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- Insights into the Consumption of Edible Flowers in Costa RicaPublication . Guiné, Raquel P. F.; Correia, Paula; Florença, Sofia De Guiné E; Moya, K.; Anjos, O.Edible flowers (EF) have been used since ancient times in some parts of the world, either for culinary purposes or as a traditional medicine. Their use in modern times is supported by high reputed chefs, who use and promote them in their gourmet preparations as highly valuable assets, having a great potential for decoration, flavour and aroma, besides their nutritional value. Moreover, they are very rich in some phenolic compounds, such as anthocyanins, responsible for the colours and which have a proven antioxidant capacity, so exerting a beneficial effect on the human body against oxidation and cellular stress. This study describes how the people in Costa Rica perceive edible flowers, if and how they consume them, how they buy them and how much they are acquainted with possible health risks associated with their consumption. It comprised a questionnaire survey undertaken on a sample of 130 participants from Costa Rica, carried out through the internet. The results obtained indicated that the great majority of the participants know what EF are, but they recognize that there is not enough information about this topic. Only about 30% of the participants are aware that consuming EF can bear some risks, which are associated with toxicity and possible presence of pesticides. About half of the participants have already consumed EF, particularly in salads, and for decoration and confection of dishes. The most consumed flowers are rose, camomile and pumpkin flower. The most relevant motivations to consume EF are their taste and aroma, as well as being a novelty and useful for decoration. These results allow us to understand some eating habits, knowledge and consciousness of people from Costa Rica towards EF.
- An Insight into the Level of Information about Sustainability of Edible Insects in a Traditionally Non-Insect-Eating Country: Exploratory StudyPublication . Guiné, Raquel P. F.; Florença, Sofia De Guiné E; Anjos, O.; Correia, Paula; Ferreira, Bruno; Costa, Cristina Amaro DaInsects have been reported as a possible alternative solution to help feed the growing world pop-ulation with less stress on the planet, thus contributing to the preservation of the environment and natural ecosystems. However, the consumption of edible insects (EIs), although culturally ac-cepted for some communities, is not readily accepted for others. Hence this work explores the lev-el of information that people in a traditionally non-insect-eating country have about the sustaina-bility issues related with EIs, and also some possible reasons that could motivate their consump-tion. The study was based on a questionnaire survey and the results were explored by descriptive statistic tools, tree classification analysis, factor analysis and cluster analysis. The results showed that the level of information is still low in general, with most people not manifesting an opinion. However, some aspects are relatively familiar to the participants (88.9% know that the ecological footprint of insects is smaller than other meats and 86.9% know that they efficiently convert or-ganic matter into protein). Factor and cluster analysis showed three classes: cluster 1—people not informed about the facts disclosed through the true statements and also not able to distinguish the false information; cluster 2—people not informed about the facts disclosed through the true statements but who were able to distinguish the false information; and cluster 3—people well in-formed about the facts disclosed through the true statements but who were marginally unable to distinguish the false information. It was also found that education, sex and professional area are the most relevant sociodemographic factors associated with the level of information, and the highest motivations to consume EIs are their contribution to preserve the environment and natu-ral resources followed by being a more sustainable option (for 64.7% and 53.4% of participants, respectively). Hence it was concluded that, although some work still needs to be done to better inform people about EIs, there is already some conscientiousness that they constitute a good and more sustainable alternative to other types of meat.
- Food Literacy Scale: Validation Through Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor Analysis in a Sample of Portuguese University StudentsPublication . Guiné, Raquel P. F.; Florença, Sofia De Guiné E; Ferreira Aparício Costa, Maria Da Graça; Cardoso, Ana Paula; Ferreira, ManuelaEating behaviors and healthy food choices are associated with food literacy, and they have a huge impact on one’s health status. For that reason, to increase food literacy is a way to effectively help individuals make appropriate choices that help maintain health and diminish the incidence of non-communicable diseases. The objective of this work was to test and validate a scale to assess food literacy. The validation was conducted on a sample of 924 Portuguese university students. The scale was composed of 50 items, which were submitted to exploratory and confirmatory factors analysis. The final validated scale corresponded to a second-order model with a global factor called “Food literacy”, which retained 26 items distributed by three factors: F1—literacy about the nutritional composition of foods (10 items), F2—literacy about labelling and food choices (7 items), and F3—literacy about healthy eating practices (9 items). The internal consistency of the scale is very high, with an alpha higher than 0.9, and the Pierson correlations between the three factors and the global are also higher than 0.9. In conclusion, the present scale has been validated and can therefore be utilized to measure food literacy.
- Estudo sobre atitudes, perceções e conhecimentos relativos a insetos comestíveis em PortugalPublication . Florença, Sofia De Guiné E; Costa, Cristina Amaro Da; Guiné, Raquel P. F.; Anjos, O.; Correia, PaulaOs insetos têm sido apontados como uma fonte alternativa e mais sustentável de proteína animal, que pode ajudar a alimentar a crescente população mundial. Devido à menor pegada e impacto ambiental, a substituição parcial da proteína animal por insetos pode contribuir para a preservação do meio ambiente e dos ecossistemas naturais. No entanto, o consumo de insetos comestíveis, embora culturalmente aceite em algumas comunidades, não é prontamente aceite noutras. Assim, este trabalho investigou o conhecimento, atitudes, hábitos de consumo e grau de aceitabilidade de insetos ou produtos derivados entre consumidores portugueses. Este estudo foi baseado numa pesquisa por questionário, realizada numa amostra de 213 participantes. Os resultados mostraram que os portugueses tendem a ter perceções corretas sobre as questões de sustentabilidade relacionadas com a utilização de insetos como alternativa a carnes convencionais. No entanto, o grau de conhecimento sobre o valor nutritivo dos insetos e possíveis efeitos na saúde é baixo. Entre os indivíduos pesquisados, apenas uma pequena percentagem indicou já ter comido insetos, consumidos maioritariamente no estrangeiro, por iniciativa própria, seja em restaurantes ou em festas/eventos sociais. Não surpreendentemente, observou-se que há uma maior relutância em consumir insetos inteiros do que em ingeri-los como ingredientes utilizados em preparações alimentares. Assim, em conclusão, a investigação revelou que os portugueses ainda apresentam alguma resistência para aderir ao consumo de insetos como alternativa a outros produtos cárneos, mas não se descarta que o mercado de produtos à base de insetos possa ser uma forma de ultrapassar a neofobia associada a este tipo de alimentos num país tradicionalmente não comedor de insetos.