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 current study investigates the willingness of Millennial consumers towards several corporate social responsibility initiatives carried out by food companies. More specifically, it explores four cause related marketing campaigns implemented by food companies to spread corporate social responsibility. The analysis was carried out in Italy by administering a structured questionnaire to 308 consumers. The willingness of participants to switch a chocolate snack of their favourite brand to another with similar characteristics but produced by a company supporting different social and environmental causes was assessed in four different scenarios. The study uncovered the effects of both loyalty towards the brand and trust in cause related marketing on consumers’ willingness to support different corporate social responsibility initiatives. The findings unveiled the willingness of Millennials to support companies’ social and environmental initiatives. Both trust and loyalty played a key role in affecting consumers’ willingness to support corporate social responsibility initiatives of food companies. Social and environmental concerns as well as socio-demographics aspects are also significant in supporting cause related marketing campaigns. The study has shed light on the preference of consumers towards corporate social responsibility and cause related marketing. Specifically, it provides marketing insights on the initiatives most preferred by consumers to which companies should address their efforts.

The efficient use of agricultural wastes and by-products, which essentially transforms waste materials into value-added products, is considered as pivotal for an effective bioeconomy strategy for the rural development. Within this scope, citrus waste management represents a major issue for citrus processors. However, it also represents a potentially unexploited resource for rural sustainable development. This study focuses on analyzing the current management of citrus waste in South Italy, and on identifying the determinants and barriers that may affect an entrepreneur’s choice in the destination of citrus waste. This study investigates the preferences of citrus processors regarding the contract characteristics necessary to take part in a co-investment scheme. Both analyses are preliminary steps in designing an innovative and sustainable citrus by-product supply chain. Results show that the distance between the citrus processors and the citrus by-products plant is one of the main criteria for choosing alternative valorization pathways. Moreover, guaranteed capital, a short duration of the contract, and reduced risk are contract scheme characteristics that improve entrepreneurs’ willingness to co-invest in the development of a citrus waste multifunctional plant. The overall applied approach can be extended to other contexts for designing new and innovative by-product supply chains, thereby enhancing the implementation of bioeconomy strategies.

This paper aims to achieve an economic feasibility and life cycle assessment of three different olive cultivation systems in the Mediterranean area through the joint use of economic and environmental indicators, in order to identify the key elements to optimize their economic performance and a lower environmental impact. Three different management systems of olive cultivation were analysed by distinguishing Treatment 1—Fully Irrigated, Treatment 2—Partially Irrigated, and Treatment 3—Non-Irrigated, which were conducted through different levels of irrigation strategies. The three scenarios were examined using a Life Cycle Assessment methodology to assess the environmental impacts, and the impact in terms of water footprint was investigated using the Water Scarcity Index approach. The economic sustainability evaluation of olive cultivation was carried out through economic indicators, taking into account all of the cost and revenue factors of the olive cultivation in each management system. The results showed, overall, a suitable level of profitability of different scenarios, except for the Partially Irrigated treatment, as the investment costs of the irrigation system are not economically sustainable with regard to the revenue obtained. Furthermore, the findings highlighted the importance of irrigation management strategies to decrease agricultural practice costs and the negative environmental impact of olive production.

While there is growing recognition of the positive role played by organic farming in the reduction of the negative externalities due to conventional agriculture, there is uncertainty about the effect of the latter on the economic performance of the farms. In this scenario, the present paper aims at investigating the effect of organic farming on technical efficiency in Italian olive farms. A cross-section dataset was analyzed through the stochastic frontier function, where the adoption of organic farming was explicitly modeled. Then, to obtain an unbiased estimate of the impact of organic farming on technical efficiency, a propensity score matching method was implemented. The findings reveal that organic farming increases technical efficiency in Italian olive farms by approximately 10%. The highest impact of organic farming is observed in small farms. As for the propensity to become organic, we found that the production and the direct sales of a higher quality of gross marketable output, as well as the intensity of labor and machines, increase the probability to adopt organic farming. Conversely, farm localization, the availability of family labor, and financial capital discourage conversion to the organic farming system.

This study aims to examine Italian consumer preferences for extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) enriched with vitamins and to analyze the key drivers that affect consumer choices for this product. Specifically, we assessed consumers’ intention to purchase the enriched product compared to the conventional one. The methodology adopted inferential and multivariate statistical techniques: (1) exploratory factor analysis (EFA), (2) ordinary least squares regression (OLS) and (3) non-hierarchical clustering. This study appears to be the first research project related to exploring consumers’ interest in an extra virgin olive oil enhanced with vitamins, thereby providing preliminary indications. The main results represent a significant starting point for the development of new marketing strategies for the food industry.