This study introduces a value-added framework for upcycled food and empirically investigates consumer perceptions of these labeled foods.
This study utilized a self-administered survey (n = 379) as a research instrument for data collection.
Consumers perceive “they have a positive impact on the environment”; “they are sourced and produced using verifiable supply chains” and “they are new food products” as salient attributes associated with upcycled-labeled foods. Consumer-perceived constraints to accepting upcycled-labeled food include perceived risk and unfamiliarity, and high price. Consumer-perceived benefits consist of high nutrition, hedonic innovation, environmental responsibility and social ethics. In addition, the associations between attributes, benefits and constraints regarding upcycled-labeled food suggest that, counter-intuitively, even provided with transparent source information, consumers still associate this food type with health risks, potentially due to unfamiliarity.
This study systematically investigates the salience effect of upcycled labels from two contrasting perspectives and empirically examines the associations between the food attributes and consumer-perceived benefits of and constraints to accepting such food type.
