Typical plant-based food from a nutraceutical perspective: The case of the Marche region

The nutraceutical and superfood industries have boomed. This book wants to highlight the challenges and opportunities of the nutraceutical business. The chapter entitled “The Market” provides an overview of market trends. It explores the forces and the drivers that have made this business one of the most attractive and profitable businesses of the last decade. The blurring of industries (food, pharma, and cosmetics) has created new market opportunities for business players. This dynamic industry has seen further development with the pandemic event since consumers’ attention to healthy issues has increased. The intensification of competition and highly innovative products launched on the market requires particular attention to customers’ needs. It emerges how pivotal it is to explore consumers’ preferences and orientations.The chapter entitled “A Short Review of Willingness to Pay for Novel Foods” illustrates the state of the art of background research on consumers’ willingness to pay for novel foods. It introduces a problem that often emerges in the book: the relationship between consumers and novel foods and consequently neophobia in food products.The analysis of the main findings of willing- ness to pay helps understand how consumers shape their preferences and manage information when marketing novel foods.The role that informa- tion covers in developing this industry emerges in several chapters in the book. For example, it is highly relevant for companies trying to strategically use traditional food benefits (as we see in the chapter “Typical Plant-based Food from a Nutraceutical Perspective:The Case of the Marche Region”). Another example is in the chapter that explores the case study of an Italian company, the Severino Becagli (see the chapter “Organic and Made in Tuscany Spirulina:The Story of Severino Becagli”).This company is trying to combine the country of origin with organic certification and nutraceu- tical benefits in its marketing strategy. New product development (NPD) is a key issue in this industry. This book (see the chapters entitled “Market-oriented Methodologies that Integrate the Consumer into the Functional Foods New Product Development Process: Part 1 and Part 2”) remarks on the importance of market orientation for developing new functional foods. Implementing methodologies that can generate the consumer’s voice can be highly fruitful for companies. Companies should understand how to develop information from consumers.What is the role of research in this scenario? How can research help in the generation of information? The chapters mentioned above describe the methodologies that can be employed for assisting companies in NPD. The chapter describes what method best fits the NPD stage and the questions each tool addresses. The chapter’s strategic relevance of a market-oriented approach to developing functional foods emerges.The growing demand for functional foods is determined by motivated consumers who seek healthy lifestyles. It is essential to understand what consumers want: developing products fol- lowing the idea that given the general interest, new products will encounter a consensus in the market, which can be hazardous. The importance of consumer orientation also emerges from the chapter entitled “Competitive Advantage Through Multidisciplinary Innovation in Nutraceuticals: From Concept Optimization to Context Transformation,” illustrating how a multidisciplinary approach could be beneficial. Being consumer-oriented implies an accurate analysis of consumer behavior and preferences and reshaping the company’s entire management by introduc- ing a new and broader perspective. The chapter highlights that a multi- disciplinary approach to innovation could work to support with evidence health claims as required by legislative frameworks. Multidisciplinarity and open innovation require an accurate reflection on the implications that they could have for companies’ management. As it emerges from the chap- ter, a multidisciplinary approach is crucial for optimizing technical aspects, especially in NPD or nutraceutical innovation. The signs of progress in the nutraceutical industry have opened a debate about food security and safety. From the book, we learn about nutraceu- ticals and superfoods’ role in ensuring access to nutrients among various populations.This is a promising and exciting research field that will have further development in the future. Therefore, the book explores another aspect: the ability to revitalize typical mature products by using nutraceutical components as leverages. The two chapters, “The LBG Case Study” and “Typical Plant-based Food from a Nutraceutical Perspective:The Case of the Marche Region,” show how to employ consumer science for rejuvenating mature products. As we have seen from this introduction, the business of nutraceuticals and superfoods is extraordinarily dynamic and competitive. Nevertheless, competitive advantage is of primary importance in the business: the busi- ness attracts competitors, and producers need to maintain excellent market orientation. In this scenario, adopting a multidisciplinary perspective on the business is mandative: the collaboration between strategic marketing and consumer science appears to be highly fruitful.