Keywords

1 Introduction

Entomophagy is practiced by at least 2 billion people worldwide [1], however in Western countries entomophagy acceptance is very low [2, 3], with some of the recorded barriers being disgust, food neophobia, perceived health risk, and negative attitudes [4,5,6]. Gender is one of the most important demographic factors when it comes to entomophagy, as males have been shown to be significantly more accepting of insect consumption [7, 8].

One perspective on consumer acceptance of entomophagy that seems to be of interest is that of generational cohorts [3, 9] and especially generation Z [3], which is the youngest adult cohort, incorporating people born between 1995 and 2009 [10]. Entomophagy and generational cohort behavior is a topic that has not been extensively addressed in the literature, with only ten studies existing [e.g., Rovai et al. 11] to our knowledge, of which only two studies [12, 13] address cohort behavior and gender differences towards entomophagy, which is the focus of this study.

Based on the abovementioned, the main aim of this paper is to explore barriers of entomophagy concerning the generation Z cohort as well as any existing gender differences, both having a dearth of extant literature. Due to different impediments (mainly economic and time) this research directs attention to the Greek generation Z cohort.

This research adds value to the existing literature by studying consumer behavior of generational cohorts and specifically the generation Z cohort in relation to entomophagy as well as gender differences which is extremely understudied in the academic literature (to our knowledge). Even though this study focuses on the Greek generation Z cohort, it may also prompt Greek tourist destination hotels and restaurants to serve insect-based dishes. Tourism marketers in the hospitality and gastronomy industry could include insect-based food for international tourists who have them in their diet or consumer groups that are environmentally conscious and avoid meat proteins.

2 Literature Review

Literature on insect consumption is gaining constantly interest and there is a continuous increasing number of academic papers that explore entomophagy from different points of view of consumer behaviour, some focusing on literature review, while others being research papers [e.g., 14].

There are conflicting results in studies of generational cohorts and entomophagy in the Western world, as some have found that all generational cohorts, including the Z-cohort, have a low propensity to consume insects [3, 9, 12], and some others have found that there is already a market segment ready to adopt insect consumption in their daily diet [11], especially for the generational cohorts Y and Z [13].

Research has shown that the main barriers to entomophagy for Westerners are disgust, food neophobia, perceived health risk, cultural aspects, intrinsic and extrinsic cues, and negative attitudes [4,5,6, 15]. Studies of generational cohorts and gender differences in entomophagy have shown that men accept it significantly more than women, both in countries with and without entomophagy traditions [12, 13]. Studies that do not take a generational cohort perspective also often find gender differences, highlighting that men are more accepting of insect consumption compared to women, especially regarding the consumption of whole and unprocessed insects [5]. This is evident in the systematic review by Kröger et al. [16] in which 71.2% of 52 studies identified maleness as a positive influence on entomophagy acceptance.

More specifically, Tzompa-Sosa et al. [13], in their study which included participants from the United States, Belgium, Mexico, Italy and China, found that gender was the most important factor in entomophagy  acceptance, as males were more likely to accept consumption of mealworms than females. Fasanelli et al. [12] found statistically significant differences between genders, with females showing higher levels of disgust and lower intention to consume edible insects. Videbæk and Grunert [8] found in their study that the “Potential Entomophagists” segment tended to be younger males. In addition, Schäufele et al. [17] found that women were significantly less likely to try edible insects. Cicatiello et al. [4] also showed that gender (male) positively influenced consumer attitudes towards entomophagy. In contrast, Kamenidou et al. [3] found that gender did not offer any statistically significant differences across the segments that emerged in their research.

3 Materials and Methods

Barriers to entomophagy included 15 items on a 7-point Likert scale, whereas the 15 statements (some slightly modified) were adopted from Woolf et al. [18] and Cicatiello et al. [4]. Criteria for participation in the study were established (members of adult generation Z cohort residing in Greece i.e., born between 1995 and 2004; access to the Internet, email, or social media), and provided consent (question N.1) for the use of the data collected. The questionnaire was distributed online for about one month, using a convenient and snowball sampling procedure, resulting in a sample of 742 valid responses for data analysis. Data analysis using SPSS ver. 28 program included descriptive statistics, reliability, and independent sample t-tests. The reliability of this15-item scale was measured using Cronbach a, which produced an α = 0.895, which is considered satisfactory.

4 Results

4.1 Sample Profile

Male subjects accounted for 56.3% of the sample whereas females accounted for 43.7% and the younger members of the Z cohort (18–20 years of age) were also overrepresented. Also, the majority of respondents were single, had finished secondary school, and lived in urban areas. Regarding occupation, most of them were students, and with a net monthly family income ≤ 1000.0 €. It must be noted that the income of the Greek Z cohort members that were living or studying alone, was calculated as the amount they receive from their parents plus any other income they may have (e.g., from a part-time or full-time job).

