Exploring food values and barriers in sustainable food initiatives (SFI): Consumer perspectives in the region of Madrid, Spain

This paper examines how food-related values are prioritised among consumers predominantly engaged in different Sustainable Food Initiatives (SFI) in the Madrid Region. The analysis draws on survey data collected among consumers involved in consumer groups, community-supported agriculture schemes, cooperative supermarkets, farmers’ markets, and organic food shops, and focuses on differences across initiatives characterised by distinct organisational arrangements and degrees of commitment. A Best-Worst Scaling approach is used to analyse seven food-related values, including values associated with collective concerns ( environmental sustainability, sense of community, localness, and social justice and economic equity ), alongside values linked to more individual interests ( health care, price, and food appearance ). Results show that environmental sustainability and health care tend to be prioritised, whereas food appearance is generally assigned lower importance. Differences across initiatives indicate that forms of participation involving higher levels of commitment and active engagement are associated with a stronger relative emphasis on collective-oriented values. At the same time, material constraints remain salient, with high prices and limited product availability consistently reported as the main barriers to increasing the consumption of sustainably produced food. Based on patterns of value prioritisation, four analytically derived consumer segments are identified: eco-locavore, sustainability activist, one-health focused, and self-care and price focused consumers. Overall, the findings highlight the heterogeneity of value orientations and consumption practices across SFI, and point to the role of organisational and material conditions in shaping participation in sustainable food consumption in metropolitan contexts.