Environment, Enterprise and Development

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This is the collection for the University of Waterloo's School of Environment, Enterprise and Development.

Research outputs are organized by type (eg. Master Thesis, Article, Conference Paper).

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10-Year Changes of Food Consumption and Carbon Footprint in Ontario
(University of Waterloo, 2018-06-19) Topcu, Basak; Dias, Goretty
What humans eat can have a significant impact on ecosystems and the climate. In order to attain the climate targets to keep global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius, it is important to reduce consumption of carbon-intensive food products. Many studies have quantified the environmental impacts of food consumption. However, most of these prior diet-related environmental assessment studies have evaluated impacts based on a snapshot of food consumption, instead of evaluating the changes in food-related environmental impacts over a period of time. Understanding these changes is important in determining what factors affect consumer food consumption behaviours that would shift their food consumption patterns towards less resource intensive products. This thesis evaluates the changes in food, nutritional value, and carbon footprint (CF) of dietary patterns in Ontario in the last decade, broadly in three steps. First, change assessment is conducted by comparing the overall food consumption based on the 24-hour recall food intake data from the Canadian Community Health Survey-Nutrition in 2004 and 2015. Then seven dietary patterns are identified by analyzing the food types of each survey participant and Life Cycle Assessment is used to quantify CF of these dietary patterns. Canada’s Food Guide is used to assess the nutritional quality of actual dietary patterns, and then alternative nutritionally-balanced and low carbon dietary patterns are formulated and their CF is determined. The results suggest that: 1) overall, Ontarians are eating less red meat and more poultry and drinking less beverages high in sugar content; 2) Ontarians continue to overconsume daily protein, possibly because they do not consider protein from non-meat products, such as milk and cheese; 3) the CF of Ontarians food consumption has decreased in the last decade, specifically due to reductions in beef, which is the most carbon-intensive food product; and 4) also, the CF of nutritionally-balanced diets has decreased for all dietary patterns, only exception is Pescatarian that showed a slight increase. Changes in types and amounts of food consumed could be a result of health concerns, increase in climate change awareness, economic or cultural fluctuations. Overall, this thesis improves our understanding of the CF and nutritional assessment of Ontarians’ current food consumption and how this has changed in the last 10 years. By determining and understanding changes, this research could also be helpful to identify strategies to shift Ontarians’ food consumption behaviors towards nutritionally-balanced and low carbon-intensive food choices.
An analysis of Canadian young adults’ eating behaviours towards sustainable food choices
(University of Waterloo, 2023-04-21) Mollaei, Sadaf; Dias, Goretty
Human health has always been a major concern when it comes to policy design, decision-making, and planning. However, in recent years and with ideas about sustainability gaining traction, planetary health has also been gaining attention from researchers, policy makers and even businesses. There is an inevitable link between human and planetary health. Activities related to food provision and food systems in general are a major determinant of human health and environmental sustainability. The global food system requires a transformation to reduce its adverse impacts on both human and environmental health and to achieve food security. While major improvements have been made in practices related to food production, advances are required from the demand side as well. From the demand side, focusing on food consumption can be a promising approach to alleviate the negative impacts associated with food systems. In terms of sustainable eating behaviours, young adults are a critical population. They often have poor eating habits and habits gained at this stage of life can sustain overtime and become their regular eating habits. Furthermore, given the current global environmental changes, young people will experience stronger consequences from environmental challenges, such as climate change. Therefore, their habits and behaviours, including those associated with how they eat, can have major impacts on their future. This dissertation focuses on the eating habits of young adults ages 18 to 24. In this dissertation, the first study is a quantitative analysis where a Canada-wide survey was conducted among young adults to identify the main individual, environmental, and behavioral factors affecting eating behaviours and to categorize this target population into consumer segments reflecting their eating behaviours. The study found, there were six major factors influencing eating behaviours among young adults in Canada including: (1) beliefs (ethical, environmental and personal), (2) familiarity and convenience, (3) joy and experience, (4) food influencers and Sociability, (5) cultural identity, and (6) body image; the respondents were segmented into six groups based on the importance they attributed to each of the identified factors as follows: (1) the conventional consumer, (2) the concerned consumer, (3) the non-trend follower consumer, (4) the tradition-follower consumer, (5) the indifferent consumer and (6) the ‘eat what you love’ consumer; and, more than half of the population in this study have specific considerations and criteria for their food choices, which distinctly differentiates each segment. The second study is a qualitative analysis where focus groups were conducted among university students to first identify the perceived meaning of sustainable food and sustainable eating, and second, to identify the determinants of sustainable eating behaviours among university students. The study found, university students had a wide range of perceptions regarding defining the attributes of sustainable food, and the aspects of sustainable eating behaviours. In addition to the factors previously presented in the framework by Deliens et al., ‘environmental and social values and beliefs’, ‘campus food’, ‘the pandemic’ and ‘food guides and expert recommendation’ were added as determinants of sustainable eating behaviours. Among all categories, the top two themes mentioned by the participants were food literacy, and campus food (meal plan and university food outlet). Finally, identified personal and environmental factors can motivate or act as a barrier for sustainable and healthy behaviors of university students. Finally, in third study I looked at the dietary trends of young adults in Canada and how it has changed from 2004 to 2015. Using the CCHS-Nutrition data, I presented the average diet of a Canadian young adult. Additionally, I looked at the carbon footprint (CF) of the average diet and its changes over the 10-year period. Three dietary trends were identified; first, there was a shift towards the consumption of food that is heavily recommended by Canada’s Food guide; second, there was a shift towards the consumption of food that is considered to have lower CF; and third, protein intake increased and was mainly from animal-based sources for both years with almost identical ratio for animal-based to plant-based protein. The study also identified the overall CF of self-reported diets decreased only slightly in 2015. The identified trends demonstrated that although diets of Canadian young adults are moving towards the right direction (healthy and with lower environmental impact), the shift is not significant and needs major interventions, particularly regarding reducing CF. The research presented in this dissertation has contributed to knowledge and the scholarly literature regarding eating behaviours that support both human health and planetary health. This study also helps with the design and implementation of food-choice interventions underscoring the need for population-specific interventions, emphasis on knowledge translation and highlighting the link between food choices and their environmental impacts such as carbon footprint, and the need for interventions at the campus food environment level present a significant opportunity.
Barriers and Enablers to the Adoption of Sustainability Initiatives at the Municipal Level in Canada
(University of Waterloo, 2021-05-26) Suryanarayanan, Snehaa; Dias, Goretty
Over the past few decades, there has been increasing importance given to local action to achieve global sustainability goals. Cities and human settlements have been recognized as crucial sites for achieving these common goals, demonstrating the value of local action that serves global and local interests. There has, however, been a gap between recognizing the importance of these municipalities and actual action towards sustainability initiatives at the municipal level. This thesis aims to address that gap by examining the barriers and motivators to the adoption of sustainability initiatives at the municipal level in Canada and also to evaluate awareness of the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) framework of Canadian municipalities. To achieve this aim, a survey was sent out to municipal authorities from Ontario and British Columbia to gather input on knowledge of sustainability concepts and factors affecting the implementation of sustainability initiatives. Two respondents wanted to elaborate on their responses and agreed to be interviewed. Comparison of descriptive statistics and Mann-Whitney U tests were made to analyze the difference between the provinces for some factors. The responses in the open-ended questions and the interviews were subjected to content and thematic analyses. The most prominent factors affecting the adoption of initiatives in a municipality were the municipality’s size and financial capacity, to which the former is closely related. It was not so much the size in terms of population but what it represented, such as economic resources, personnel, and technical expertise. Other important factors that emerged from the responses included a favorable municipal environment and the influence of regional, provincial, and federal government. Key individuals and networks also emerged as factors but to a lesser extent. The knowledge of the UN’s SDG framework appeared to be low among respondents, while awareness of some sustainability concepts seemed to be present. There was a significant difference between BC and Ontario responses in terms of SDG familiarity and some of the factors affecting the adoption of these initiatives, like key individuals’ presence and perceived advantages to adoption. This study contributes to existing research by identifying barriers and motivators to implementing sustainability initiatives in the Canadian context while updating what we currently know about the factors affecting the adoption of sustainability initiatives in municipalities worldwide. This research also suggests that it is important for regional and provincial governments to work together, treating municipalities as partners in decision-making, to advance sustainability.
