Jou nal o Insec s as Food and Feed (2025) DOI:10.1163/23524588-00001373
b ill.com/ji
Resea ch a icle
Con ex ma e s: how di e en in o ma ion in luences consume
p e e ences and willingness o pay o animal p oduc s ed wi h insec s
M.A.C. Mus apa , N. Kajad and Z. Kallas*
Cen e o Ag o ood Economics and De elopmen -UPC-IRTA (CREDA), Uni e si a Poli ècnica de
Ca alunya (UPC), 08860 Cas ellde els, Spain; *z[email p o ec ed]
Recei ed 19 Augus 2024 | Accep ed 14 Feb ua y 2025 | Published online 14 Ma ch 2025
Abs ac
The use o insec s as an al e na i e sou ce o animal eed is gaining in e es due o hei posi i e en i onmen al
impac . Consume s a e gene ally mo e accep ing o using insec s as sus ainable eed o animals han consuming
insec s di ec ly. Howe e , limi ed esea ch exis s on how di e en in o ma ional con ex s in luence consume
p e e ences and willingness o pay (WTP) o insec - ed animal p oduc s. This quan i a i e s udy add esses his
gap by su eying 1,006 consume s in Spain, s a i ied by age and gende . Using he Heckman sample selec ion
model, he esul s e eal ha he p obabili y o pu chasing insec - ed animal p oduc s inc eases wi h younge age,
municipal ma ke shopping, online shopping habi s, and a posi i e a i ude owa ds in la ion, while i dec eases
in households wi h elde ly membe s. In con as , neophobic a i udes and nega i e a i udes owa ds adding
insec s in animal eed signi ican ly educe he likelihood o pu chasing hese p oduc s. In he ou come equa ion,
WTP is signi ican ly in luenced by household income, educa ion le el, online shopping beha iou , an h opocen ic
a i ude, and nega i e a i ude owa ds adding insec s in animal eed. Highe household income is associa ed wi h
lowe WTP, while online shopping inc eases WTP. Highe educa ion le els a e linked o lowe WTP o chicken and
po k bu a e no signi ican o eggs. Consume s wi h a s onge an h opocen ic a i ude and nega i e a i udes
owa ds using insec s in animal eed a e less willing o pay o hese p oduc s. Consume s’WTP p emiums o insec -
ed animal p oduc s ange om 21% o 31%, wi h he highes p emiums obse ed when no speci ic in o ma ion
abou insec s’ ea ing, ea men , o p ocessing is p o ided. Budge cons ain s and us issues ega ding sus ainable
insec eed a e he main ba ie s o accep ance. These indings sugges ha aising awa eness abou insec eed
p oduc ion, and emphasising animal wel a e p ac ices could enhance consume accep ance. Fu he mo e, he
subs an ial WTP o hese p oduc s highligh s hei po en ial as p emium i ems in he Spanish ma ke .
Keywo ds
al e na i e p o ein – consume accep ance – in o ma ion ame – insec s as eed – sus ainabili y
1 In oduc ion
The global demand o p o ein- ich ood sou ces has
in ensi ied owing o popula ion g ow h, ising income,
and changing die a y p e e ences (Henchion e al., 2021;
Kim e al., 2019). This su ge in demand has placed
immense p essu e on adi ional animal ag icul u e sys-
ems, aising conce ns ega ding sus ainabili y, en i on-
men al impac s, and e hical conside a ions. In esponse,
al e na i e p o ein sou ces, such as insec s, ha e gained
Published wi h license by Koninklijke B ill BV | DOI: 10.1163/23524588-00001373
© M.A.C. Mus apa e al., 2025 | ISSN: 2352-4588 (online)
This is an open access a icle dis ibu ed unde he e ms o he CC BY 4.0 license.
2M.A.C. Mus apa, N. Kajad and Z. Kallas
a en ion o hei po en ial o add ess hese challenges
(Sun-Wa e house e al., 2016). Recen EU egula ions
ha e app o ed he use o insec meal in aquacul u e,
poul y, and pig a ming (Eu opean Commision, 2017).
