Mindful and informed
Promoting Mediterranean diet sustainability through environmental information and mindfulness induction
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21295558 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Carfora (0000-0002-4111-6443, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore), Simone Festa (0009-0003-9325-9213, Università degli studi Internazionali di Roma Department of International Humanistic and Social Sciences), Sara Pompili (0000-0002-0030-865X, Università degli studi Internazionali di Roma Department of International Humanistic and Social Sciences), Italo Azzena (0009-0007-7116-6736, Università degli studi Internazionali di Roma Department of International Humanistic and Social Sciences), Luca Simione (0000-0003-1938-8466, Università degli studi Internazionali di Roma Department of International Humanistic and Social Sciences) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 128 |
| Issue | 7 |
| Pages | 2885-2901 |
| Publication date | 2026-06-26 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | British Food Journal (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0007-070X • E-ISSN: 1758-4108 |
| Publisher | Emerald (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1108/bfj-04-2025-0484 |
| OpenAlex | W7130503649 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 58 |
Purpose The present study aimed to compare the effectiveness of an informative message (providing information about the environmental impact of food production) and a brief mindfulness induction message (proposing breathing and interdependence exercises) alone and in combination on promoting sustainable food selection aligned with the Mediterranean diet. Additionally, we examined whether the environmental driver, defined as the momentary importance attributed to environmental impact in food purchasing decisions, mediated the relationship between the messages and sustainable food selection. Design/methodology/approach A community-based randomized experimental design was implemented using the Prolific online platform between October and December 2024. The sample consisted of 271 Italian-speaking participants randomly assigned to one of four conditions: control (no message), informative message, mindfulness induction message or combined message (informative plus mindfulness induction). Following message exposure, adherence to the Mediterranean diet was assessed through a simulated food purchasing task. Findings Participants exposed to the combined message showed significantly higher adherence to the Mediterranean diet compared to those exposed to no message, and to both those exposed to the mindfulness message or the informative message alone. Moreover, both the mindfulness induction and the combined message exerted significant indirect effects on Mediterranean diet adherence and overall diet scores through an increase in the environmental driver, relative to the control condition. Originality/value The study contributes to the literature by demonstrating that combining informational content with brief experiential practices that promote awareness and self-reflection can more effectively support sustainable food choices than information-based interventions alone
Aftertaste · Meditation · Mediterranean diet · Mindfulness · Psychological intervention · Purchasing · Sustainability · Agriculture Sustainability and Environmental Impact · Behavioral Health and Interventions · Mindfulness and Compassion Interventions
Psychometric Properties of the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire in Depressed Adults and Development of a Short Form
The Intention–Behavior Gap
Antecedents to Psychological Reactance
Mechanisms of mindfulness
Correlational effect size benchmarks.
Mindfulness-based interventions in context
Daily reminders about the animal-welfare, environmental and health consequences of meat and their main and moderated effects on meat consumption
Predicting and promoting the consumption of plant-based meat
Reflective and Impulsive Determinants of Social Behavior
When impulses take over
Updating the Mediterranean Diet Pyramid towards Sustainability
Strategies to reduce meat consumption
Mind the Gap
Sustainable Food Consumption
Communicating the climate impacts of meat consumption
Does the provision of information increase the substitution of animal proteins with plant-based proteins? An experimental investigation into consumer choices
Sustainable food consumption. Product choice or curtailment
Healthy eating and sustainable nutrition through mindfulness? Mixed method results of a controlled intervention study
Health or environment? Understanding which informative message is more effective in replacing red meat with mushroom-based alternatives
Interpreting Effect Sizes of Education Interventions
Habits in everyday life
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |