Considering Fraud Vulnerability Associated with Credence-Based Products Such as Organic Food

Food fraud prevention strategies: Building an effective verification ecosystem

Food fraud is an ever-present threat that regulators, food business operators (FBOs), and consumers need to be aware of, prevent where possible, and address by developing mitigation strategies to detect and reduce its negative consequences. While extant literature focuses on food fraud detection, there is less attention given to prevention strategies, a knowledge gap this review seeks to address. The aim of this review was to consider food-related fraud prevention initiatives, understand what has worked well, and develop a series of recommendations on preventing food fraud, both policy related and for future research. Reactive (including intelligence based) food fraud detection dominates over prevention strategies, especially where financial, knowledge, and time resources are scarce. First-generation tools have been developed for food fraud vulnerability assessment, risk analysis, and development of food fraud prevention strategies. However, examples of integrated food control management systems at FBO, supply chain, and regulatory levels for prevention are limited. The lack of hybrid (public/private) integration of food fraud prevention strategies, as well as an effective verification ecosystem, weakens existing food fraud prevention plans. While there are several emergent practice models for food fraud prevention, they need to be strengthened to focus more specifically on capable guardians and target hardening. This work has implications for policymakers, Official Controls bodies, the food industry, and ultimately consumers who seek to consistently purchase food that is safe, legal, and authentic.

A review of the emerging technologies and systems to mitigate food fraud in supply chains

Food fraud has serious consequences including reputational damage to businesses, health and safety risks and lack of consumer confidence. New technologies targeted at ensuring food authenticity has emerged and however, the penetration and diffusion of sophisticated analytical technologies are faced with challenges in the industry. This review is focused on investigating the emerging technologies and strategies for mitigating food fraud and exploring the key barriers to their application. The review discusses three key areas of focus for food fraud mitigation that include systematic approaches, analytical techniques and package-level anti-counterfeiting technologies. A notable gap exists in converting laboratory based sophisticated technologies and tools in high-paced, live industrial applications. New frontiers such as handheld laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) and smart-phone spectroscopy have emerged for rapid food authentication. Multifunctional devices with hyphenating sensing mechanisms together with deep learning strategies to compare food fingerprints can be a great leap forward in the industry. Combination of different technologies such as spectroscopy and separation techniques will also be superior where quantification of adulterants are preferred. With the advancement of automation these technologies will be able to be deployed as in-line scanning devices in industrial settings to detect food fraud across multiple points in food supply chains.

Opportunities and challenges for global food safety in advancing circular policies and practices in agrifood systems

Sustainable agrifood systems are needed to provide safe and nutritious food for the growing world's population. To improve sustainability, transforming linear policies and practices in agrifood systems into circularity will be critical, with food safety considerations key for the success of this shift. This review provides a synthesis of the current and emerging risks, data gaps, and opportunities for food safety in agrifood initiatives aiming to advance circular economy models.

Comparison of the Purchasing Behaviour of Polish and United Kingdom Consumers in the Organic Food Market during the COVID-19 Pandemic

The main objective of the study was to compare young consumer purchasing behaviour towards organic food in Poland (PL) and the United Kingdom (UK), countries with different levels of organic market maturity. The study was conducted by means of an online survey questionnaire during the COVID-19 pandemic between December 2020 and February 2021. The sample consisted of 862 PL and 161 UK consumers. 31% of PL respondents and 58.4% of UK respondents indicated they purchase organic products. Descriptive statistics, the Mann–Whitney U test and the two proportion Z test were used for statistical analyses. The results indicate that young consumers pay particular attention to the freshness and quality of consumed products. Concern for their own health and that of their loved ones, as well as the desire to eat better-quality products were the main motivations for the respondents to purchase organic products. Organic vegetables and fruits, eggs, dairy products, and meat and meat products, were among the most frequently purchased products in the studied cohorts. Experts (e.g., a dietitian, physician) were declared to be the first source of information concerning food products for young consumers. Next, family members were indicated. Social media content (PL respondents) and information from websites managed by institutions (UK respondents) were mentioned as the third source. UK consumers preferred short supply chains. The present study can be used by government bodies and companies to select the most effective communication channels for education and advertising and to develop effective commercial strategies aimed at young consumers.

Exploring Key Factors Determining US Consumer Preferences for Growing over Buying Fruit in Pre-Covidian and Covidian Times

This study provides insights for managers in the food retail sector, the horticultural industry, actors involved in community gardening and farmers’ markets. It proposes a model that investigates key factors determining US consumer preferences for growing fruit over buying it in pre-Covidian and Covidian times. For this purpose, an online survey with a sample of 383 US residents was conducted. Partial least squares structural equation modelling shows that subjective knowledge about fruit and the perceived impact of COVID-19 are the most important drivers of preferences for growing over buying in Covidian times. The impact of COVID-19 had no relevance for the pre-Covidian times. For both scenarios, only age and gender as socio-demographic factors were found to influence subjective knowledge and the perceived impact of COVID-19. Other sociodemographic factors were not found to have any impact.

“Young and Green” a Study of Consumers’ Perceptions and Reported Purchasing Behaviour towards Organic Food in Poland and the United Kingdom

Globally, the organic food market is the most successful green market. Young consumers, the decision-makers of the future, are perceived as being more environmentally concerned than older cohorts. The aim of this study was to consider young consumers’ attitudes and behaviours concerning organic food, where the organic food market in the UK is more mature than in Poland. Empirical research was conducted using a web-based survey questionnaire (CAWI) with consumers (n = 973) in both countries. The associations between four constructs (general pro-social attitudes, green consumption values, receptivity to green communication, and buying behaviour) were considered using CB-SEM. We extended the model with two new constructs to explain young consumers’ purchases of organic food. UK respondents are significantly more conscious green consumers with higher environmental attitude intensity than Polish residents. Intensity of pro-environmental attitude components influences directly and indirectly the choice of organic food. People with a higher intensity of pro-environmental attitudes are significantly more likely to choose organic food. Perception of organic food influences purchases only in Poland. The components of pro-environmental attitudes and perception of organic food alone do not explain the variability in behaviour, despite a good fit of the model. This suggests that other independent variables may be of influence.

Halo Effect and Source Credibility in the Evaluation of Food Products Identified by Third-Party Certified Eco-Labels: Can Information Prevent Biased Inferences?

Despite the growing awareness of the need to promote the consumption of organic food, consumers have difficulties in correctly identifying it in the market, making frequent cognitive mistakes in the evaluation of products identified by sustainability labels and claims. This work analyzes the halo effect and the source credibility bias in the interpretation of product attributes based on third-party certified labels. It is hypothesized that, regardless of their specific meaning, official labels lead consumers to infer higher environmental sustainability, quality and price of the product, due to the credibility attributed to the certifying entity. It also examines the extent to which providing the consumer with accurate labeling information helps prevent biased heuristic thinking. An experimental between-subject study was performed with a sample of 412 Spanish business students and data were analyzed using partial least squares. Findings revealed that consumers tend to infer environmental superiority and, consequently, higher quality in products identified by both organic and non-organic certified labels, due to their credibility. Label credibility was also associated with price inferences, to a greater extent than the meaning attributed to the label. Interestingly, providing accurate information did not avoid biased heuristic thinking in product evaluation.