Impatto ambientale dei rifiuti e degli sprechi agroalimentari in Europa e in Italia

Nonostante il fatto che una gran parte del mondo viva ancora oggi a livelli di sussistenza, i dati in nostro possesso ci indicano che le attività umane stanno esaurendo le risorse ambientali del pianeta. La causa di questo eccessivo sfruttamento delle risorse è da ricercare nei pattern non sostenibili di produzione e consumo dei paesi sviluppati. La preoccupazione per le conseguenze sull'ambiente e la lotta al cambiamento climatico hanno posto le politiche ambientali al centro dell'attenzione internazionale. Il Protocollo di Kyoto e la Commissione Europea hanno stabilito degli obiettivi di riduzione delle emissioni di gas serra, rispettivamente del 12% entro il 2012 e del 20% entro il 2020. All'interno del Protocollo di Kyoto l'obiettivo per l'Italia è ridurre del 6,5% le emissioni di gas serra nazionali rispetto al 1990. Le politiche mirate alla riduzione delle emissioni di gas serra hanno in genere come obiettivo gli impianti energetici e i trasporti. Poca attenzione viene data alla filiera agroalimentare pur sapendo che l'agricoltura ha un forte impatto sull'ambiente e recenti studi stimano che circa il 50% del cibo prodotto viene perso o buttato via dalla produzione al consumo. Alla luce di questi dati, il mio lavoro di tesi ha avuto come obiettivo quello di quantificare i rifiuti e gli sprechi agroalimentari in Europa e in Italia e stimare l'impatto ambientale associato. I dati raccolti in questa tesi mettono in evidenza l'importanza di migliorare l'efficienza della filiera agroalimentare per ridurre l'impatto ambientale nazionale e rispettare gli accordi internazionali sulla lotta ai cambiamenti climatici.

Quantitative evaluation of household nutrition patterns: an econometric assessment of the UK 5-a-day impact on fruit and vegetable consumption

The present work provides an ex-post assessment of the UK 5-a-day information campaign where the positive effects of information on consumption levels are disentangled from the potentially conflicting price dynamics. A model-based estimate of the counterfactual (no-intervention) scenario is computed using data from the Expenditure and Food Survey between 2002 and 2006. For this purpose fruit and vegetable demand is modelled employing Quadratic Almost Ideal Demand System (QUAIDS) specification with demographic effects and controlling for potential endogeneity of prices and total food expenditure.

Agrofood chain analysis: production, commercialisation and consumption of healthy food for population at risk of poverty in Italy

Italy registers a fast increase of low income population. Academics and policy makers consider income inequalities as a key determinant for low or inadequate healthy food consumption. Thus the objective is to understand how to overcome the agrofood chain barriers towards healthy food production, commercialisation and consumption for population at risk of poverty (ROP) in Italy. The study adopts a market oriented food chain approach, focusing the research ambit on ROP consumers, processing industries and retailers. The empirical investigation adopts a qualitative methodology with an explorative approach. The actors are investigated through 4 focus groups for consumers and carrying out 27 face to face semi-structured interviews for industries and retailers’ representatives. The results achieved provide the perceptions of each actor integrated into an overall chain approach. The analysis shows that all agrofood actors lack of an adequate level of knowledge towards healthy food definition. Food industries and retailers also show poor awareness about ROP consumers’ segment. In addition they perceive that the high costs for producing healthy food conflict with the low economic performances expected from ROP consumers’ segment. These aspects induce a scarce interest in investing on commercialisation strategies for healthy food for ROP consumers. Further ROP consumers show other notable barriers to adopt healthy diets caused, among others, by a personal strong negative attitude and lack of motivation. The personal barriers are also negatively influenced by several external socio-economic factors. The solutions to overcome the barriers shall rely on the improvement of the agrofood chain internal relations to identify successful strategies for increasing interest on low cost healthy food. In particular the focus should be on improved collaboration on innovation adoption and marketing strategies, considering ROP consumers’ preferences and needs. An external political intervention is instead necessary to fill the knowledge and regulations’ gaps on healthy food issues.

Identity Changes and Consumer Behavior. How Becoming Parents Changes Our Consumption Choices

This research aims at investigating the impact of the identity change on consumption. An identity change is defined as the acquisition of a new identity after a life change event. For instance after the birth of the first child the new identity as parent is acquired and a woman can define herself as a mother. Despite marketing research recognizes that individuals’ identity is unstable and susceptible to change, the investigation of the identity change is still in its infancy. Furthermore, marketing research did not investigate the contextual effect of the new as well as the old identity on individuals’ reaction toward identity-marketing. In order words, whether people show a more favorable reaction toward product related to their new or their old identities after an identity change is still unclear. In order to answer this question, five studies are conducted. Results show that when the new identity substitutes the old one, people show a more positive reaction toward new-identity related products, while when the new identity is added to the old ones, people show a more positive reaction toward old-identity related products. This is the case also when the new identity accounts for high levels of identification (study three) and when the old identity is squeezed by the new one (studies four and five). A new concept, the identity strain, is then introduced and discussed.