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Solar-powered consumer electronics are a likely starting point for organic photovoltaic (OPV) market development. Therefore, a generic discrete choice experiments study can determine how Flemish consumers value solar-cell characteristics for solar-powered consumer electronics. Such characteristics include efficiency, lifetime, aesthetics, integratability, and price. We contribute to the literature by investigating preference heterogeneity in a solar-power niche market with an experimental design with a fixed reference alternative. The error components random parameter logit (ECRPL) with interactions provides a better fit than the latent class (LC) model for our choice data. The main effects had the expected signs. Consequently, aesthetics and integratability are OPV's assets. Nevertheless, heterogeneity puts the results that are valid for the average consumer into perspective. Based on our findings, OPV commercialization efforts should target the experienced, impatient user who highly values design and functionality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on the role of fertilizers within regional nutrient cycles. Bio-based fertilizers can contribute to regional nutrient circularity, but the question remains whether production and consumption of bio-based fertilizers is beneficial to the farmer and the environment. Therefore, both farmers' private costs and environmental externalities should be taken into account. We formulate a farm-level multi-objective optimization model by considering a range of fertilizers, their costs and the environmental consequences associated with their production and use. The cost-minimization approach is applied to a conceptualized Flemish leek farmer aiming to safeguard nutrient uptake while being constrained by nutrient standards and the availability of on-farm residues. Our results suggest that mineral fertilizers have an important role in the fertilizer mix despite their environmental externalities. Nevertheless, there is also a role for bio-based fertilizers. These results have implications for farmers and policymakers wishing to internalize fertilizer externalities. • An optimization model minimizes social costs of a horticultural fertilizer mix. • The analysis employs life-cycle analysis, cost data and externality valuation. • Usage of mineral fertilizers, pig slurry, compost and crop residues is optimal. • Sensitivity analyses highlight the importance of ammonia emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Consumers consider Eco-Score equally important as localness. • Organic labels are considered relatively unimportant. • Longer-term commitments to seasonal vegetable consumption are strongly disliked. • Poor Eco-Scores are compensated for with stronger local preferences and vice versa. • Preferences for Eco-scores can be reinforced by inducing doubt on sustainability of one's behaviour. In light of a European harmonized Front-of-Package (FOP) labelling system, an integrated "Eco-score" should overcome the multitude of sustainability labels on food. However, several established sustainability-related food attributes, like organic standards or the product's origin, are typically also considered pro-environmental attributes by consumers. This coexistence might require trade-offs with the new Eco-score during food choices. Further, the need to activate pro-environmental goals amongst consumers while making food choices has increasingly been expressed, as an improvement or addition to merely awareness-increasing approaches. This study evaluated Belgian consumers' (N = 300) preferences for available vegetable supplies through a discrete choice experiment (DCE) with attributes on seasonality, localness, organic label, Eco-score and a monthly price. Furthermore, using a 2 × 2 between-subject split, various ways of priming pro-environmental goals through sustainable self-views have been evaluated. Overall, Eco-scores were found equally important as price and localness, while organic was found least important. In addition, in situations of conflicting Eco-scores and origins (i.e. local with poor Eco-scores and vice versa), more importance was attached to the most beneficial attribute. Furthermore, strong aversions towards longer term commitments to seasonal vegetable consumption were observed. Lastly, making people think of themselves as sustainable yet too confidently, might backfire. With more uncertainty, sustainable self-views might induce more positive preferences for seasonal vegetables and better Eco-Scores. The challenges and opportunities revealed by these insights should guide future policymaking for a more effective labelling system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By combining qualitative scenarios and life cycle assessment (LCA), we place the latter in a larger context. This study outlines the importance of the integration of future perspectives into LCA, and also the significance of taking changes in the environment of technology into account, rather than just technological development itself. Accordingly, we focused on adapting the background system of an attributional LCA in the agri-food sector. The proposed technology was assumed not have evolved in the considered time horizon. In this context, the objectives of this paper were twofold: (i) to methodologically prove the applicability of integrating qualitative scenarios into LCA and (ii) to focus on changes in the background system, which is sometimes overlooked in the context of future-oriented LCA. This allowed to evaluate the future potential of different technologies, assessing their environmental impact under uncertain future developments. Methodologically, the qualitative information from scenarios was transformed into quantitative data, which was successively fed into the life cycle inventory (LCI) of the LCA approach. This point of integration into the second phase of LCA translates into future changes in the entire environment in which a technology is used. This means that qualitatively described scenario narratives need to be converted into value estimates in order to be incorporated into the LCA model. A key conclusion is that changes in the background of an LCA—the changing framework expressed through the inventory database—can be very important for the environmental impact of emerging technologies. This approach was applied to a food processing technology to produce apple juice. The proposed methodology enables technology developers to make their products future-proof and robust against socioeconomic development. In addition, the market perspective, if spelled out in the scenarios, can be integrated, leading to a more holistic picture of LCA with its environmental focus, while simultaneously empowering actors to make the right strategic decisions today, especially when considering the long investment cycles in the agri-food sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents an analysis of agricultural output and productivity in transition economies and relates the patterns of productivity changes to differences in initial conditions and reform policies. A brief background on the changes in agricultural output and agricultural labor productivity is presented. Initial conditions influenced the impact of reforms and the choice of the reform policies. Resource endowments and use of technology have also impacted the efficiency of farm organizations.