Characterizing Net Life Cycle Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Environmental Performance of Organic Field Crops in Ontario and Quebec
(University of Waterloo, 2023-01-20) Madhanaroopan, Shenali; Dias, Goretty
Food production systems are at the heart of one of humankind’s greatest challenges – meeting the nutritional demands of a population expected to reach 10 billion by 2050 while limiting contributions to environmental degradation and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Thus, producing field crops, which are staple crops for human consumption and animal feed, requires sustainable improvements. Organic farming is often promoted as a climate-friendly alternative to conventional production systems. As a fast-growing agricultural sub-sector in Canada, a robust assessment of the environmental impacts and GHG emissions from organic field crop production systems, considering regionally-specific production conditions and efficiencies, has not been conducted to date. In this thesis, life cycle assessment (LCA) coupled with modelling soil organic carbon (SOC) changes are utilized to quantify the impact contributions from Eastern Canadian organic wheat, corn, and soybean production to a range of global-scale environmental concerns, including climate change. Specifically, this thesis aimed to characterize the environmental profile of organic field crop production in Eastern Canada, identify the underlying drivers of the impacts, and suggest best management practices for reducing GHG emissions and improving soil carbon stocks in this sector. LCA results indicate that across all environmental impacts assessed, Eastern Canadian wheat had the largest impact per tonne of crop harvested, followed by corn and soybeans. Net greenhouse gas emissions were 520, 200, and 110 kg CO2-eq per tonne crop harvested for organic wheat, corn, and soybean production, respectively. Field-level N emissions from nutrient application were the biggest contributor to environmental impacts. Notably, while soil carbon sequestration was observed, it did not result in net negative production emissions. Furthermore, results from a literature review revealed a range of best management practices for enhancing SOC stocks in organic field cropping systems. Practices such as diverse crop rotations with green manure incorporation, less intensive field operations, manure application, and implementing combined practices are suggested to support SOC stocks of organic cropping systems; however, such practices can also contribute to field N emissions if not carefully managed. This work will help LCA researchers, farmers, and organic certification bodies better understand the climate performance of organic systems, while providing a methodological foundation for future organic LCA studies in Canada.
A Comparative Case Study of the Legitimacy of Two Multi-Stakeholder Initiatives (MSI) for Sustainability in the Beef Industry in North America
(University of Waterloo, 2018-09-26) Moreira, Veronica Souza Miranda; Dias, Goretty
The beef industry is considered one of the most unsustainable of the food sectors, due to the extensive and diverse issues surrounding its environmental, social, and economic performance. Moreover, the rise of the global population, the consequent increase in the demand of meat products, and the change in terms of food habits and concerns recently observed in consumers, has increased the debates around beef sustainability even further. Within this context, industry actors within Canada and the United States, which are important beef-producing countries, are implementing private voluntary standards and certification interventions aimed at improving the sustainability performance of their supply-chains through multi-stakeholder initiatives (MSI). The national Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef (CRSB) initiative is focusing on the Canadian market, while the U.S. transnational Grasslands Alliance initiative, is targeting both the American and the Canadian markets. This study analyses the legitimacy of the governance and interventions development processes of these MSIs. Legitimacy implies the acceptance of an intervention’s process and practices by the members of the supply-chain being governed by an MSI. Lack of legitimacy is associated with ‘greenwashing’ claims, authority denial, limited adoption of interventions, and ultimately works against improvements in the sustainability of the beef industry. Both the governance and the interventions development processes of CRSB and Grasslands Alliance were evaluated and compared against a mature MSI – the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) – in terms of input legitimacy using the good global governance principles of participation, transparency, and accountability of the Global Administrative Law (GAL). This analytical framework was expanded by adopting the International Social and Environmental Accreditation and Labelling Alliance (ISEAL) codes of good practice to define the three GAL’s principles. By conducting a qualitative content analysis and two case studies, it was identified that both initiatives have to evolve significantly in terms of good global governance principles, and that input legitimacy is more evident in CRSB than in Grasslands Alliance, as the former demonstrated more commitment with the participation principle than the latter. The comparison with RSPO revealed the need to monitor the changes in terms of the local context, mostly in terms of notions of legitimacy and engagement with vulnerable stakeholders. Furthermore, there is the challenging task of balancing the implementation of governance changes without compromising the efficiency, and thus the output legitimacy, of an MSI throughout its life time.
