132 .

AMA Style

Francesc Jurado, Azucena Gracia. Does the Valuation of Nutritional Claims Differ among Consumers? Insights from Spain. Nutrients. 2017; 9 (2):132.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Francesc Jurado; Azucena Gracia. 2017. "Does the Valuation of Nutritional Claims Differ among Consumers? Insights from Spain." Nutrients 9, no. 2: 132.

Journal article
Published: 01 January 2017 in Food Quality and Preference
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ACS Style

Tiziana De-Magistris; Azucena Gracia. Does hunger matter in consumer purchase decisions? An empirical investigation of processed food products. Food Quality and Preference 2017, 55, 1 -5.

AMA Style

Tiziana De-Magistris, Azucena Gracia. Does hunger matter in consumer purchase decisions? An empirical investigation of processed food products. Food Quality and Preference. 2017; 55 ():1-5.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Tiziana De-Magistris; Azucena Gracia. 2017. "Does hunger matter in consumer purchase decisions? An empirical investigation of processed food products." Food Quality and Preference 55, no. : 1-5.

Journal article
Published: 01 June 2016 in Spanish Journal of Agricultural Research
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European farmers of indigenous local breeds have benefited from European Union economic support in the past and it is forecast to continue being supported in the future. However, it is in the public debate that economic support cannot last forever. Then, for the long-run maintenance of indigenous local breeds to be possible, the derived meat products from these breeds should be demanded by consumers or at least by a group of local consumers. This is the aim of this paper, to study consumers’ demand for indigenous local meat products. In particular, to assess how much consumers are willing to pay for a Spanish lamb meat from an indigenous sheep breed (“Ojinegra de Teruel”). To do that, a non-hypothetical experimental auction with local consumers (those living in a medium-size town around 150 km from the producing area of this meat) was used. Results indicated that consumers were willing to pay, on average, €0.45 (15% of the market price) more for the lamb meat with the “Ojinegra de Teruel” breed claim than for the one without breed indication (as it is now sold in the market). Then, local consumers clearly accept the differentiated meat through the indigenous breed indication. Then, producers in the area could have more opportunities to sell in the local market if they differentiate their meat using the indigenous “Ojinegra de Teruel” claim than using the undifferentiated strategy they are undertaken now.

ACS Style

Azucena Gracia; Tiziana De-Magistris. Short communication: Consumer’s willingness to pay for indigenous meat products: The case of a Spanish sheep breed. Spanish Journal of Agricultural Research 2016, 14, 1 .

AMA Style

Azucena Gracia, Tiziana De-Magistris. Short communication: Consumer’s willingness to pay for indigenous meat products: The case of a Spanish sheep breed. Spanish Journal of Agricultural Research. 2016; 14 (2):1.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Azucena Gracia; Tiziana De-Magistris. 2016. "Short communication: Consumer’s willingness to pay for indigenous meat products: The case of a Spanish sheep breed." Spanish Journal of Agricultural Research 14, no. 2: 1.

Journal article
Published: 01 April 2016 in Journal of Cleaner Production
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Organically and locally grown products have positive environmental impacts due to the reduction in the greenhouse emissions required for their production. This paper contributes to this research stream by investigating consumers' preferences and their willingness to pay for almonds that have different sustainable labels: distance claims (100 km, 800 km, and 2000 km) and the organic logo established by the European Union. To achieve the objective, consumers participated in a non-hypothetical choice experiment; latent class modeling was employed to identify distinct patterns of valuation. The results suggest that consumers were willing to pay a positive price premium for locally grown (traveled the shortest distance) and organically produced almonds, whereas they were not willing to pay a price premium for almonds that have traveled longer distances. Moreover, the findings show that consumer preferences for these claims were heterogeneous, with three consumer segments identified as: “conventional consumers”, “short distance consumers”, and “sustainable consumers”. Overall results confirm the results of previous studies because Spanish consumers were willing to pay a premium price for those almonds that are organically and locally produced, and, therefore, generate fewer greenhouse gases emissions. The findings of this study added scientific value to scholars of sustainable consumer behavior because of the use of Real Choice Experiment. Since no-hypothetical evaluation method simulates real markets with real products and a transaction of money, real choice experiment provides better approximations of true willingness to pay for organic and local almonds. Therefore real choice modeling eliminates hypothetical and social bias. The results of this study contribute to insights in the promotion of sustainable consumption among citizens by policy makers. In this regard, promotional and educational campaigns could drive different segments of consumers to increase their knowledge on the benefits of reduction of the quantity of GHG emissions required for organic and locally grown production.

ACS Style

Tiziana De-Magistris; Azucena Gracia. Consumers' willingness-to-pay for sustainable food products: the case of organically and locally grown almonds in Spain. Journal of Cleaner Production 2016, 118, 97 -104.