Food sys ems a e a majo con ibu o o clima e
change, accoun ing o 21% o 37% o annual g een-
house gas (GHG) emissions (IPCC, 2019; Rosenzweig e
al., 2020). Wi hin his sys em, he mea indus y is one
o he mos signi ican con ibu o s, accoun ing o 54%
o all emissions (Ca o e al., 2014; OECD/FAO, 2021).
Consequen ly, he e is an u gen need o iden i y and
implemen no el, sus ainable eed sou ces o li es ock
o mee he g owing demand o animal-de i ed p o-
eins while ensu ing ood a ailabili y o u u e gene -
a ions.
Insec s hold p omise as an al e na i e p o ein sou ce
due o hei high nu i ional alue, e icien eed con e -
sion a es, and ela i ely low en i onmen al oo p in
compa ed o con en ional li es ock (Ba a and Pe e ,
2020; Rod íguez-Mi anda e al., 2019; an Huis, 2016).
They can be ea ed on low-quali y nu ien sou ces
and o ganic was e s eams, o e ing a sus ainable and
esou ce-e icien solu ion o he g owing demand o
p o eins (Dö pe e al., 2021). Consuming insec s has
he po en ial o educe GHG emissions and land use
compa ed wi h adi ional a ming p ac ices (Aidoo e
al., 2023; an Huis, 2020). A g owing body o e idence
sugges s ha insec s can se e as sus ainable and nu i-
ious al e na i es o con en ional p o ein sou ces, hus
con ibu ing o ood secu i y and en i onmen al sus-
ainabili y (Aidoo e al., 2023).
Nume ous s udies ha e epo ed ha consume a i-
udes owa ds animal p oduc s ha eed on insec s a e
gene ally posi i e, wi h a no able willingness o con-
sume hem (Bazoche and Po e , 2021; Gasco e al., 2019;
Mancuso e al., 2016; Mus apa and Kallas, 2023; Ve -
beke e al., 2015). Spa ano and G asso (2021) explo ed
he impac o in o ma ion on consume accep ance and
willingness o pay (WTP) o eggs om insec - ed hens.
Thei s udy concluded ha in o ma ion highligh ing
he en i onmen al bene i s, sus ainabili y, and wel a e
imp o emen s associa ed wi h insec - ed hens could
mi iga e eelings o disgus and ood neophobia among
UK consume s. Simila ly, Ba scis e al. (2017) in es-
iga ed how in o ma ion a ec s accep ance o en o-
mophagy ( he p ac ice o consuming insec s) in Bel-
gium. Du ing a as e es in which pa icipan s e alua ed
b ead samples alsely labelled as con aining an insec
p oduc , hose who had a ended an in o ma ion ses-
sion a ed he appea ance, la ou , and o e all liking o
insec - ee labelled b ead signi ican ly highe . This ind-
ing unde sco es he p o ound in luence o p io knowl-
edge and expec a ions on pe cep ions o insec -based
oods. Fu he mo e, Soga i e al. (2021) ound ha p o-
iding in o ma ion on he bene i s o using insec s in
eed p oduc ion could encou age en i onmen ally con-
scious I alian consume s o pu chase insec - ed duck
mea p oduc s.
Howe e , he e a e limi ed s udies on consume p e -
e ences and WTP o animal-p oduc - ed insec s, pa -
icula ly in Spain. Ou s udy aims o add ess his gap
by examining how di e en con ex s o in o ma ion,
speci ically how insec s a e ea ed and p ocessed o
animal eed, a ec consume p e e ences and accep-
ance. While nume ous s udies ha e highligh ed he
posi i e in luence o in o ma ion abou en i onmen al
bene i s and sus ainabili y on he accep ance o insec -
ed animal p oduc s (Rabadán e al., 2023; Soga i e al.,
2021), his s udy uniquely ocuses on he impac o di -
e en in o ma ional con ex s on consume accep ance
in Spain. Speci ically, i examines how a ious ypes o
in o ma ion abou he use o insec s as eed o a med-
animal p oduc s (e.g. chicken mea , po k, and hen eggs)
a ec consume accep ance. The indings p o ide alu-
able insigh s o de eloping e ec i e ma ke ing s a e-
gies and p omo ing sus ainable ood p oduc ion. By
explo ing he ole o in o ma ion in shaping consume
pe cep ions, his s udy con ibu es o he b oade adop-
ion o insec -based eed in animal ag icul u e, suppo -
ing global e o s o enhance ood secu i y and en i on-
men al sus ainabili y.
