Research Unit in Business Sciences

Funder

Organizational Unit

Publications

Essays on food consumption, economic growth and sustainable development

Publication . Pais, Daniel Francisco Bento; Marques, António Manuel Cardoso; Fuinhas, José Alberto Serra Ferreira Rodrigues

One of the greatest challenges of the 21st century can be summarized in the question: how can we supply the global growing demand for food while securing that the environmental limits as well as public health concerns are not breached? Considering that the global population is expected to reach almost 10 billion by 2050, the maintenance of actual consumption patterns is expected to be unsustainable. Many countries have recognised the need to pursue more sustainable paths for every sector of the economy. However, contrary to the recommendations and warnings from the scientific community, the food sector still pursues a “business-as-usual” path, which could endanger present and future generations. With this in mind, the present thesis aims to contribute to a better understanding of the critical issue of this food challenge from an economic perspective. To do so, it operates on three main objectives. The first objective focusses on making a clear understanding of the scientific knowledge regarding the impacts of food consumption, and further exposing potential misconceptions regarding this topic. The second objective, which derives from the first, focusses on analysing the relationship between food and the economy, in particular, the impact of a change in food consumption on economic growth. The third and final objective focusses on exploring potential strategies to promote the healthier and more sustainable food choices needed to ensure present and future sustainability. To achieve these objectives, this thesis includes one literature review and six empirical essays, divided in three chapters. Firstly, this thesis presents a review of the scientific literature on the impact of food consumption. The literature review in Chapter 2 identifies the need for healthier and more sustainable diets. Furthermore, it recognizes a diet including more plant-based foods and less animal-based foods as healthier and more sustainable than current diets. The literature review contextualizes the starting point for the following chapters. From here, Chapter 3 assesses the economic impact of diets with less animal-based foods. Three studies are conducted using different samples and econometric techniques. After concluding that a shift towards more plant-based foods could offset the impact of a reduction in animal-based foods, Chapter 4 explores how these healthier and more sustainable diets can be achieved. Three studies are conducted assessing the potential drivers of food consumption and food choices. Results point out that many characteristics such as the cost of diet, education and information levels, environmental awareness, among others, should be considered in policy decision-making to achieve these necessary diets aligned with sustainable development. Several econometric methodologies that deal with the different data structures are applied for different samples. Panel data techniques are used on an annual basis. Besides panel data, both time-series and cross-sectional data techniques are applied to better understand country-specific dynamics. Emphasis is given to countries with high levels of food consumption, particularly animal-based consumption. The diversity of models is utilized to guarantee robust results and answer the research questions with underpinned confidence. The most suitable econometric techniques are followed to accomplish the proposed objectives. Overall, this thesis defends that a transition to healthier and more sustainable diets is vital and in order to do so it is important that policymakers consider the economic impact of such transition and tailor their policies based on consumer behaviour. Promoting healthier and more sustainable food choices involves educating consumers on the topic, creating awareness on the impact of individual consumption choices, and encouraging other economic agents to follow this agenda and further promote it in their communities. Immediate action is needed to mitigate this increasing food challenge.

2023-05-22Doctoral thesis

Open access

Physical activity level as a booster of entrepreneurial intention: a social innovation approach

Publication . Rodrigues, Ricardo; Marques, Carla; Esteves, Dulce; Brás, Rui; Santos, Gina; Gouveia, Ana; Duarte, Paulo; Pinheiro, Paulo; O'Hara, Kelly; Marques, Vanessa

This study aims to investigate if engaging in physical activity (PA) and gender influences people’s entrepreneurial intention (EI). A survey for measuring EI and PA was developed and administered to the general population. The data were collected with a questionnaire distributed across all continental Portuguese regions. A two-way analysis of variance was used to test the influence of PA level and gender in EI. The results highlight that PA and gender have an impact on EI. This study’s main practical implication is that evidence was found that people need to be involved in more PA, especially in high PA level, because the results show that there is an association with increased levels of EI. This paper contributes to filling a gap in the literature by identifying the importance of PA for the increase of EI. This relationship may be a consequence of skills promoted by the practice of PA and also the development of some personal psychological and cognitive characteristics such as autonomy, risk tolerance, and leadership. The main implication resulting from this study is that it is essential to develop and booster PA into society, namely through PA programmes in organisations, not only for improving persons’ health condition but also as a social benefit, that can promote social innovation and entrepreneurship.

2019Journal article

Open access

The Influence of Research and Innovation Strategies for Smart Specialization (RIS3) on University-Industry Collaboration

Publication . Mascarenhas, Carla; Marques, Carla S.; Ferreira, João José de Matos; Galvão, Anderson

This study aims to understand better research and innovation strategies for smart specialization (RIS3) and assess how they influence university-industry (U-I) collaboration empirically. Primary data were collected from a focus group consisting of representatives of universities and government entities from Portugal and Spain. Secondary European Union (EU) data on the application of smart specialization measures and the innovation in these two countries were also included. The results reveal difficulties in implementing RIS3, resulting in decreased investment in research and innovation in all production sectors. Evidence also pointed to the negative impact of smart specialization measures on U-I collaboration and, consequently, on the respective knowledge transfer.

2021-03-03Journal article

Open access

Accommodating renewable energy sources in a small electricity market: An analysis considering the interactions of sources within Portugal and Spain

Publication . Afonso, Tiago Lopes; Marques, António Cardoso; Fuinhas, José Alberto

The Portuguese and the Spanish electricity generation systems are analysed in this paper. The Iberian market hasbeen isolated and has an increasing proportion of renewable sources. The main objective of this study is to un-derstand how electricity generation sources are interacting with electricity wholesale prices. The VAR approachwas used because of its high robustness to cope with the endogeneity detected by Granger block Exogeneity tests.To do this, workweek data recorded since the opening of the Iberian market (July 2, 2007) was used. Despite thegeographical proximity of the countries and their access to natural resources, the results provide empirical evi-dence of different modes of interaction in the market. This outcome could be due to the different sizes of thenational systems. The Portuguese electricity generating system does not have an extensive structure to share back-up with Spain via conventional sources. Spain's substantial generation structure could be used to provide inter-mittent back-up generation for Portugal. Considering the similar supply and demand patterns of the Iberiangeneration systems, their openness to the other markets with different consumption and generation patterns couldallow a more rational utilization of the renewables already deployed and, consequently, bring greater efficiency tothe Iberian electricity market.

2019-08Journal article

Open access