AMA Style

Tiziana De-Magistris, Azucena Gracia. Consumers' willingness-to-pay for sustainable food products: the case of organically and locally grown almonds in Spain. Journal of Cleaner Production. 2016; 118 ():97-104.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Tiziana De-Magistris; Azucena Gracia. 2016. "Consumers' willingness-to-pay for sustainable food products: the case of organically and locally grown almonds in Spain." Journal of Cleaner Production 118, no. : 97-104.

Journal article
Published: 07 March 2016 in British Food Journal
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Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to assess consumers’ willingness to pay (WTP) for three different food claims on semi-cured, pasteurized sheep milk cheese. In particular, the authors used a health-related claim (the nutritional claim indicating a reduced fat content: “light”), a regional claim (“designation of origin – PDO”) and an organic claim (the European organic logo). Moreover, the authors investigated whether consumers’ personal characteristics could influence their WTP for those types of cheese. Design/methodology/approach – A home-grown experimental auction was applied in Spain during Spring 2012. The authors opted to use the nth random price with repeated rounds and without price feedback. Findings – The results show that consumers were willing to pay more for PDO cheese, followed by organic and light cheese. Moreover, respondents who were female, older and with a university-level education showed some environmental concerns, influencing their WTP for different cheeses. Originality/value – Empirical evidence on consumers’ preferences for PDO, organic and nutritional claims, evaluated jointly, is lacking in Spain. Moreover, the home-grown auction has several merits in terms of real market simulation and consumer preference application.

ACS Style

Tiziana De-Magistris; Azucena Gracia. Consumers’ willingness to pay for light, organic and PDO cheese. British Food Journal 2016, 118, 560 -571.

AMA Style

Tiziana De-Magistris, Azucena Gracia. Consumers’ willingness to pay for light, organic and PDO cheese. British Food Journal. 2016; 118 (3):560-571.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Tiziana De-Magistris; Azucena Gracia. 2016. "Consumers’ willingness to pay for light, organic and PDO cheese." British Food Journal 118, no. 3: 560-571.

Multicenter study
Published: 03 March 2016 in Nutrients
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This study is part of the research undertaken in the EU funded project CLYMBOL (“Role of health-related CLaims and sYMBOLs in consumer behaviour”). The first phase of this project consisted of mapping the prevalence of symbolic and non-symbolic nutrition and health-related claims (NHC) on foods and non-alcoholic beverages in five European countries. Pre-packaged foods and drinks were sampled based on a standardized sampling protocol, using store lists or a store floor plan. Data collection took place across five countries, in three types of stores. A total of 2034 foods and drinks were sampled and packaging information was analyzed. At least one claim was identified for 26% (95% CI (24.0%–27.9%)) of all foods and drinks sampled. Six percent of these claims were symbolic. The majority of the claims were nutrition claims (64%), followed by health claims (29%) and health-related ingredient claims (6%). The most common health claims were nutrient and other function claims (47% of all claims), followed by disease risk reduction claims (5%). Eight percent of the health claims were children’s development and health claims but these were only observed on less than 1% (0.4%–1.1%) of the foods. The category of foods for specific dietary use had the highest proportion of NHC (70% of foods carried a claim). The prevalence of symbolic and non-symbolic NHC varies across European countries and between different food categories. This study provides baseline data for policy makers and the food industry to monitor and evaluate the use of claims on food packaging.

ACS Style

Sophie Hieke; Nera Kuljanic; Igor Pravst; Krista Miklavec; Asha Kaur; Kerry A. Brown; Bernadette M. Egan; Katja Pfeifer; Azucena Gracia; Mike Rayner. Prevalence of Nutrition and Health-Related Claims on Pre-Packaged Foods: A Five-Country Study in Europe. Nutrients 2016, 8, 137 .

AMA Style

Sophie Hieke, Nera Kuljanic, Igor Pravst, Krista Miklavec, Asha Kaur, Kerry A. Brown, Bernadette M. Egan, Katja Pfeifer, Azucena Gracia, Mike Rayner. Prevalence of Nutrition and Health-Related Claims on Pre-Packaged Foods: A Five-Country Study in Europe. Nutrients. 2016; 8 (3):137.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Sophie Hieke; Nera Kuljanic; Igor Pravst; Krista Miklavec; Asha Kaur; Kerry A. Brown; Bernadette M. Egan; Katja Pfeifer; Azucena Gracia; Mike Rayner. 2016. "Prevalence of Nutrition and Health-Related Claims on Pre-Packaged Foods: A Five-Country Study in Europe." Nutrients 8, no. 3: 137.

