Sustainability considerations and willingness to try alternative proteins: evidence from the UK
Reductions in the consumption of livestock products in Western diets are considered necessary to mitigate some of animal productions' impacts on human health, animal welfare and the environment. Whilst several alternative protein products are on the market or being developed, the motivations fo...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2025-09-01
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| Series: | Cleaner and Responsible Consumption |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666784325000646 |
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| author | Albert Boaitey Beth Clark Pattanapong Tiwasing |
| author_facet | Albert Boaitey Beth Clark Pattanapong Tiwasing |
| author_sort | Albert Boaitey |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Reductions in the consumption of livestock products in Western diets are considered necessary to mitigate some of animal productions' impacts on human health, animal welfare and the environment. Whilst several alternative protein products are on the market or being developed, the motivations for consumer decision-making are not well-understood. In particular, given the focus on improved sustainability as justification for these alternative proteins, understanding the relationship between sustainability considerations and willingness to try (WTT) remains important. This study uses data from 1929 UK individuals to evaluate the potential role of sustainability considerations (health, animal welfare, environmental, financial) on WTT three alternative protein products: plant-based, cultured meat, and edible insects. Ordered probit and quantile regression models are used to explore WTT, with controls for respondents' sociodemographic characteristics and level of awareness. The findings show that sustainability considerations particularly ethical and environmental concerns remain relevant in the WTT alternative proteins in the UK. Their potential role however varies across products and consumer segments. There is also significant variation in WTT due to factors related to familiarity with specific alternative protein types and respondent's socio-demographic characteristics (i.e., gender, education, age, marital status, household size, number of children and household income). Recommendations are made for strategies to promote the alternative protein products examined based on these findings. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-02a2d8218d804bbca46e2302d70cd35a |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2666-7843 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-09-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Cleaner and Responsible Consumption |
| spelling | doaj-art-02a2d8218d804bbca46e2302d70cd35a2025-08-20T04:00:33ZengElsevierCleaner and Responsible Consumption2666-78432025-09-011810031310.1016/j.clrc.2025.100313Sustainability considerations and willingness to try alternative proteins: evidence from the UKAlbert Boaitey0Beth Clark1Pattanapong Tiwasing2Centre for Rural Economy, School of Natural and Environmental Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RU, UK; Corresponding author.Centre for Rural Economy, School of Natural and Environmental Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RU, UKHaydn Green Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Nottingham University Business School, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, NG8 1BB, UKReductions in the consumption of livestock products in Western diets are considered necessary to mitigate some of animal productions' impacts on human health, animal welfare and the environment. Whilst several alternative protein products are on the market or being developed, the motivations for consumer decision-making are not well-understood. In particular, given the focus on improved sustainability as justification for these alternative proteins, understanding the relationship between sustainability considerations and willingness to try (WTT) remains important. This study uses data from 1929 UK individuals to evaluate the potential role of sustainability considerations (health, animal welfare, environmental, financial) on WTT three alternative protein products: plant-based, cultured meat, and edible insects. Ordered probit and quantile regression models are used to explore WTT, with controls for respondents' sociodemographic characteristics and level of awareness. The findings show that sustainability considerations particularly ethical and environmental concerns remain relevant in the WTT alternative proteins in the UK. Their potential role however varies across products and consumer segments. There is also significant variation in WTT due to factors related to familiarity with specific alternative protein types and respondent's socio-demographic characteristics (i.e., gender, education, age, marital status, household size, number of children and household income). Recommendations are made for strategies to promote the alternative protein products examined based on these findings.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666784325000646Plant-based meat alternativesEdible insectsLab grown meatSustainability |
| spellingShingle | Albert Boaitey Beth Clark Pattanapong Tiwasing Sustainability considerations and willingness to try alternative proteins: evidence from the UK Cleaner and Responsible Consumption Plant-based meat alternatives Edible insects Lab grown meat Sustainability |
| title | Sustainability considerations and willingness to try alternative proteins: evidence from the UK |
| title_full | Sustainability considerations and willingness to try alternative proteins: evidence from the UK |
| title_fullStr | Sustainability considerations and willingness to try alternative proteins: evidence from the UK |
| title_full_unstemmed | Sustainability considerations and willingness to try alternative proteins: evidence from the UK |
| title_short | Sustainability considerations and willingness to try alternative proteins: evidence from the UK |
| title_sort | sustainability considerations and willingness to try alternative proteins evidence from the uk |
| topic | Plant-based meat alternatives Edible insects Lab grown meat Sustainability |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666784325000646 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT albertboaitey sustainabilityconsiderationsandwillingnesstotryalternativeproteinsevidencefromtheuk AT bethclark sustainabilityconsiderationsandwillingnesstotryalternativeproteinsevidencefromtheuk AT pattanapongtiwasing sustainabilityconsiderationsandwillingnesstotryalternativeproteinsevidencefromtheuk |