Food waste generation at households and the resulting life cycle environmental impacts: A case study of fresh and frozen broccoli
(University of Waterloo, 2020-09-01) Withanage, Sohani Vihanga; Habib, Komal; Dias, Goretty
Food waste has serious environmental and economic consequences, making it a global issue with growing attention from academia, industry and policy makers. The key to reduction or better management of food waste is understanding the quantities and composition of food waste at each stage of the food supply chain. In developed countries, it is reported that the highest percentage of food loss/waste happens in the post-consumption stage, especially at households. Understanding the composition of avoidable food waste at households is important to assess the applicability of food preservation techniques, such as freezing, to reduce the life-cycle environmental impacts of the food system. Thus, the current study aims to understand the impacts of food waste across the supply chain, by comparing the life-cycle environmental impacts of fresh and frozen produce, using broccoli as a case study vegetable. This aim was achieved in two stages. First, 16 samples of green bin waste generated at households in the Region of Waterloo were analyzed to understand the composition of the avoidable food waste fraction. The findings suggest that 43% of all food waste is avoidable and 86% of avoidable food waste is plant-based, indicating that fresh fruits and vegetables are the most frequently wasted food item in households. Since frozen vegetables are known to generate comparatively less food waste than their fresh counterparts due to increased shelf life and ability to utilize ‘ugly’ produce, it is important to understand the life-cycle environmental impacts of fresh and frozen produce, taking into account how waste occurs in each supply chain. Broccoli was selected as the case study vegetable and a comparative life cycle assessment (LCA) was carried out to analyze the life-cycle environmental performance of fresh and frozen broccoli produced and consumed in Ontario. Findings suggest that within the study context, fresh broccoli performs better in four impact categories; acidification, global warming, ozone depletion and resource depletion, whereas frozen broccoli performs better in eutrophication. Therefore, the reduced FW that occurs in frozen broccoli supply chains is not sufficient to offset the environmental impacts of energy use for additional processing and frozen storage. However, the need for more rigorous research is emphasized for better understanding of the fresh and frozen supply chains, and how to minimize impacts from associated food waste.
Identifying Drivers & Barriers to Potential Adoption of Electrically-Assisted Bicycles by Post-Secondary Students in Region of Waterloo, Canada
(University of Waterloo, 2022-09-20) Berry, Brittany; Dias, Goretty; Lynes, Jennifer
The electrically-assisted bicycle (EAB) is a relatively new innovation to the Canadian market with little adoption so far, though it could be a solution to sustainability issues in passenger transport for several groups of people, including students. Due to its limited uptake in much of the world, there is little previous research on EAB adoption by students and in North America in general. As with other environmentally-friendly innovations, the Innovation-Decision Process from Roger’s (1962/2003) Diffusion of Innovations was identified as a useful framework for understanding adoption potential for EAB’s. The IDP model outlines a process of stages towards adopting an innovation, as affected by five different influences, three of which are investigated in this study: prior conditions, characteristics of the potential adopter, and characteristics of the innovation. Using a predictive, pre-adoption perspective, this study aimed to identify the most influential drivers and barriers to potential EAB adoption through a web survey of post-secondary students in the Region of Waterloo in Ontario. Specifically, it set out to do this with the following objectives: to understand students’ perceptions of the EAB’s innovation characteristics; to identify relationships between those perceived characteristics of the EAB and students’ commuting needs; and to investigate how those EAB perceptions may be related to separate factors such as students’ socio-demographics, their environmental behaviour, and contextual prior conditions. Response data from 364 students included variables about the students themselves, their commuting situations, and their evaluations of the EAB and other transportation modes. These data included participants’ responses to