Journal article
Published: 01 March 2016 in Food Control
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In the EU food market, different food labeling schemes co-exist with the aim of informing customers and providing trust on different quality characteristics of food products. To understand which food labeling schemes are the most and the least important for consumers is very relevant because a labeling strategy will be useful for food companies if consumers, or at least one segment of consumers, value food labeling. The aim of this study was to measure the importance consumers attach to different labeling schemes available in the food market. Seven different food labeling schemes, some regulated by the EU (the EU organic logo, the Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) indication and the nutritional fact panel) and some of them not yet regulated at the European level (the food miles indication; the local origin; the carbon footprint information; and an improved animal welfare indication), were assessed by consumers. To do this, the direct ranking preference method was used and a rank-ordered mixed logit model was estimated with the data from a survey conducted with food shoppers in a medium-sized Spanish town. The results indicate that the most preferred labeling scheme was the PDO indication, closely followed by the nutritional fact panel and the EU organic logo. In other words, consumers clearly valued labeling schemes that are regulated by EU law. Moreover, consumer preferences for food labeling were heterogeneous and three segments of consumers based on preferences were found: PDO lovers, organic EU logo lovers and the nutritional information lovers.

ACS Style

Azucena Gracia; Tiziana De-Magistris. Consumer preferences for food labeling: What ranks first? Food Control 2016, 61, 39 -46.

AMA Style

Azucena Gracia, Tiziana De-Magistris. Consumer preferences for food labeling: What ranks first? Food Control. 2016; 61 ():39-46.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Azucena Gracia; Tiziana De-Magistris. 2016. "Consumer preferences for food labeling: What ranks first?" Food Control 61, no. : 39-46.

Journal article
Published: 10 January 2016 in European Journal of Nutrition & Food Safety
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Sophie Hieke; Nera Kuljanic; Laura Fernandez; Liisa Lahteenmaki; Violeta Stancu; Monique M. Raats; Bernadette Egan; Ka Brown; Hans Van Trijp; Ellen Van Kleef; Erica Van Herpen; Andrea Groppel-Klein; Stephanie Leick; Katja Pfeifer; Wim Verbeke; Christine Hoefkens; Sinne Smed; Leon Jansen; Anita Laser-Reutersward; Ziva Korosec; Igor Pravst; Anita Kusar; Marija Klopcic; Jure Pohar; Azucena Gracia; Tiziana De Magistris; Klaus G. Grunert. Country Differences in the History of Use of Health Claims and Symbols. European Journal of Nutrition & Food Safety 2016, 6, 148 -168.

AMA Style

Sophie Hieke, Nera Kuljanic, Laura Fernandez, Liisa Lahteenmaki, Violeta Stancu, Monique M. Raats, Bernadette Egan, Ka Brown, Hans Van Trijp, Ellen Van Kleef, Erica Van Herpen, Andrea Groppel-Klein, Stephanie Leick, Katja Pfeifer, Wim Verbeke, Christine Hoefkens, Sinne Smed, Leon Jansen, Anita Laser-Reutersward, Ziva Korosec, Igor Pravst, Anita Kusar, Marija Klopcic, Jure Pohar, Azucena Gracia, Tiziana De Magistris, Klaus G. Grunert. Country Differences in the History of Use of Health Claims and Symbols. European Journal of Nutrition & Food Safety. 2016; 6 (3):148-168.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Sophie Hieke; Nera Kuljanic; Laura Fernandez; Liisa Lahteenmaki; Violeta Stancu; Monique M. Raats; Bernadette Egan; Ka Brown; Hans Van Trijp; Ellen Van Kleef; Erica Van Herpen; Andrea Groppel-Klein; Stephanie Leick; Katja Pfeifer; Wim Verbeke; Christine Hoefkens; Sinne Smed; Leon Jansen; Anita Laser-Reutersward; Ziva Korosec; Igor Pravst; Anita Kusar; Marija Klopcic; Jure Pohar; Azucena Gracia; Tiziana De Magistris; Klaus G. Grunert. 2016. "Country Differences in the History of Use of Health Claims and Symbols." European Journal of Nutrition & Food Safety 6, no. 3: 148-168.

Journal article
Published: 01 December 2015 in Meat Science
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The aim of the paper is to study consumers' acceptability for a lamb meat from a local autochthonous breed. An intention to purchase model was developed based on the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) and estimated using data from a survey conducted in Spain. Results indicated that consumers were willing to buy this lamb meat because 86% of respondents said that they probably/definitely would buy it, although only 23% would if the meat is not available in their usual meat store. Then, the lack of availability in the market is an aspect limiting its consumption. The most important factors explaining the intention to purchase for consumers who would purchase this meat if it were not available in their usual store are the importance attached to the animal breed and their social embeddedness with the local area. An appropriate food policy would be to inform consumers about the importance of the animal breed in the quality of the meat and the local origin.

ACS Style

Azucena Gracia; María Teresa Maza. Determinants of the intention to purchase an autochthonous local lamb breed: Spanish case study. Meat Science 2015, 110, 212 -219.

AMA Style

Azucena Gracia, María Teresa Maza. Determinants of the intention to purchase an autochthonous local lamb breed: Spanish case study. Meat Science. 2015; 110 ():212-219.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Azucena Gracia; María Teresa Maza. 2015. "Determinants of the intention to purchase an autochthonous local lamb breed: Spanish case study." Meat Science 110, no. : 212-219.