Innovations in processing extra-virgin olive oil: an analysis of consumers’ acceptance in Italy

Innovation is fundamental for all agri-food companies to increase their competitiveness, however the industrial process of extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) has changed very little over the last few decades. As it is a traditional food product (TFP), the main obstacle to innovation is precisely its traditional nature. According to the literature, any innovation regarding TFPs should be considered in terms of the specific product, and that market success mainly depends upon the perceptions and traits of consumers. The present study evaluated consumers’ acceptance for a set of emerging innovations that may be introduced in the EVOO production process. To this end, a choice experiment was carried out bent on the estimation of a Latent Class Model (LCM). A nationally-representative sample of 1,003 EVOO consumers were involved in a web-based interview. The LCM analysis highlighted three segments of consumers that were defined as: 1) quality seekers, 2) naturalness seekers, and 3) quality careless. Results showed that consumers’ attitudes towards the tested emerging technologies in EVOO production varied considerably depending on the type of technology, as well as among different consumer segments. Finally, the study allowed to drawn some theoretical as well as managerial implications.