two sets of questions on 5-point Likert scales, which were used to assign multi-item scores for students’ levels of environmental behaviour and favourability towards the EAB. The results show that students’ awareness of the EAB prior to the survey is generally low and allow the categorization of EAB characteristics as either potential drivers or barriers to its adoption. Potential drivers are its simplicity (important driver), eco-friendliness (moderate), pleasant travel experience (moderate), effect on physical health (moderate), and effect on social image (weak), while its barriers are its cost (important), trip timing and routing (important), and safety (moderate). Statistical analyses also found certain characteristics of the students and their commuting situations to be predictors of their EAB favourability, which include their previous experience with EAB’s, awareness and previous experience with kick-style e-scooters, and their backgrounds as either domestic or international students with experience living in different regions of the world. Their environmental behaviour and existing commuting habits were also found to be weaker predictors. Ultimately, this study contributes knowledge on the EAB’s adoption potential from across more kinds of influential factors than usually covered in previous studies, since it used as comprehensive a framework as the IDP model. Its method of evaluating the EAB on multiple aspects of performance also provides a model that can be followed for evaluating and comparing all different options for commuting. Finally, this predictive research provides practical recommendations for promoting EAB adoption among students at a relatively early stage of its emergence into the Canadian market.
Integrating Sustainability and Nutrition through Dietary Pattern Optimization: A Life Cycle Assessment of Canada’s Food Guide
(University of Waterloo, 2024-10-17) Guo, Xuyang; Dias, Goretty
An ideal diet should meet nutritional needs, promote health, while have less of an environmental impact. Recent studies have highlighted the significance of environmental impacts of food consumption in the context of climate change. However, research examining the environmental impacts of dietary choices in Canada is limited. The 2019 Canada’s Food Guide (CFG), despite being the official and most authoritative food guide in Canada, does not evaluate its environmental impacts. Furthermore, existing studies on sustainable diets often rely on hypothetical dietary patterns (DPs), lacking real-world data on Canadians' dietary intake. This study aims to address these gaps by (1) evaluating the environmental impacts and nutritional aspects of dietary patterns (DPs) based on the 2019 CFG for Ontarian adults from linear optimization, (2) comparing the nutrition quality and environmental impacts of these optimized diets with those of Ontario average consumption from the 2015 Canadian Community Health Survey – Nutrition (CCHSN) and National Nutritious Food Basket (NNFB), and (3) exploring the trade-offs between nutrition and multiple environmental impacts. The Nutrient Rich Foods Index 9.3 (NRF 9.3) was applied to assess nutrition quality, and Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) was used to evaluate global warming potential (GWP), eutrophication (EU), and water footprint (WF) from farm to fork. Results showed that optimized diets significantly reduce meat and dairy intake while increasing plant-based proteins. Optimized diets achieved a 36.1% to 51.1% reduction in GWP (3.2-4.1 kg CO2 eq) and a 34.3% to 54.2% reduction in EU compared to the Ontario average consumption, while maintaining a high nutritional quality. However, the study also identified trade-offs, such as an increased WF due to the higher inclusion of water-intensive foods like nuts. This research contributes to the development of dietary guidelines that align with both human health and planetary boundaries, providing valuable insights for future updates to the CFG and informing policy decisions aimed at fostering healthier and more sustainable food systems. However, the study is limited by the data availability and the focus on specific environmental impact categories. Future studies should explore a broader range of food items as well as environmental indicators, expand to other regions in Canada, and consider the cultural and economic factors that influence food choices. Overall, this research contributes to a more comprehensive understanding of the environmental impacts of food consumption in Canada and supports efforts to promote sustainable food systems.
Is a nutritionally-balanced and low-carbon diet affordable in Ontario?
