Exclusion of a large portion of the original study sample for not having knowledge of hemp food’s recently legal status was regarded by the researchers as one indication of the early stage of diffusion of hemp food throughout the Australian population.The findings here,however,may indicate that marketing and conveyance of consumer information might be lacking and diffusion is occurring according to the model within a subset of the population only.It is a concern for the hemp food industry if lack of consumer awareness may be costing the industry potential sales.The unexpectedly higher scores on food neophobia for the hemp group might also suggest that a factor other than food neophobia is having a greater influence on the decision to consume hemp food.Although food neophobia has been consistently empirically supported as being one of the strongest predictors of novel food acceptance ,other factors which have at times been demonstrated to have an even greater influence over novel food acceptance include the social setting in which a novel food is consumed and other social norms ,an expectation of poor sensory properties and inversely,recommendations from peers on the palatability or safety of the food.Another factor that may have led to the unexpected findings in the current study is the existence of a previously unidentified phenomenon that influences acceptance when novel foods are highly complex.Despite not being available as a food in Australia in recent times,a myriad of hemp products provide associations for consumers in both a positive and negative capacity.Consumers’ subjective associations mean hemp may not present in a uniform manner across the consumer market,with adoption of hemp food influenced by the association that has the greatest degree of saliency for each consumer.
It was suggested from the literature that negative associations might impact novel food acceptance,leading to the anticipation in the current study that an association of hemp food with its illegal cousin,marijuana,indoor grow shelves might provide this negative perception.However,no significant difference was reported between the hemp group and non-hemp group,with all respondents reporting being largely unsure of whether they considered the association to have any influence at all.The finding that attitudes between groups did not differ on concerns over roadside drug testing suggests that either; neither group had largely considered the association prior to the study,or both groups were unable to reach a conclusion regarding the validity of industry assurances that consuming hemp food would not result in a detectible level of THC.Homogeneity across the groups on attitudes toward drug testing indicates the attitude may be normally distributed throughout the sample,therefore supporting the notion of diffusion having largely occurred.In applying the diffusion model,it would be expected that differences between the adopter and non-adopter groups become less obvious as the full range of attributes across adopter groups combine to provide a representative population sample where traits are normally distributed.Other factors found to have an influence on novel food acceptance are those measured by the FCQ,where it was predicted that the non-hemp group would place a greater level of importance on these factors than the hemp group.This was not realised,despite a difference reported between the groups it was the hemp group who placed higher importance on some motivational factors.Again the notion of diffusion having occurred much further through the population than had been expected can be suggested by these findings.
The increased complexity of the decision making process for later adopters which has been reported in the literature could potentially have been reflected in the current findings if we are to accept that the hemp group in the current study is in reality comprised of a wider scope of members of adoption groups than was expected.Supporting this notion is the finding that the FCQ sub-scales where a significant difference has been reported between the groups are also those which relate to attributes of hemp and which are promoted as benefits to consumption,particularly; health,being naturally sourced,and ethical concern.Jaeger et al.reported ethical concern increased in importance for consumers as food neophobia increased.A systematic review of cross cultural and single country studies’ use of the FCQ revealed ethical concern to be consistently reported as the least important factor in general food choice,yet has a significant influence on acceptance of novel foods.Higher importance placed on ethical concern when deciding to consume hemp food suggests the promotion of novel foods as being ethically produced might allay some fears of neophobic consumers.Lupton and Turner found 3D printed meat potentially produced from laboratory produced animal cells alleviated ethical concerns over animal welfare,and Perrea et al.reported that ethical image was a significant contributor to positive consumer evaluation of novel foods produced using high intensity ultrasound or infusion heat treatment,two emerging novel food production technologies with high degrees of innovation or association to extraneous factors as is the case for hemp food.In keeping with the notion that an unknown phenomenon might be at play where novel foods are highly complex,the importance of ethical production might also have a unique influence where novel foods are highly complex.
Another potential explanation is the possibility that empirically supported models of food choice and diffusion of new foods do not adequately account for the myriad of factors involved in these processes.As the complexity of the novel food increases it may be necessary to also introduce increasingly complex evaluation methods for the foods.It has been suggested previously that consumers who have reservations about the consumption of novel foods place greater importance on health,quality,and nutritional value ,with these consumers appearing to engage in a greater depth of cognitive evaluation of choice.This was reflected by the findings in the current study,where consumers who reported having higher levels of food neophobia also reported placing increased value on health,mood,natural content,and the importance of the food being ethically sourced.Additionally,each of these factors are considered to be positive attributes of hemp food and suggests consumers are responding to the marketing information for hemp food,placing priority on these factors in the decision process.It has been demonstrated that both positive and negative emotions,perceptions,and motivations play a role in the complexity of decision making in food choice and that “one or the other will dominate,depending on the type of consumption choice being faced”.For consumers who show an increased level of concern,for example non-adopters,it would be expected that a higher level of complexity would be employed in the decision making process,creating an avoidance of the food when a decision cannot be easily and immediately reached.This increase in concern and higher theorised complexity of decision making,however,is also exhibited by laggards who were not expected in the current study to yet have considered the attributes of hemp food and made a decision.It appears,however,that laggards may have been captured within the hemp group,having already made their judgement on whether the benefits outweighed the costs in consuming the food.This is consistent with the approach-avoidance conflict of decision making and development of preferences where it has been experimentally demonstrated that the highest stimulus available at the time of decision making will dominate the decision making process.To be more explicit,it is suggested that the approach factors outweighed the avoidance factors in the decision to consume for the hemp group members.