Background: HIV drug resistance (HIVDR) continues to threaten the effectiveness of worldwide antiretroviral therapy (ART). Emergence and transmission of HIVDR are driven by several interconnected factors. Though much has been done to uncover factors influencing HIVDR, overall interconnectedness between these factors remains unclear and African policy makers encounter difficulties setting priorities combating HIVDR. By viewing HIVDR as a complex adaptive system, through the eyes of multi-disciplinary HIVDR experts, we aimed to make a first attempt to linking different influencing factors and gaining a deeper understanding of the complexity of the system.Methods: We designed a detailed systems map of factors influencing HIVDR based on semi-structured interviews with 15 international HIVDR experts from or with experience in sub-Saharan Africa, from different disciplinary backgrounds and affiliated with different types of institutions. The resulting detailed system map was conceptualized into three main HIVDR feedback loops and further strengthened with literature evidence.Results: Factors influencing HIVDR in sub-Saharan Africa and their interactions were sorted in five categories: biology, individual, social context, healthcare system and 'overarching'. We identified three causal loops cross-cutting these layers, which relate to three interconnected subsystems of mechanisms influencing HIVDR. The 'adherence motivation' subsystem concerns the interplay of factors influencing people living with HIV to alternate between adherence and non-adherence. The 'healthcare burden' subsystem is a reinforcing loop leading to an increase in HIVDR at local population level. The 'ART overreliance' subsystem is a balancing feedback loop leading to complacency among program managers when there is overreliance on ART with a perceived low risk to drug resistance. The three subsystems are interconnected at different levels.Conclusions: Interconnectedness of the three subsystems underlines the need to act on the entire system of factors surrounding HIVDR in sub-Saharan Africa in order to target interventions and to prevent unwanted effects on other parts of the system. The three theories that emerged while studying HIVDR as a complex adaptive system form a starting point for further qualitative and quantitative investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides evidence on the heterogeneous welfare implications of rural income portfolios in eastern Uganda. We use household survey data from two-panel rounds, and fixed and random effects estimation and quantile regressions to estimate average and heterogeneous effects. While the literature mostly focuses on either income diversification or participation in non-farm activities, we distinguish between income diversification, using the Simpson Index, and off-farm income generation. We use ex-post income and poverty measures as well as an ex-ante vulnerability measure to analyse welfare effects. We find that income diversification and non-farm income generation improve household income, and reduce poverty and vulnerability. We find that it is most beneficial for poorer households with less land assets to diversify their income portfolio, while moving out of agriculture is equally beneficial at all income levels and most beneficial for households with more human capital. We find that income diversification reduces vulnerability most strongly at high levels of diversification and low levels of income while non-farm income generation reduces vulnerability at lower levels of non-farm income and increases vulnerability at higher levels of non-farm income. Our results lead to nuanced findings that bring additional insights in the literature on structural transformation and rural development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While contributing to the conservation of natural fish stocks, the aquaculture sector imposes environmental repercussions. The growing popularity of colour-graded eco-labels in promoting pro-environmental practices in food production underscores the need for scientific insights into consumer responses to such labels, particularly with the imminent prospect of a harmonized European labelling framework. The existing literature, although limited and divergent, advocates for real-life testing with fresh, perishable food products, emphasizing the inadequacy of standalone labels and the necessity for complementary measures. Furthermore, the mechanisms underlying how consumers process multi-coloured Front-of-Pack (FOP) labels remain ambiguous, with uncertainties regarding induced consumption shifts stemming from both deliberate information processing and less deliberate associations. This article presents findings from a randomized control trial conducted in a simulated fishmonger store in Derio, Bizkaia, Spain, involving 200 consumers. Participants selected various sea bass products out of multiple options. This task was subject to a 2 (Enviroscore: with vs without) x 2 (Supporting info on Enviroscore: with vs without) between-subject design, resulting in four treatment groups. A 16% increase in the likelihood of selecting lower-impact products was observed. Notably, this effect was evident only in the absence of supporting information on Enviroscore, and the observed impact could not be attributed to any indirect attention effect. In conclusion, Enviroscore exhibits potential in steering consumer choices toward more environmentally friendly aquaculture fish options, even in physical retail settings. However, these effects may be rooted in unconscious responses rather than deliberate environmental considerations, raising questions about the suitability