(University of Waterloo, 2018-01-19) Mollaei, Sadaf; Dias, Goretty
Food plays an essential role in the path towards healthy growth and development, and enhancing the quality of life. Food systems contribute to food security, but also contribute to global environmental changes, such as climate change, and negatively affect environmental security. Food environments influence eating behaviors and food related activities. Within the “consumer nutrition environment”, individual factors such as time, dietary knowledge, food preferences, values, norms and culture are among the many factors that influence how people choose what to eat. Among these factors, affordability and cost are very critical, specifically when encouraging consumers to eat more sustainable food. This study aims to assess the affordability of nutritionally-balanced and low-carbon (NBLC) diets in Ontario, based on food baskets developed by Veeramani et al. (2017). In order to do so an assessment tool was developed to study grocery stores in Southern and Northern Ontario. The results of this study show that in terms of availability of food items, most of the items from nutritionally-balanced and low-carbon food baskets were available for Ontarians. In terms of cost, the type of store (i.e. discount vs regular) significantly affects the price of a NBLC food basket. In terms of affordability, as it is related to income, for households with higher income it is affordable to switch to a NBLC diet. However, households with lower income need to make moderate changes in their present eating behavior. Finally, the financial aspect is an important- but not the only - driver of eating behaviors. Education and knowledge regarding food choices are important determinants of consuming healthy food. In addition, time constraints and how these constraints affect time needed for food related activities are also of significance and in some cases, it could exceed the effect of affordability. Further research is required to study the extent to which each of these factor influence eating behaviors.
Life Cycle Assessment of a Hybrid Biobased Panel for Insulated Concrete Forms Used in Residential Buildings
(University of Waterloo, 2021-05-28) Gonzalez, Daniel; Dias, Goretty
Buildings are a large contributor to climate change, as they require large amounts of fossil energy to maintain indoor comfort for occupants, either as heating in cold climates or cooling in warmer climates. Insulation materials (IMs) prevent heat transfer and provide energy savings, while achieving comfortable indoor environments. In the last couple of decades, there has been a considerable number of life cycle studies on petrochemical, mineral, biobased or hybrid IMs, to determine their environmental impacts and assess their contribution to life cycle impacts of buildings. These studies show a range of impacts associated with the manufacture and use of these IMs due to activities associated with the production of raw materials and aggregates utilized to create the final product. Dematerialization and circular economy principles are being applied in the design of building materials in an attempt to reduce their impacts. However, each novel hybrid IM needs to be assessed holistically to determine its sustainability. For example, using by-products as raw material might reduce the environmental burdens of IMs, while encouraging efforts towards preserve biodiversity, ecosystems protection and human welfare. The aim of this research was to evaluate and compare the environmental performance of a new hybrid material produced from biobased residues and by-products, and industrial by-products. Specifically, the analyses consider the use of a biobased (CSB) panel of corn stover, fish waste binder, and cement kiln dust (CKD), to replace conventional extruded polystyrene (XPS) panels in insulated concrete form (ICF) wall systems. The environmental impact assessment was performed using an ISO-compliant Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology and considering system boundaries from cradle-to-wall gate and using a functional unit of one square metre of wall, which was structurally equivalent and had an insulation value of RSI=1 (m2K/W). The impact assessment methodology used was TRACI 2.1. The CSB panel had lower impacts on a mass basis than the XPS panel; however, the CSB-based wall system had higher impacts in most impact categories than the XPS wall system due to the higher mass of CSB panel required to meet the functional unit. Specifically, the global warming potential was 65.7 KgCO2eq for the CSB wall compared to 49.4 kgCO2eq for the XPS wall. The impacts of the CSB panel were driven by the corn stover production, specifically the energy required to collect the stover, and the use of CKD, because cement production is known for its high impacts. Although the CBS panels were made from residues and by-products, their impacts are higher. Therefore, research is needed to understand how to reduce these impacts, including replacing the CKD, and exploring the use of the CSB panels in other building applications, such as drywall replacement in indoor walls, where insulation is not needed and mechanical strength does not have to be as high.
