Generation Z and Sustainable Cured Meat Consumption: Educational Challenges and Pedagogical Perspectives

The contribution, without claiming to be exhaustive, extends from the results of two focus groups aimed at deepening the potential connections between cured meats and sustainability in the youth’s imagination. The study involved students from the Brescia and Piacenza campuses of the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, and it investigated the motivations of consumption and the readiness of Generation Z to change their behaviour and lifestyle in favour of greater involvement in the sustainable development process. Analysis of the content of these interventions reveals a need for greater knowledge and skills on the topics covered by the research and the need for a shared commitment on the part of families, schools, businesses and the civil community to improve the attitude of younger generations in terms of thinking of themselves as protagonists of the future.