4.2 Barriers to Entomophagy

Based on the mean scores (MS) of the answers, the three main reasons (out of 15 presented) for not engaging in entomophagy are disgust (MS = 5.29; std = 2.09; median = 6.00), texture (MS = 5.14; std = 2.08; median = 6.00), and food safety concerns (MS = 5.04; std = 2.02; median = 6.00). On the other hand, availability (MS = 3.12; std = 2.05; median = 3.00), religion (MS = 2.71; std = 1.99; median = 3.00) or being vegetarian (MS = 2.63; std = 2.01; median = 2.00), are the statements with the lowest MS and thus are not considered as barriers. Additionally, of the 15 barriers tested, female subjects rated only seven higher than male subjects, namely, disgust, texture, food safety concerns, insect appearance, unfamiliar food, perceived bad flavor, and human consumption safety.

4.3 Gender Differences

Gender differences regarding barriers to entomophagy were examined using independent samples t-tests (SPSS ver. 28) for each barrier in order to gain a deeper understanding of the generation Z cohorts’ attitudes for each item. Additionally, the assumption of homogeneity of variances was tested (Levene’s F test). Table 1 shows the results of the t-test (depending on whether equal variances (EVA) are assumed or not (EVNA) based on Levene’s Test for Equality of Variances (LTEV) results), and only for the cases that statistical differences were detected.

Table 1 Independent samples t-test between generation Z cohorts’ gender and barriers to entomophagy
Full size table

The t-tests revealed that male and female subjects differ in what they consider as barriers to engage in entomophagy for six out of 15 provided statements examined. Specifically, no gender differences were detected for the following barriers: Food safety concerns, social/cultural pressures, vegetarian/vegan, low availability, high price, bad flavor, poor nutrition, negative environmental impact, insect appearance, texture, and human consumption safety. In contrast, the independent sample t-test showed that there are statistical differences between the generation Z male and female subjects in barriers to engage in entomophagy, related to disgust, unfamiliar, food safety concerns, religion, high price, and the statement “nothing prevents me”.

Independent samples t-test showed that regarding barriers to entomophagy, females had higher MS compared to males and differed statistically for disgust (t(740) = 1,972; p = 0.049; MSm = 5.16; MSf = 5.46), unfamiliar food to them (t(718,298) = 2,429; p = 0.015; MSm = 4.85; MSf = 5.21), and food safety concerns (t(740) = 1.979; p = 0.048; MSm = 4.92; MSf = 5.22). On the other hand, a statistically significant difference was found between males and females, with males having higher MS compared to females regarding barriers that refer to religion (t(723,568) = 2.822; p = 0.005; MSm = 2.97; MSf = 2.48), high price (t(740) = 2,297; p = 0.022; MSm = 3.32; MSf = 5.21), and “nothing prevents me” (t(712,854) = 3.021; p = 0.003; MSm = 3.38; MSf = 2.90).

5 Discussion

The results of the present study appear to be consistent with the findings of other similar studies [4, 8, 13, 17], as females have higher mean scores, in some cases statistically significant, than males on the most common barriers to entomophagy. In our study, females showed higher levels of disgust and safety concerns, while males were more likely to agree with the statement “nothing prevents me” from trying insect-based foods. These findings are consistent with those of the study by Bisconsin-Júnior et al. [7] where men exhibited the lowest risk perception toward eating insects and the most positive attitude toward foods made from edible insects, while women showed the highest risk perception and negative attitude. The research of Fasanelli et al. [12] is also in line with the results of this study, as they found that women exhibited statistically higher levels of disgust than men.

These results reveal the need of educating the generation Z cohort consumers about sustainability and the possibility to substitute meat proteins with proteins from insect consumption. It additionally reveals the need of education about entomophagy in order to decrease negative attitudes. Lastly, it reveals that marketing communication referring to awareness and education must be made towards different directions depending on gender and specifically based on the results of the highest MS per gender. One way of marketing communication with generation Z is to develop online communities where Gen Zers will share their prior experience with entomophagy, as this generation draws more on the experiences of their peers [19].

This study has several implications for the tourism industry, particularly gastronomic tourism, and hospitality. Albeit the present research focuses on the youngest adult Greek generational cohort, in a general sense it can also initiate insects-based gastronomy events for international tourists, “foodie” tourists or tourists that rely on an alternative diet with sustainable proteins. An example is the “all inclusive” hotels that attract the abovementioned consumer groups where during booking they could be informed of this alternative type of protein presented by the hotel’s menu. Restaurants could also benefit from including insect dishes on their menu for those that consider insect consumption a “gourmet” meal. Lastly, a new type of alternative tourism may be on the rise for the Greek industry, namely “Entomotourism” [20].

6 Limitations, Directions for Future Research and Conclusions

The research presented has some unavoidable limitations such as employing a non-probability sampling method, focusing on a single country (Greece), a single generational cohort (the generation Z cohort), and a relatively small sample (N = 742). It is undeniable that the above limitations, one by one, provide fertile ground for future research. Although the present study has the limitations noted above, its contribution to academia is significant, as it provides essential attitudinal information regarding an understudied generational cohort.

Ethical Approval: There are no ethical issues involved in the processing of the questionnaire data used in the study. The necessary consents have been obtained by the persons involved, and the anonymity of the participants has been secured. All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the International Hellenic University research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.