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Does the provision of information increase the substitution of animal proteins with plant-based proteins? An experimental investigation into consumer choices
[L’apport d’informations augmente-t-il la substitution des protéines animales par des protéines végétales ? Une enquête expérimentale sur les choix des consommateurs]

Author

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  • Pascale Bazoche

    (SMART-LERECO - Structures et Marché Agricoles, Ressources et Territoires - INRAE - Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement - INSTITUT AGRO Agrocampus Ouest - Institut Agro - Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement)

  • Nicolas Guinet

    (ALISS - Alimentation et sciences sociales - INRAE - Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement)

  • Sylvaine Poret

    (ALISS - Alimentation et sciences sociales - INRAE - Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement)

  • Sabrina Teyssier

    (GAEL - Laboratoire d'Economie Appliquée de Grenoble - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique - INRAE - Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement - UGA - Université Grenoble Alpes - Grenoble INP - Institut polytechnique de Grenoble - Grenoble Institute of Technology - UGA - Université Grenoble Alpes)

Abstract

A widespread transition towards diets based on plant proteins as substitutes for animal proteins would contribute to food system sustainability. Such changes in consumer food choices can be fostered by public policy. We conducted an online experiment to test whether providing consumers with information regarding the negative consequences of meat consumption on the environment or health increases the substitution of animal-based proteins with plant-based proteins. The consumers had to make three meal selections, the first without exposure to information and the latter two after exposure to environmental or health information. One group of consumers served as the control and received no information. The results show that half of the consumers chose meals with animal proteins in all three cases. The information intervention had a limited impact on the average consumer. However, a latent class analysis shows that the information intervention impacted a sub-sample of the consumers. Information policy does not appear to be sufficient for altering consumer behaviour regarding the consumption of animal proteins.

Suggested Citation

  • Pascale Bazoche & Nicolas Guinet & Sylvaine Poret & Sabrina Teyssier, 2021. "Does the provision of information increase the substitution of animal proteins with plant-based proteins? An experimental investigation into consumer choices [L’apport d’informations augmente-t-il ," Working Papers hal-03350356, HAL.
  • Handle: RePEc:hal:wpaper:hal-03350356
    Note: View the original document on HAL open archive server: https://hal.inrae.fr/hal-03350356
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Mélody Leplat & Youenn Loheac & Eric Teillet, 2022. "Preferences & choices experiments with real products consumption: application with plant-based proteins," Post-Print hal-03932623, HAL.
    2. Leplat Mélody & Loheac Youenn & Teillet Eric, 2022. "Preferences for meat substitute with plant-based proteins: an experiment with real products consumption," Post-Print hal-03932558, HAL.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Experiment; Information; Food consumption; Alternative proteins; Environment; Health; Expérience; Consommation alimentaire; Protéines alternatives; Environnement; Santé;
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