of envisaged policy orientations encompassing disaggregated environmental, nutritional, animal welfare, and social welfare scores. Generalization of these findings warrants validation through further research encompassing a more comprehensive range of products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past decades, the global exposure of persons and assets to natural hazards, like landslides, has increased faster than that their vulnerability has decreased. Therefore, the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) made a call in 2015 for more investment in DRR. Recent studies exposed the lack of scientific evaluation data for selecting DRR measures. The objective of this research is to develop a participatory methodology for identifying appropriate DRR measures based on stakeholder groups' perceptions. More specifically, we propose a social multi-criteria evaluation which combines a two-phased participatory multi-criteria analysis with an institutional analysis for its design and a discourse analysis for interpreting its outcomes. This method is then tested for a case study focusing on landslides in the Rwenzori Mountains region (Uganda) to illustrate both its relevance and practical challenges. The results from the case study highlight the perceived importance of the acceptability of measures above cost, feasibility and effectiveness criteria, by district and village stakeholder groups. Frequently recommended DRR actions, such as disaster risk zonation or relocation, are shown to be perceived negatively by local stakeholders despite being put forward in national policies. This study contributes to the DRR literature as it proposes a new method to support DRR-related decision-making. It also contributes to the understanding of landslide risk reduction in the Rwenzori Mountains region as it presents the first attempt to identify appropriate landslide risk reduction measures for the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mount Elgon in Eastern Uganda is one of the most landslide-prone regions in Africa. This extinct shield volcano is characterized by steep slopes, intense precipitation, and fertile lands supporting a dense human population. As a result, landslides frequently cause damage and many fatalities. Apart from the need for a landslide susceptibility assessment, insight into the landslide mobilization rates [ton/km2/y] is required to assess the geomorphological importance of landslides. Such quantitative information is scarce for many regions around the world and particularly for Africa. We therefore compiled a calibration dataset of 653 landslides (514 slides and 139 rockfalls). Additionally, a second dataset of over 400 landslides was independently collected for validation purposes. To determine a logistic landslide susceptibility model, we used Monte Carlo simulations that selected different subsets of the calibration dataset to test the significance of the considered environmental variables. Susceptibility maps for all landslide types and for rockfalls were constructed for the Mount Elgon region in Uganda. In both maps, topography is by far the most significant factor controlling landslide susceptibility. Including lithology and soil moisture, further improved the model predictions. The models explain about 55% and 85% of the observed variance in landslide occurrence for all landslide types and for rockfalls respectively. The average calculated landslide frequency and mobilization rate for the landslide affected area are respectively 0.04 landslides/km2/y and 750 ton/km2/y. Landslide size is only weakly positively correlated with landslide susceptibility. Therefore, observed larger landslide mobilization rates correlating with higher landslide susceptibilities result from larger landslide numbers rather than from larger landslides. Our research highlights the relevance of detailed and long-term landslide mapping at the regional scale in data-scarce areas for regional planning and risk reduction strategies, as an improvement to continental and global susceptibility models, but also to assess the geomorphological importance of landslides as an erosion process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • 81% of participants have changed food-related behaviours in the wake of the Ukraine war and rising prices. • Increased price sensitivity was most common change in the wake of the Ukraine war and rising prices. • 32% of participants reported more mindful food choices compared to pre-COVID-19. • Reported changes are in line with changes observed in 2020 in response to COPVID-19. When the COVID-19 pandemic subsided, the war in Ukraine led to further disruptions in consumers' daily behaviours, with rising prices for food and energy. We conducted a survey study on self-reported changes in food-related consumer behaviour in ten European countries and compared the results to a similar study conducted two years ago. A latent class cluster analysis distinguished five clusters and showed that different types of consumers can be distinguished based on how they react to the crisis as regards their eating habits. 