For the non-hemp group,it is suggested that the lower importance placed on the factors measured by the FCQ result in the food not being consumed when the decision is not immediate,and is also consistent with the approach-avoidance conflict.Familiarity is also consistently reported as having a positive relationship with acceptance of novel foods indoor garden table,even when only a single positive experience was associated with the novel food.While familiarity only held a minor degree of importance in motivation considerations for the hemp group,it is important that the significance of familiarity is recognised for its role in the acceptance of novel foods,having implications for the way that hemp foods might be produced and marketed.It is suggested that incorporating hemp into easily recognisable foods may provide positive benefits for hemp food producers,as has been demonstrated for increasing acceptance of other foods.One final factor where there was expected to be a difference detected between the hemp group and non-hemp group was in the degree of importance placed on price.A lack of difference between the groups reinforces the notion of homogeneity across the sample groups and provides further evidence that the process of diffusion of hemp food may have progressed in the Australian population.As mentioned previously,less importance is placed on price by all groups as diffusion proceeds,particularly for laggards for whom price is a major consideration.It was expected at the outset of the study that the non-hemp group would include laggards who might at some time in the future make a decision to consume hemp food,and for who price would be a major consideration.It was hypothesised that a greater importance would be placed on price as measured by the FCQ for this group.The homogeneity of the groups,however,is indicative that at least some of the hemp group are laggards,which was not an expected outcome of the study.In keeping with the diffusion model this suggests price is no longer a major consideration,as would be expected after early and late majority adopters exert social influence over laggards to become consumers.
Cannabis sativa is a widespread species in nature,which grows in a variety of climates and altitudes of the Asiatic subcontinent.Hemp is a variety of Cannabis sativa with a lower composition of the psychoactive compound tetrahydrocannabinol > 0.3%.On the other hand,it is rich in another bio-active compound called cannabidiol.Currently,different parts of hemp are being used industrially in the manufacture of rope,textiles,paper,bio-plastics,body care products,essential oils,medicine,nutritional supplements,insulation,bio-fuel,and even in construction.One of the most important parts of the hemp plant for its use in the pharmaceutical and food industry is the seed,and oil extracted from hemp hearts is believed to contain the ideal ratio of polyunsaturated fatty acids i.e.,omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids.The level of PUFA in hemp is considered to be the highest for any vegetable oils.Recent reports have stated that the ideal ratio for the consumption of omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids by human beings must be between 2:1 and 3:1.A study comparing the fatty acids of two different varieties of hemp has shown that the ratio of omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids is 2.5 and 2.7 respectively.Additionally,it is known that the presence of -linolenic acid in hemp seed oil makes it nutritionally superior to most comparable seed oils.Apart from THC and CBD,30 different cannabinoids have also been reported in trace amounts in hemp seed oils from certain cultivars.The fatty acids are essentially important in pathogenesis,prevention of coronary heart diseases ,hypertension,during pregnancy ,breastfeeding,etc.The essential FA and -linolenic acid present in the oils are ideal for the cosmetics and wellness industries.Antioxidants are recognized for their potential in health promotion and prevention of aging-related diseases as well as in the cure of cancer and heart diseases.The antioxidant property of cold-pressed hemp seed oil was proven to be more effective in free radical elimination than extra-virgin olive oils.Apart from the nutrient value of the FA content in hemp seeds,it contains other important compounds like −sitosterol,−carotene,and salicylic acid ,which complements the nutritional makeup of the oil and makes it functionally more effective.Extraction of seed oils and determination of the physicochemical and functional properties using different techniques has always been of key interest to the oil industries.Cold pressing is a common and frequently used mechanical method for extraction.CP is advantageous since it operates at low temperatures without the use of any organic solvent that might cause environmental or health hazards.Moreover,the low temperature preserves the thermolabile compounds present in the hemp seeds.The only disadvantage is that a huge quantity of oil is left behind in the cake resulting in a low extraction efficiency.The yield of oil obtained from grape seeds ranged between 48.9% −73% with the maximum yield of 73% being achieved for a preheating temperature of 90 °C,a dye diameter of 15 mm,and screw rotation speed of 40 RPM.Some novel methods have also been reported- microwave-assisted,and ultrasound-assisted which are being recently used as an alternative extraction technique to obtain oil from seeds including hemp.The superiority of these methods lies in the fact that they offer high extraction efficiency in considerably lesser amounts of time.