2 Ma e ial and me hods
Pa icipan s and da a collec ion
A su ey was conduc ed ac oss Spain using a consume
panel on he Qual icsXM pla o m and was comple ed
in Janua y 2023. The su ey aimed o ga he a na ion-
ally ep esen a i e sample o quo as based on gende ,
age, and geog aphic a ea, e lec ing he da a om he
na ional census. A o al o 1,017 alid esponses we e
collec ed om indi iduals aged 18 yea s and abo e who
we e in ol ed in household pu chase decisions and had
pu chased po k, chicken, and eggs a leas once in he
las h ee mon hs. A e he applica ion o he ‘solemn
oa h’ me hod p oposed by De-Magis is and Pascussi
(2014) o educe hypo he ical bias and analyse ‘ ue’
WTP, 1,006 esponses (98.9%) we e ul ima ely included.
Responden s we e andomly assigned o one o h ee
g oups, each exposed o a di e en in o ma ional con-
ex : (1) ideo and ex desc ip ions (n = 331), (2)
Jou nal o Insec s as Food and Feed 0 (2025) 1–17
Impac o In o ma ion on P e e ences o Insec -Fed Animal P oduc s 3
Figu e 1 Communica ion channel amewo k.
ideo only (n = 336), and (3) no addi ional in o ma ion
(n = 339). E hical app o al o his s udy was g an ed by
he Cen e o Ag o ood Economics and De elopmen -
UPC-IRTA (CREDA) E hics Commi ee (app o al num-
be PID2019-111716RB-I00), and in o med consen was
ob ained om all pa icipan s p io o he collec ion.
The s udy employed h ee dis inc in o ma ion o -
ma s, as shown in Figu e 1:
• Fo ma 1: A YouTube ideo om he CREDA channel
discussing he bene i s o using insec s as an al e -
na i e eed in poul y and pig p oduc ion, comple-
men ed by insigh s in o he p oduc ion o insec -
based eed p oduc ion and da a om he Eu opean
Cou o Audi o s (2021) on he con ibu ion o ani-
mal p oduc ion o global GHG emissions.
• Fo ma 2: The same ideo wi hou supplemen a y
in o ma ion.
• Fo ma 3: No addi ional in o ma ion p o ided.
Table 2 illus a es he speci ic de ails o hese o ma s.
Su ey design and measu es
The ques ionnai e comp ised six sec ions: (1) sc een-
ing ques ions; (2) eggs, chicken, and po k consump ion
habi s; (3) cheap alk, solemn oa h, and di e en in o -
ma ional con ex a ibu ions ega ding egg, chicken,
and po k p oduced om insec - ed li es ock and poul-
y; (4) he expec ed WTP o chicken, po k mea , and
eggs ed by animal eed en iched wi h insec s; (5) a i-
udes and belie s ela ed o insec - ed animal p oduc s,
including he ood neophobia ai and en i onmen-
al a i udes; and (6) sociodemog aphic cha ac e is ics.
Supplemen a y Ma e ial S1 p o ides he su ey ques-
ionnai e used in his s udy.
To educe he hypo he ical bias o he ques ionnai e
app oach, he ‘cheap alk’ and solemn oa h sc ip s (de-
Magis is and Pascucci, 2014) we e included as ex an e
me hods o analyse he ueWTP (Figu e 2).The espon-
den s who said no o he solemn oa h we e a mino i y
(1.2%) o he sample and we e excluded om he s udy,
wi h all emaining (1,006) esponden s hen comple ing
he cheap alk and accep ing he solemn oa h oge he .
