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The ROSETTA project delves deep into the role of public and private marketing standards and their influence on food systems. By analysing these standards, ROSETTA aims to uncover how they shape food waste, sustainability, and consumer behavior.

Understanding Public Marketing Standards

A comprehensive review of public marketing standards was conducted to assess their impact on food waste across supply chains for fruits and vegetables, meat, dairy products, and cereals. This study focused on regulations at European, international, and national levels, exploring how they interact and their implications for food systems.

The analysis followed a structured three-step methodology:

  1. Sample Identification and Preparation for Coding: Relevant academic and non-academic sources were identified and categorised.
  2. Coding and Analysis: The collected literature was examined systematically to identify key patterns and trends.
  3. Bibliometric Analysis: A quantitative assessment mapped the dynamics and relationships within the academic literature.

The review involved 327 sources (97 academic papers and 230 non-academic documents) and employed content, thematic, and network analyses to uncover valuable insights.

A comparative analysis also highlighted significant disparities between current EU and international standards for four representative commodities: apples (fruits and vegetables), poultry (meat), durum wheat (cereals), and skimmed milk powder (dairy). These findings revealed how marketing standards influence food waste, often rejecting cosmetically imperfect yet perfectly edible products.

Examining Private Marketing Standards

Together with the investigation of the role of public marketing standards, ROSETTA also focused on private standards, examining their influence on the food value chain. Conducted within the scope of the ROSETTA project, this analysis investigated how private food standards impact ROSETTA’s key commodities: meat, fruits and vegetables, dairy products, and cereals. The study centred on their influence on sustainability, consumer behavior, and food waste.

The research explored how these standards—set by private actors—interacted with public regulations, shaped market practices, and affected the broader food system. It also examined the evolution of private food marketing standards, their motivations, and their implications for food production, retail, and consumption. The findings highlighted how private standards contributed to significant food waste by rejecting perfectly edible yet cosmetically imperfect products.

To gain deeper insights, the research combined a thorough literature review with a large-scale survey of EU consumers across European countries.

These findings provided valuable insights into how public and private marketing standards influenced food systems. By understanding their roles and implications, the ROSETTA project has laid the groundwork for addressing food waste and fostering sustainability within the European food value chain.

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