The II Survey on Sustainability in Portugal is a follow up of the First Survey on Sustainability and has a special focus on healthy and sustainable food. ICS-ULisboa, strategic partner in the Continente Mission (that belongs to the food retail company Sonae MC), proposes to elaborate and operationalize this 2nd Survey on Sustainability in Portugal. The questionnaire will be administered face-to-face to a representative sample of Portuguese families (sampling by quotas: family typology, NUTS 2, Urban / rural), with sub-samples for Lisbon and Porto. About 1600 questionnaires will be conducted in Portugal and the Islands.
The design of the questionnaire will include three main blocks:
1) A first block that repeats some questions made in the first survey, namely on the sensitivity and social representations of the Portuguese on sustainability. Knowledge, concerns and content regarding sustainability issues. What do the Portuguese associate with this term? What cognitive dimensions are summoned? Savings, prudence, frugality, sufficiency, precaution, environmental, social and economic dimensions… At bottom, it is a question of measuring the pulse of sustainability in the case of the Portuguese population.
2) A second block exploring the more specific issues of the theme under analysis – healthy and sustainable food – according to several dimensions. The major analytical fields proposed are:
a) Healthy food: questions about the meanings of food and health that will have to reflect the dimensions of the economy, social justice and environment (perceptions about food quality, purchasing criteria); public policies on healthy eating (attitudes and expectations), attitudes towards the application of a tax on soft drinks (sugar), vegetarian meals in schools, salt reduction. Perceived food risks (e.g, GMOs, artificial chemicals), attitudes towards food risk communication, attitudes towards certification, labelling and information on food
b) Sustainable food: meanings and attitudes towards organic farming, sources of information and trust, attitudes towards public policies on organic farming; local / regional production, food miles.
c) Food Waste: Attitudes and practices on food waste, waste destinations, recycling, composting and circular economy.
d) Consumption and experiences: consumption profiles, representations of food consumption (awareness, pleasure, discipline, sufficiency, taste).
A third, shorter block will address changes in consumption in the period we can call ‘post-crisis’ – from resuming some practices to maintaining the new habits acquired during the crisis, always highlighting food issues.
Prior to the implementation of the survey, some focus groups will be held in the Lisbon region to identify symbolic dimensions related to this issue. Focus groups are with different social groups (women with children or grandchildren, members of low-income families, young people without children).
Mónica Truninger and Luísa Schmidt (coord.), João Graça, Susana Fonseca, Luís Junqueira, João Guerra, Pedro Prista (ISCTE-IUL).