19% of survey participants reported no major changes, and 32% reported changes mostly in terms of more price sensitivity. Among those that reported changes beyond reacting to higher prices, there are indications of more mindful eating and more deliberate choices. The changes already found earlier in response to the COVID-19 pandemic therefore seem to have been strengthened and supplemented by reactions to price increases. The results present a challenge to the food industry in terms of supplying healthy and sustainable food at affordable prices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Semi-natural habitat enhances ecological performance in agroecosystems. • Trade-off between biodiversity and yield is found in both organic and IPM orchards. • Apple orchard multifunctionality does not differ between IPM and organic management. • Managing orchards to optimize multifunctionality requires a landscape perspective. Managing agricultural landscapes to simultaneously provide multiple ecosystem services is crucial to meet both environmental and societal demands. This not only requires surveying and modeling many ecosystem services at the same time, but also quantifying the impact of agricultural management and the surrounding landscape on agroecosystem multifunctionality. In this study, we assessed the agroecosystem multifunctionality of 12 organic apple orchards and 12 orchards with integrated pest management (IPM) using field data on 23 indicators for agronomical, ecological and economic performance. Furthermore, the ecological performance indicators were also quantified in 12 semi-natural grasslands to obtain a benchmark for the overall impact of agricultural management on biodiversity and biodiversity-based ecosystem services. We found that organic farming at the field scale had relatively limited beneficial effects on ecological performance, yet it provided farmers with a similar income relative to IPM, despite lower yield levels. Overall orchard multifunctionality did not differ between organic and IPM orchards, regardless of hypothetical stakeholder interests, and a clear trade-off between biodiversity and yield was found within both orchard systems. Structural equation models revealed that in addition to orchard management, also within-orchard location, local biodiversity and characteristics of the surrounding landscape were directly and/or indirectly driving ecosystem service indicator levels. Surrounding semi-natural habitat and landscape complexity enhanced biodiversity and biodiversity-based ecosystem services, and the higher provisioning of several services in the semi-natural benchmark further emphasizes the importance of preserving semi-natural habitats within the agricultural landscape. Overall, our results indicate that reconciling ecological, agronomical and economic goals requires a vision that goes beyond the field-level agricultural management. Therefore, we argue that policy measures should not only address local farm management, but should also target actions towards other stakeholders such as land managers and agricultural markets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Private standards such as Fairtrade have emerged as a response to consumer, civil society and corporate concerns about the production conditions of imported food. Many studies have investigated the welfare implications of smallholder participation in Fairtrade schemes and consumers' willingness to pay for Fairtrade and other labelled products. On the other hand, no study has yet investigated farmers' preferences for Fairtrade and other private standards. Such insights would be valuable to improve the efficiency of certification schemes and ensure that they are tailored to farmers’ needs. Using a choice experiment, this study investigates the preferences of smallholder rice farmers in Benin for Fairtrade and Organic standards and compares the value of three types of contracts (domestic, Fairtrade, and Fairtrade-Organic). The results indicate that farmers positively value contracts, but prefer domestic over Fairtrade contracts because the former involve fewer requirements. At current market prices, farmers are willing to accept a Fairtrade contract that includes fertiliser and child labour restrictions and a social premium, but they are not willing to accept a Fairtrade-Organic contract that completely prohibits chemical input use. The results imply that adding organic requirements to Fairtrade contracts may undermine the adoption and spread of Fairtrade certification in the Beninese rice sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In response to the detrimental health- and environmental impacts of European consumers' dietary patterns, Nutri-Scores and Eco-Scores have been introduced on packages as guidance for choices. Whereas the scores are promising to improve food choices from a nutritional point of view, the scant available literature suggests very limited effects on the environmental impact of food choices. Therefore, there remains a need to explore ways to bring about improvements in both areas. As a growing share of consumers buys food groceries online, new opportunities to steer food choices are being created. This article explores the potential of several digital functionalities to further stimulate healthier and pro-environmental food choices amongst consumers. These functionalities included product recommendation agents, product scores, a real-time average impact score of the chosen food basket and a personalised social norm. Those were tested in a two-stage randomized controlled trial with 1000 Belgian household food decision makers in a mock-up E-grocery. Indices reflecting the nutritional quality (NQI) and environmental impact (EII) of the selected food baskets were calculated. The results indicate that at first, displaying a combined Nutri- and Eco-Score at product level led to improved NQI's, but not EII's. However, the scores also led to shifting behaviour in EII's when facilitated with recommendation agents. The display of the average impact scores of the selected basket and of social norms did not lead to additional improvements. Hence, a combined Nutri- and Eco-Score labelling system is recommended, but an enabling environment to consider both