SEGMENTATION INFORMS THE GAMIFICATION OF SUSTAINABLE FOOD CONSUMPTION
(University of Waterloo, 2024-01-18) Modol, Sebastien; Dias, Goretty
Food systems activities produce around 30% of global anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and are responsible for numerous environmental issues which could ultimately harm our ability to grow food reliably. One way to reduce the food system’s impacts is to transition to a more sustainable diet composed of low impact foods. The objective of this study is to identify consumers demonstrating an intention to consume sustainably produced foods, and to identify their characteristics to inform the design of targeted gamified interventions that would promote sustainable food purchasing. A survey incorporating variables from the theory of planned behaviour (e.g. attitude), socio-demographic information (e.g. age), gamification profiling variables (e.g. player typology), as well as preferred mobile applications, was developed in this study and distributed via a market survey company. Statistical analysis in the form of hierarchical clustering was used to segment and identify target markets, while contingency analysis assessed the most effective means of promoting sustainable diets. A total of four hundred and ninety surveys were distributed and three hundred and seventy-six of them were validated because they agreed to participate, were not detected as potential AI powered responses, and their responses from the theory of planned behaviour were completed. Linear regression was used to assess the significance of all variables on the intent to consume a sustainable diet. Cluster analysis identified 3 potential target segments, and contingency analysis was used to detect their unique features. Two consumer segments were identified as having high potential as a target market. Individuals in this market intended to consume a sustainable diet but lacked follow through. Strong evidence towards the effectiveness of gamification of interventions was not observed due to low and medium frequency in gaming behaviours for the two target segments. Interventions distributed through mobile applications would be most effective if they were delivered through social media and included game design elements associated with Philanthropist and Free Spirit user types. The survey was confined to Ontario, therefore it may not be generalizable to other regions. Nevertheless, this study is unique in its assessment of the profiles of consumers with high intention to purchase sustainably sourced foods through a combination of the theory of planned behaviour, socio-demographic factors, gamification player types and game behaviours, as well as preferred mobile application usage.
Sustainable beef certification: Exploring willingness to participate among Ontario beef producers
(University of Waterloo, 2018-01-19) Eadie, Jodie; Dias, Goretty
Sustainable beef certification is an evolving initiative, currently in the planning stages, that seeks to provide consumers with a socially responsible, environmentally sound and economically viable beef product through certification of beef farm production that meet selected indicators. However, the degree to which the sustainable beef certification program will be adopted by producers is currently uncertain as little is known as to how beef producers view voluntary programs such as a sustainable beef certification. The purpose of this research is to understand what factors influence Ontario beef producers to participate in sustainable beef certification. Through utilizing diffusion of innovation theory as the foundation for this study, a number of variables related to farm characteristics, social norms, decision-making, and the characteristics of the certification program itself were identified and their significance related to willingness to adopt the sustainable beef certification program was evaluated. This research identified a number of variable that were found to significantly influence the willingness to adopt sustainable beef certification and makes recommendations related to program design that response to these findings and may help improve adoption rates of the beef certification program.. A paper and online survey was distributed to Ontario beef producers and 147 responses were gathered. Surveys were analyzed to identify relationships between characteristics of the decision-making unit, characteristics of the innovation and a willingness to certify. Prior conditions within the Ontario beef farming community were explored including social norms, previous practice and felt needs. Characteristics of the decision-making unit were investigated with results revealing that there was a significant relationship between age and education level and a willingness to certify with a future sustainable beef certification. Significant relationships with socio-demographic variables and various communication methods emerged with younger generation, and more educated farmers preferring online mediums for communication, providing valuable insights into how to target communication approaches for future programs. Various characteristics of the innovation were explored in regards to motivators and barriers to participation. Motivators such as product sold at a premium, access to markets, and product demand were motivators deemed significant. Barriers identified as significant included time constraints, increased record keeping, changing consumer demands and operation size. Though the level of familiarity with the concept of sustainable certification was limited among respondents, when provided with a definition, 80% of respondents indicated a willingness to certify. Further to this, when asked how soon they would be willing to certify, 70% indicated that they would want to see how it works prior to certifying.

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