Jou nal o Insec s as Food and Feed 0 (2025) 1–17
4M.A.C. Mus apa, N. Kajad and Z. Kallas
Figu e 2 Cheap alk and solemn oa h de ails.
Con i ma o y ac o analysis demons a ed good
in e nal consis ency, wi h C onbach’s alpha exceed-
ing 0.70 o each p edic o , indica ing s ong eliabili y
(Cheung e al., 2024; Heale and Twyc oss, 2015). The
ac o loadings we e also g ea e han 0.60, indica ing
good alidi y (Heale and Twyc oss, 2015). Supplemen-
a y Ma e ial S2 p o ides de ailed in o ma ion ega ding
he i ems used in his s udy.
Con ingen alua ion me hod
The Con ingen Valua ion Me hod (CVM) is an econo-
me ic ool employed o elici consume s’ s a ed p e -
e ences and es ima e hei expec ed WTP o a speci ic
p oduc o se ice (Haab e al., 2020). This app oach
is pa icula ly use ul o p oduc s o se ices ha a e
no a ailable in he ma ke , as i allows o he holis-
ic alua ion o hese i ems, wi hou needing o desc ibe
hem by hei a ibu es o le els. In he con ex o he
case s udy p o ided, he CVM was used o de e mine
how much consume s we e willing o pay a p emium
o he h ee ypes o animal p oduc s. Using di e -
en elici a ion me hods, including paymen ca ds and
open-ended and dicho omous choices, he CVM allows
a di ec assessmen o WTP (Khalil e al., 2024).
Da a collec ion and e e ence p ices
To accoun o he a ying e e ence p ices o con en-
ional p oduc s, esponden s we e i s asked o epo
he p ices hey ypically pay o 1 kg o chicken mea ,
1 kg po k, and 12-pack o eggs h ough open-ended
ques ions. These sel - epo ed p ices se ed as a base-
line o calcula ing he p emium WTP o each espon-
den . The p emium WTP was de ined as he addi ional
amoun esponden s we e willing o pay o p oduc s
de i ed om animals ed wi h insec s, ela i e o he
p ice hey usually pay o con en ional p oduc s. The
epo ed p ice anges o con en ional p oduc s we e as
ollows:
• Chicken mea (1 kg): €5.00 o €15.00, wi h a mean o
€6.83 (SD =€2.14).
• Po k (1 kg): €5.00 o €15.00, wi h a mean o €7.13
(SD =€2.35).
• Eggs (12-pack): €1.00 o €10.00, wi h a mean o €3.31
(SD =€1.63).
The e e ence p ices a ied among esponden s, wi h
some dispe sion obse ed. Howe e , he s anda d de i-
a ions indica e ha mos esponses ell wi hin a ea-
sonable ange, meaning he a ia ion does no signi -
ican ly impac he analysis. This consis ency suppo s
he meaning ul analysis o p emium WTP.
Rela ionship be ween e e ence p ices and willingness
o pay (WTP)
Gi en hese a ia ions in e e ence p ices, i was neces-
sa y o analyze hei impac on esponden s’ WTP o
sus ainably ed p oduc s. The ela ionship be ween he
p ice consume s ypically pay o con en ional p oduc s
and he p emium hey a e willing o pay was analyzed
o ensu e consis ency. The esul s indica e ha highe
baseline e e ence p ices gene ally co espond o highe
WTP p emiums. This esul is consis en wi h economic
heo y, which sugges s ha consume s who pay highe
baseline p ices may pe cei e g ea e alue in sus ain-
abili y a ibu es and be mo e willing o pay a p emium.
This inding unde sco es he impo ance o inco po a -
ing indi idual e e ence p ices in o he analysis o WTP
o sus ainable p oduc s.