scores is important to realise a shift towards more healthy and environmentally friendly food choices. Apart from manifesting healthier and environmentally friendly products with a centralised labelling system, improving their accessibility should be considered at least as important for behavioural changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: As the search for marketable photovoltaic solar cells continues, organic photovoltaic (OPV) solar cells have been identified as a technology with many attractive features for commercialization. Most photovoltaic technologies on the market today were improved in the consumer electronics market segment. A similar evolution has been envisioned for OPV. Hence this paper investigates consumer preferences for solar cells directly powering consumer electronics. Choice experiments were designed and responses were collected using a random sample of 300 individuals from the Flemish region (northern part of Belgium). Results allow for computation of attribute importance, willingness to pay (WTP), and simulation of theoretical market share. These measures point towards OPV being able to reach considerable market share in the long run, bearing in mind that efforts are first needed in elevating OPV''s efficiency and lifetime as they most determine consumers'' preferences. Price is found to be the least important product characteristic for OPV solar cells to be incorporated in consumer electronics devices. We therefore warn against generalizing attributes’ importance across the boundaries of market segments. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The vanilla supply chain is characterized by high risk crop management and unstable supply. In order to meet global vanilla demand while improving production sustainability, new approaches considering agro-ecological cultivation systems and transparent supply chain management are needed. In this study, we aim to understand farmers' preferences towards such alternative vanilla cultivation and marketing systems, and thereby inform the development of a more sustainable vanilla supply chain. We implemented a discrete choice experiment and a survey with 186 farmers in the Península de Osa, southern Costa Rica, and estimated mixed logit and latent class models. We find that surveyed farmers are in general positive about vanilla cultivation and prefer an agroforestry system over vanilla cultivation in forests, crop wild relatives over commercial species, and manual pollination over natural pollination. Farmers prefer to sell green rather than cured vanilla beans, and like to engage in cooperatives that provide training and production contracts with buyers. Preferences are found to differ across farmers and we identify four preference classes. The preference class with the largest average probability (44%) shows the strongest preferences for agro-ecological vanilla cultivation in diversified agroforestry systems, using crop wild relatives and natural pollinators. Furthermore, this class has the highest likelihood to live in areas with restricted land use policies, creating opportunities for the development of more sustainable vanilla cultivation systems conform with the national program of landscape connectivity and biodiversity conservation. We propose a two-tier approach in alignment with observed farmer preferences and with potential for upscaling to similar areas along the Neotropics. [Display omitted] • Discrete choice experiment on farmer preferences for vanilla production in Costa Rica. • Positive but heterogeneous attitudes of farmers towards vanilla cultivation. • Agro-ecological production and market contract preferred by farmers in fragile areas. • Farmers interested in vanilla crop wild relatives and natural pollination. • Proposition of vanilla program, with potential upscaling to other Neotropical regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • 40% of consumers report to have changed food-related behaviours during the COVID-19 pandemic. • Most consumers report enjoying cooking and family meals more than before. • Changes due to the pandemic are in line with pre-pandemic goals. • The pandemic may have been a catalyst for behavioural change. The COVID-19 pandemic and especially the lockdowns coming with it have been a disruptive event also for food consumption. In order to study the impact of the pandemic on eating habits, self-reported changes in food-related behaviours were investigated in ten European countries by means of an online survey. A latent class cluster analysis distinguished five clusters and showed that different types of consumers can be distinguished based on how they react to the pandemic as regards their eating habits. While food-related behaviours were resilient for 60% of the sample, another 35% reported more enjoyment in cooking and eating, more time in the kitchen and more family meals. Among those, a slight majority also showed signs of more mindful eating, as indicated by more deliberate choices and increased consumption of healthy food, whereas a slight minority reported more consumption of indulgence food. Only 5% indicated less involvement with food. As the COVID-19 pandemic is a disruptive event, some of these changes may have habit-breaking properties and open up new opportunities and challenges for food policy and food industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Dual Nutri- & Eco-Scoring system improves nutritional quality of food choices. • But, environmental impact is not improved by dual Nutri-& Eco-scoring system. • Specific dietary recommendation improves nutritional quality and environmental impact. • Improvements are mostly achieved by decreases in