Jou nal o Insec s as Food and Feed 0 (2025) 1–17
Impac o In o ma ion on P e e ences o Insec -Fed Animal P oduc s 5
Elici a ion p ocess
The CVM p ocess in his s udy in ol ed wo s eps. In he
i s s ep, esponden s we e p esen ed wi h a paymen
ca d o ma (Table 1) and asked o selec an in e al ep-
esen ing he addi ional p emium hey would be will-
ing o pay o a sus ainably ed p oduc . The paymen
ca d included op ions anging om ‘No hing ex a’ o
‘Mo e han €5.00’, in €0.50 inc emen s. Responden s
who selec ed he ‘No willing o pay mo e’ op ion we e
di ec ed o a ollow-up ques ion p obing he a ionale
behind hei decision. This allowed he di e en ia ion
be ween p o es esponses and genuine e usals, educ-
ing po en ial p e e ence bias.
In he second s ep, esponden s who selec ed a p e-
mium in e al we e asked o speci y he exac addi ional
amoun hey would be willing o pay abo e he con en-
ional p oduc p ice. This wo-s ep app oach ensu ed a
mo e p ecise es ima ion o hei WTP while add essing
po en ial biases in he elici a ion p ocess.
The Heckman sample selec ion model
The Heckman sample selec ion model, also known as
he ype 2 Tobi model (Quah and Tan, 2009), is a s a is-
ical echnique used o co ec o sample selec ion bias
in eg ession analysis (Amo e and Mu inu, 2021). The
model was es ima ed using he NLOGIT so wa e e -
sion 5. The Heckman sample selec ion model is ad an-
ageous in dealing wi h da ase s wi h a la ge numbe o
ze o obse a ions, especially when s udying consume
beha iou o a no el p oduc . Add essing selec ion bias
h ough a wo-s ep modelling p ocess ensu es mo e
accu a e and eliable es ima es o consume WTP and
o he expendi u e- ela ed me ics.
The i s s ep in ol es de e mining whe he an indi-
idual is willing o pu chase a p oduc . This decision-
making p ocess was modelled using a p obi eg ession
model. The selec ion equa ion was as ollows:
Y⁎
i=α
0+α
ijZij +ε
i
whe e
Y⁎
i: he bina y esponse a iable (Y⁎
i= 1 indica es ha
he esponden is willing o pay mo e o he p od-
uc , and Y⁎
i= 0 indica es ha he esponden is
no willing o pay mo e o he p oduc ).
α0: he in e cep e m
αij: he coe icien o he explana o y a iables
Zij: he explana o y a iables
εi: he e o e m
The second s ep in ol es unde s anding he p e-
mium amoun willing o be spen by hose who ha e
decided o pay mo e. This was modelled using a linea
eg ession model:
Yi=β
0+β
ijXij +βλ
i+ui
whe e
Yi he con inuous ou come a iable ep esen ing he
p emium p ice consume s a e willing o pay
β0 he in e cep e m
βij he coe icien s o be es ima ed
Xij The ec o o explana o y a iables o expendi-
u e
λi he in e se Mills a io om he p obi es ima ion
ui he e o e m
3 Resul s
Sociodemog aphic cha ac e is ics and desc ip i e
s a is ics
The sociodemog aphic cha ac e is ics o he su ey
esponden s a e summa ised in Table 2. App oxima ely
hal o he esponden s (50.1%) we e emale. The age
dis ibu ion shows ha 30.2% we e be ween 18 and 34
yea s old, 33.1% be ween 35 o 54 yea s, and 36.7% aged
55 yea s o olde , indica ing a good ange ac oss di -
e en age g oups. In e ms o educa ion, he majo i y
o esponden s had a high le el o educa ion (53%).
Rega ding mon hly household income, he majo i y o
consume s ea ned less han €2,000 pe mon h (59.8%),
and consume s pe cei ed hei household inancial
income as an a e age (40.6%).
The desc ip i e s a is ics o he su ey i ems a e p e-
sen ed inTable 3.The mean sco es (M) o he a i udinal
a iables indica ed ha on a e age, consume s had high
ood neophobia (M = 6.06, SD = 1.58), a high ecocen-
ic en i onmen al a i ude (M = 6.38, SD = 1.24), and
a mode a e a i ude owa ds insec s as an animal eed
al e na i e (M = 4.76, SD = 1.72).