consumption of harmful products. The application of Nutri-Score on food products is ubiquitous throughout Europe and studies demonstrating its potential to stimulate healthier food choices are accumulating. At the same time, a strong need exists to evenly harmonize and activate the communication of environmental impacts on food products, in synergy with the Nutri-Score. This raises the question of whether the Nutri-Score could be expanded to an 'Eco-Score' that would similarly encourage environmentally friendly food choices. This paper reports a randomized control trial, in which a representative sample of 805 Belgian consumers was asked to hypothetically buy ingredients for a meal in a small-scale mock-up E-grocery environment. The experiment tested whether a combined Nutri-Score and Eco-Score affected the nutritional quality and environmental impact of consumers' food choices. This effect was compared to general and specific dietary recommendations on the one hand, and to detailed impact tables on the other hand. Since visual distraction often plays a role in informative persuasion, the treatments were evaluated subject to different levels of distraction caused by product images. The average nutritional quality index (NQI) and environmental impact index (EII) of the selected baskets were calculated to evaluate the effects of the manipulations. We find that a joint Nutri-Score and Eco-Score label improves the NQI but not the EII. The general- and specific recommendation as well as the detailed information also improved the NQI. However, the specific recommendation was the only treatment that also improved the EII. The improvements in NQI due to the scores could be explained by a reduced consumption of pork. The improvements in EII induced by the specific recommendation could mainly be explained by a reduction in beef consumption. Only very mild indications were found that product images interfered with the effect of the scores. This study provides some initial evidence and support for the use of dual Nutri-Score – Eco-Score label to induce transitions towards healthier and more sustainable diets. We also find that recommendations outside the classic Front-Of-Package label framework could be a promising way to realize such a transition. However, it remains to be tested whether similar effects occur in real E-groceries and on a longer time scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Conceptual model for consumer trust in food system validated in 5 countries. • Consumer trust is largely determined by beliefs on trustworthiness of actors. • Consumer trust beliefs predict confidence in food and technology integrity. • Trust beliefs of openness in food chain actors are most strongly related to consumer confidence. • Trust beliefs of manufacturer openness is strongest indicator of consumer confidence. In order to measure consumer trust in food chain actors and its impact on consumer confidence in food and the technology with which it has been produced, a model was developed relating social trust, beliefs in trustworthiness, overall trust in food chain actors, and confidence in both the supply of food products and food technologies. Data were collected via an online survey in five European countries. Analysis provided support for the model and showed that consumer confidence is largely determined by consumer beliefs about the trustworthiness of food chain actors. In particular the beliefs about openness, and especially about the openness of food manufacturers, are strongly related to consumer confidence. Some national differences in trust and confidence exist. This instrument is shown to be suitable for monitoring the development of, and changes in, trust across countries over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Citizen science, where non-specialists collaborate with scientists, has surged in popularity. While it offers an innovative approach to research involvement, the domain of agri-environmental research participation, particularly in terms of citizen recruitment and retention, remains relatively unexplored. To investigate how what factors influence initial and sustained participation in an agronomic citizen science project, we performed a large survey during the case-study "Soy in 1000 Gardens". We obtained data on citizens motivations, general values, environmental concern, prior citizen science experience, and knowledge regarding sustainable food consumption and garden management and applied a two-step selection model to correct for potential self-selection bias on our participation outcomes. Initially, citizen scientists appear to be mostly motivated by gaining knowledge, having fun social interactions and environmental concern with regards to the effects on others, while the desire for enhancing or protecting their ego is less prominent. They also display higher knowledge and self-transcending values. Sustained participants however, are significantly older and share a stronger sense of moral obligation than their dropped-out counterparts. Moreover, prior experience seems to positively influence the length of their participation, while higher knowledge has a positive impact on the amount of data contributed. These insights offer strategies for tailored engagement that should emphasize collective impact, align with intrinsic values, and foster a sense of moral duty, with potential to enhance agri-environmental citizen science initiatives' effectiveness in addressing environmental challenges., Competing Interests: The authors have declared no competing interests., (Copyright: © 2024 Vanden Berghen et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

Citizen science is an undervalued tool in a scientist's toolbox with the potential to go beyond primary data collection to strengthen fundamental and applied science. We call for the integration of these three disciplines to make agriculture sustainable and adaptive to climate change, with North-Western European soybean cultivation as showcase., Competing Interests: Declaration of interests The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

A 5-scale label that relativizes the environmental impact of a given product referred to the impact of the European food basket is proposed. It was developed based on the Product Environmental Footprint methodology with the following stepwise approach. First, a set of normalization and weighting factors were defined to aggregate all the environmental impact categories into a single dimensionless index referred to as the European food basket, coined the European Food Environmental Footprint Single Index (EFSI). Next, the effectiveness of the EFSI index was evaluated by assessing the distribution of the EFSI results on 149 hypothetical food items and comparing it with the results obtained with EC Single Score. Finally, the thresholds to translate the EFSI index into the 5-scale Enviroscore (A, B, C, D, and E) were established and validated using the Delphi method. Results indicated that both, Enviroscore and EFSI, were able to account for impact variability between and within food products. Differences on the final score were observed due to the type of products (vegetables vs. animal products), the country of origin and the mean of transportation. Regarding country of origin, results indicated that differences in water stress impact category were better captured by the EFSI index (r = 0.624) than by the EC Single Score (r = 0.228). Finally, good agreement achieved with the Delphi method (weighted Kappa 0.642; p = 0.0025), ensures the acceptability of the Enviroscore. In conclusion, this study developed a method to communicate environmental impact assessment in a front-of-packaging label., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Life cycle assessment (LCA) has become a common methodology to analyze environmental impacts of forestry systems. Although LCA has been widely applied to forestry since the 90s, the LCAs are still often based on generic Life Cycle Inventory (LCI). With the purpose of improving LCA practices in the forestry sector, we developed a European Life Cycle Inventory of Forestry Operations (EFO-LCI) and analyzed the available information to check if within the European forestry sector national differences really exist. We classified the European forests on the basis of "Forest Units" (combinations of tree species and silvicultural practices). For each Forest Unit, we constructed the LCI of their forest management practices on the basis of a questionnaire filled out by national silvicultural experts. We analyzed the data reported to evaluate how they vary over Europe and how they affect LCA results and made freely available the inventory data collected for future use. The study shows important variability in rotation length, type of regeneration, amount and assortments of wood products harvested, and machinery used due to the differences in management practices. The existing variability on these activities sensibly affect LCA results of forestry practices and raw wood production. Although it is practically unfeasible to collect site-specific data for all the LCAs involving forest-based products, the use of less generic LCI data of forestry practice is desirable to improve the reliability of the studies. With the release of EFO-LCI we made a step toward the construction of regionalized LCI for the European forestry sector.

Several regions around the globe are at risk of incurring damage from landslides, but only few studies have concentrated on a quantitative estimate of the overall damage caused by landslides at a regional scale. This study therefore starts with a quantitative economic assessment of the direct and indirect damage caused by landslides in a 2,910 km study area located west of Brussels, a low-relief region susceptible to landslides. Based on focus interviews as well as on semi-structured interviews with homeowners, civil servants and the owners and providers of lifelines such as electricity and sewage, a quantitative damage assessment is provided. For private properties (houses, forest and pasture land) we estimate the real estate and production value losses for different damage scenarios, while for public infrastructure the costs of measures to repair and prevent landslide induced damage are estimated. In addition, the increase in amenity value of forests and grasslands due to the occurrence of landslides is also calculated. The study illustrates that a minority of land (only 2.3%) within the study area is used for dwellings, roads and railway lines, but that these land use types are responsible for the vast majority of the economic damage due to the occurrence of landslides. The annual cost of direct damage due to landsliding amounts to 688,148 €/year out of which 550,740 €/year for direct damage to houses, while the annual indirect damage augments to 3,020,049 €/year out of which 2,007,375 €/year for indirect damage to real estate. Next, the study illustrates that the increase of the amenity value of forests and grasslands outweighs the production value loss. As such the study does not only provide quantitative input data for the estimation of future risks, but also important information for government officials as it clearly informs about the costs associated with certain land use types in landslide areas., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)