WTP o animal p oduc s ed wi h insec s by
in o ma ion g oup
Table 4 p esen s he a e age consume s’ WTP o 1 kg
o chicken, 1 kg o po k, and a 12-pack o eggs ed wi h
insec s, ca ego ised by he ype o in o ma ion p o ided
o he esponden s. Consume s om di e en g oups
showed a ying le els o WTP p emiums. The esul s
also show ha he a e age p emium p ice consume s
we e willing o pay o 1 kg o chicken ed wi h insec s
was €1.59 (23% o he a e age ma ke p ice o 1 kg o
con en ional chicken), o 1 kg o po k ed wi h insec s
Jou nal o Insec s as Food and Feed 0 (2025) 1–17
6M.A.C. Mus apa, N. Kajad and Z. Kallas
Table 1 De ail o he in o ma ion channel andomly a ibu ed o esponden s
G oup 1 Video ansc ip :
F om he body o Coleop e a and lies like his
one we ob ain insec lou ; his lou is e y ich
in animal p o ein ha is manu ac u ed om
ege able was e. The p ocess is simple, he
insec s eed on he was e o plan esidues and
once hey die, hey a e ans o med in o his
lou which is hen used in he manu ac u e o
animal eed, i is used o chicken, o po k in
which expe imen s ha e al eady been done
wi h good esul s, sh imps and also one o he
si es whe e hey can be used o he p oduc ion
o li es ock eed, as well as o he p oduc ion
o animal eed o domes ic pe s.
h ps://www.you ube.com/embed/XJw3i2a2qxo
In o ma ion:
Food p oduc ion accoun s o 26% o global
g eenhouse gas emissions, o which 53% comes
om animal p oduc ion, 29% om c ops and
18% om he supply chain ( anspo a ion,
packaging, and sales). To inc ease he
sus ainabili y o animal p oduc ion, ecen ly, in
Augus 2021, he Eu opean Commission
app o ed egula ion No. 2021/1372 in which he
use o insec s in poul y (chicken and hens)
and pig eed is au ho ised. The egula ion is
based in pa on he ac ha he p oduc ion o
insec s is mo e en i onmen ally sus ainable
han he p oduc ion o o he p o ein sou ces
o animal eed.
G oup 2 Video ansc ip :
F om he body o Coleop e a and lies like his
one we ob ain insec lou ; his lou is e y ich
in animal p o ein ha is manu ac u ed om
ege able was e. The p ocess is simple, he
insec s eed on he was e o plan esidues and
once hey die, hey a e ans o med in o his
lou which is hen used in he manu ac u e o
animal eed, i is used o chicken, o po k in
which expe imen s ha e al eady been done
wi h good esul s, sh imps and also one o he
si es whe e hey can be used o he p oduc ion
o li es ock eed, as well as o he p oduc ion
o animal eed o domes ic pe s.
h ps://www.you ube.com/embed/XJw3i2a2qxo
G oup 3 No in o ma ion is gi en
Jou nal o Insec s as Food and Feed 0 (2025) 1–17
Impac o In o ma ion on P e e ences o Insec -Fed Animal P oduc s 7
Table 2 Paymen ca d o ma used in he con ingen alua ion me hod
Ques ion:
P oducing chicken/po k/chicken eggs ed wi h sus ainable eed wi h insec meal in ol es highe cos s o a me s.
Taking in o accoun ha You ha e indica ed ha You usually pay (displaying he esponden ’s p e ious answe )
eu os o a kilo o chicken b eas ha You usually buy o home consump ion. How much mo e would You be
willing o pay o a kilo o chicken/po k eed wi h sus ainable eed wi h insec meal?
Chicken (1 kg)/Po k (1 kg)/Chicken egg (pe package):
• No hing ex a
• Less han €0.50
•€0.50-1.00
•€1.00-1.50
•€1.50-2.00
•€2.00-2.50
•€2.50-3.00
•€3.00-3.50
•€3.50-4.00
•€4.00-4.50
•€4.50-5.00
• Mo e han €5.00
was €1.50 (21% o he a e age ma ke p ice o 1 kg o
con en ional po k), and o 12 eggs om insec - ed hens
was €1.04 (31% o he a e age ma ke p ice o 12 con-
en ional eggs).
Fo 1 kg o chicken, consume s in G oup 1 (who
ecei ed bo h a ideo and addi ional in o ma ion) indi-
ca ed ha hey we e willing o pay an a e age p emium
o €1.53 abo e he s anda d p ice, while hose in G oup
2 (who only wa ched a ideo) we e willing o pay €1.41
mo e. No ably, consume s in G oup 3 (who ecei ed no
in o ma ion) showed he highes willingness, wi h an
a e age p emium o €1.97 pe kilog am.
Simila ly, o 1 kg o po k, consume s in G oup 1
had an a e age p emium o €1.51. Consume s in G oup
2 showed a lowe WTP p emium o €1.29. G oup 3
exp essed he highes WTP p emium o po k, a €1.71.
Fo a package o 12 eggs, G oup 1 consume s indi-
ca ed an a e age p emium o €1.04. By con as , G oup
2 consume s we e willing o pay an a e age p emium o
€0.80. Finally, G oup 3 showed he highes a e ageWTP
p emium o eggs, a €1.14.
The esul s show ha when consume s did no
ecei e in o ma ion ega ding how insec s a e ea ed,
ea ed, and p epa ed o animal eed consump ion,
hei WTP was high, and signi ican ly di e en om ha
o he o he wo g oups in his case. Fu he mo e, con-
sume s who wa ched he ideo along wi h in o ma ion
ela ed o clima e change and g eenhouse gas emissions
showed inc easedWTP compa ed o hose who wa ched
solely he ideo.
Desc ip i e s a is ics o WTP
Figu e 3 p esen s a desc ip ion o he WTP p emium
o 1 kg o chicken mea , 1 kg o po k, and a 12-pack o
eggs. The esul s indica e ha o 1 kg o chicken mea ,
34.4% o he esponden s a e unwilling o pay any p e-
mium. Among hose who a e willing o pay, mos a e
inclined o pay modes amoun s: 16.5% a e willing o
pay be ween €0.50 and €1.00, and 9.1% a e willing o
pay less han €0.50.The pe cen age o esponden s will-
ing o pay dec eases as he p emium amoun inc eases,
wi h only 8.2% willing o pay mo e han €5.00. How-
e e , i is no able ha he pe cen age o esponden s
willing o pay a p emium o mo e han €5.00 inc eases
sligh ly compa ed o he p eceding p emium ca ego y,
going agains he gene al end. The a e age WTP p e-
mium is €1.59.
A simila end is obse ed o 1 kg o po k, wi h
37.2% o he esponden s unwilling o pay a p emium.
Mos o hose willing o pay p e e o pay smalle
amoun s, wi h 16.0% willing o pay be ween €0.50 and
€1.00, and 8.8% willing o pay less han €0.50. The
pe cen age o esponden s willing o pay highe p e-
miums dec eases, wi h only 7.9% willing o pay mo e
han €5.00. Howe e , as wi h chicken, he e is a sligh
inc ease in he pe cen age o esponden s willing o pay
a p emium o mo e han €5.00 compa ed o he p e-
Jou nal o Insec s as Food and Feed 0 (2025) 1–17
8M.A.C. Mus apa, N. Kajad and Z. Kallas
Table 3 Desc ip i e s a is ics o he su ey i ems (pe cen ages, mean sco es, and s anda d de ia ion) (n = 1,006)
Dependen a iables F equency
(%)
Dependen a iables Means (SD) In e p e a ion
Explana o y a iables Explana o y a iables
Gende ( emale) 50.1
Age Food neophobia 6.06 (1.58) High
- 18-34 30.2
- 35-54 33.1
- 55+ 36.7 Food neophilia 4.77 (1.62) Mode a e
Educa ion
- P ima y 6.30
- Seconda y 40.8 Ecocen ic
en i onmen al a i ude
6.38 (1.24) High
- Uni e si y 53.0
Household income (mon hly)
- <2.000 €59.8 An h opocen ic
en i onmen al a i ude
5.00 (1.38) Mode a e
- 2.000-3.000 €25.1
- 3.001-4.000 €6.50
- 4.001-6.000 €4.60 A i ude owa ds insec
as an animal eed
al e na i e
4.76 (1.72) Mode a e
- 6.001-8.000 €2.00
- >8.000 €2.00
Household pe cep ion o inancial income
- Fa below a e age 10.2
- Below a e age 19.8
- A e age 40.6
- Abo e a e age 24.6
- Fa abo e a e age 4.90
Mean sco e in e p e a ion: 1.00-3.00 = Low; 3.01-6.00 = Mode a e; 6.01-9.00 = High.
Table 4 A e age p emium willingness o pay (WTP) o animal p oduc s ed wi h insec s, ca ego ised by in o ma ion g oups
P oduc ca ego ies A e age p emium WTP (€) ± s anda d de ia ion
G oup 1
(Video + In o ma ion)
(n = 331)
G oup 2
(Video only)
(n = 336)
G oup 3
(No in o ma ion)
(n = 339)
A e age p emium WTP
(Mean and SD)
Chicken (1 kg) 1.53a ± 2.09 1.41a ± 2.10 1.97b ± 3.89 €1.59 ± 2.17
Po k (1 kg) 1.51a ± 2.14 1.29a ± 1.86 1.71b ± 2.57 €1.50 ± 2.15
Egg (Package o 12) 1.04a ± 0.09 0.80a ± 0.09 1.14b ± 0.09 €1.04 ± 1.45
Means o di e en in o ma ional con ex s wi h simila supe sc ip le e s (a o b) wi hin he same p oduc ca ego y a e no signi ican ly
di e en acco ding o he Duncan mul iple ange es . SD = S anda d de ia ion.
Jou nal o Insec s as Food and Feed 0 (2025) 1–17
Impac o In o ma ion on P e e ences o Insec -Fed Animal P oduc s 9
Figu e 3 Dis ibu ion o willingness o pay (WTP) p emiums o animal p oduc s ed wi h insec s, ca ego ised by p oduc ype.
ceding ca ego y. The a e age WTP p emium o po k is
sligh ly lowe , a €1.50.
The WTP p emium o a 12-pack o eggs also ollows
a simila pa e n, wi h 37.3% o esponden s unwilling
o pay any p emium. O hose willing o pay, 16.3% a e
willing o pay be ween €0.50 and €1.00, and 16.0% a e
willing o pay less han €0.50. As wi h chicken and po k,
ewe esponden s a e willing o pay highe p emiums,
wi h only 1.6% willing o pay mo e han €5.00. How-
e e , unlike chicken and po k, he e is no inc ease in he
pe cen age o esponden s willing o pay a p emium o
mo e han €5.00, wi h only 1.6% in his ca ego y. The
a e age WTP p emium o eggs is €1.04.
Reasons o non-willingness o pay mo e o animal
p oduc s ed wi h insec s
Figu e 4 shows he dis ibu ion o easons gi en by he
p o es o s o being unwilling o pay a p emium o
insec - ed chicken mea , po k, o eggs, segmen ed in o
h ee g oups. The highes pe cen age o esponden s in
all g oups ci ed ‘I canno pay mo e because my ood
budge does no allow i ’ as he p ima y eason o ejec-
ion. This eason was ci ed by 41% o G oup 1, 36% o
G oup 2, and 43% o G oup 3, indica ing ha inancial
limi a ions a e a signi ican ba ie .
The second mos common eason was ‘I don’ us
his ype o sus ainable ood wi h insec eed’. This was
men ioned by 20.0% in G oup 1, 26.0% in G oup 2, and
23.0% in G oup 3, highligh ing a no able le el o scep-
icism and dis us owa ds insec - ed sus ainable ood
p oduc s.
Figu e 4 Pe cen ages o easons o non-willingness o pay o
animal p oduc s ed wi h insec s ac oss di e en
in o ma ion g oups.
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