There has been an increasing demand for more sustainable food and ways of encouraging individuals to lead more sustainable lives. This thesis seeks to contribute to understanding human engagement with fungi-based food in a multidisciplinary manner by complementing resource recovery with an occupational perspective that sheds light on aspects that encourage or discourage individuals from engaging with this food. This thesis encompasses five papers. The research described in these papers focused on reviewing aspects that affect tasting studies of emerging food; studying how a valorized bread-based fungi burger patty was perceived; investigating aspects that affect food choice in daily life as well as drivers and barriers to engagement with fungi-based food; exploring glocal and ecoethical perceptions of engagement with fungi-based food; and assessing household fermentation of leftover bread to nutritious food. Personal reflections about the consequences of engaging in activities and with resources and products can be expected to constitute an essential part of ecoethics and elicit reasons and motives that encourage engagement. Acting in ways that are based on reasons and motives to engage with fungi-based food is expected to require that the engagement is consistent with an individual's ideals and the belief that one's actions can contribute to achieving goals. The findings show that several motives may affect engagement with fungi-based food, including sustainability, environmental benefits, resource use, personal choices, individual interests, finances, sensory characteristics, social implications, and health. That resources can be valorized when producing fungi-based food as well as that this can contribute to overcoming challenges related to providing nutritious, affordable, and sustainable food to the growing global population, encourage engagement with this food. These findings are promising given the resource depletion of the status quo of food production, the amount of food lost and wasted, and the negative consequences associated with this loss and waste. They can be built on in research and policy efforts that aim to encourage individuals to engage with foods that efficiently use natural resources, lessen the impact of food systems on the planet, and ensure food security and nutrition. 

Filamentous fungi serve as potential candidates in the production of different value-added products. In the context of food, there are several advantages of using filamentous fungi for food. Among the main advantages is that the fungal biomass used food not only meets basic nutritional requirements but that it is also rich in protein, low in fat, and free of cholesterol. This speaks to the potential of filamentous fungi in the production of food that can substitute animal-derived protein sources such as meat. Moreover, life-cycle analyses and techno-economic analyses reveal that fungal proteins perform better than animal-derived proteins in terms of land use efficiency as well as global warming. The present article provides an overview of the potential of filamentous fungi as a source of food and food supplements. The commercialization potential as well as social, legal and safety issues of fungi-based food products are discussed.

Fungi-based food is expected to contribute to more sustainable food systems. The present study has three focus areas: (i) aspects that affect food choices food in daily life, (ii) aspects that affect choices of fungi-based food in particular, and (iii) drivers that motivate, and barriers that prevent, engagement in cultivating fungi and cooking fungi-based food at home. One hundred and sixty participants, who were recruited using convenience sampling, filled out qualitative questionnaires. The results show that there are numerous aspects (e.g., environmental benefits, nutrition, sensory characteristics, production practices and ingredients) that are important when people choose food in daily life. In addition to curiosity, many of these aspects also affect the choice of fungi-based food. The study identified more drivers (e.g., self-providing, curiosity, awareness of ingredients) than barriers (time, knowledge, concerns about contamination) to cultivation and cooking of fungi-based food at home. The findings are relevant for the development of fungi-based food so that this type of food is engaged with, and so that it can contribute to more sustainable food systems.

Providing food security to the growing global population, and the resource depletion associated with current food systems, let to calls for more sustainable food sources. Food that can be produced in a sustainable way (taking all three aspects of sustainable development into consideration) is currently emerging in Western societies. Through tastings, insight can be gathered not only into sensory characteristics but also other aspects that aid innovation and development of food. The current study identified aspects that can affect tastings of emerging food by reviewing relevant literature. General aspects; meat alternatives; ingredients or processing technologies; information, prior knowledge and (un)familiarity; taste and liking; emotional factors; and willingness to engage with emerging food can affect tastings of emerging food. Awareness of the effect that these aspects can have on methodological considerations and results can be constructive in future research that use tastings as a platform to develop new and emerging food. The findings are significant for food science in terms of cornerstones towards potential industrial applications. These include innovating new types of food, assessing most effective technologies in the context of such food, developing new products, and understanding engagement with emerging food products.

Resource dependency of food production is aggravated when food is wasted. In Sweden, it is estimated that 37% of the total bread waste is generated at the household level. This work aimed to assess whether fermentation using edible filamentous fungi at households can provide a solution to valorize leftover bread in the production of fungi-based food for consumption. Bread was fermented in household and laboratory conditions with Neurospora intermedia and Rhizopus oligosporus. The results show that bread can be successfully and easily fermented at households, without signs of microbial contamination even though the conditions were not sterile. Fermentation at the household resulted in higher protein, fat and fiber content as well as greater starch reduction compared to the samples fermented under laboratory conditions. Household engagement in bread fermentation will likely depend on values that motivate reusing leftover bread. Perceived values that are expected to motivate engagement vary across individuals, but may include improved nutritional benefits, food waste prevention, convenience, responsibilities, and being part of sustainable societies and actions.

Increases in population and urbanization leads to generation of a large amount of food waste (FW) and its effective waste management is a major concern. But putrescible nature and high moisture content is a major limiting factor for cost effective FW valorization. Bioconversion of FW for the production of value added products is an eco-friendly and economically viable strategy for addressing these issues. Targeting on production of multiple products will solve these issues to greater extent. This article provides an overview of bioconversion of FW to different value added products.

Fungal fermented foods are nutritious, environmentally friendly and sustainable protein sources. To develop fungal fermented food with acceptable sensory characteristics, it is important to assess factors that can affect the sensory characteristics of the product. The current study aimed to investigate the correlations between the chemical and microbiological characteristics and sensory characteristics of fungal fermented food. Soybeans were fermented using five local Indonesian strains of the genus Rhizopus sp. and one strain of industrial starter to mimic traditional Indonesian tempe. The chemical (amino acid and ammonia content), microbiological (lactic acid bacteria, proteolytic bacteria and yeast) and sensory characteristics of the fermented products were examined. The results showed that there is a correlation between the chemical properties, particularly glutamic acid and aspartic acid, and the overall liking of different types of tempe. In general, Rhizopus oligosporus-fermented products had better sensory characteristics than those fermented with Rhizopus oryzae and Rhizopus delemar. The sensory characteristics of the fermented products in this work made from isolates are comparable to those made with an industrial starter culture. In addition, taste and texture affect the overall liking of the product. The results of this study contribute to the development of acceptable sensory fungal fermented food and, in particular, the screening of potential starters.

New food sources are explored to provide food security in sustainable ways. The submerged fermentation of edible filamentous fungi is a promising strategy to provide nutritious and affordable food that is expected to have a low environmental impact. The aim of the current study was to assess the novel use of Aspergillus oryzae cultivated in submerged fermentation on oat flour as a source for food products that do not undergo secondary fermentation or significant downstream processing. The fungus was cultivated in a pilot-scale airlift bioreactor, and the biomass concentration and protein content of the biomass were assessed. A tasting with an untrained panel assessed consumer preferences regarding the taste and texture of minimally processed vegetarian and vegan burger patties made from the biomass, and how the patties fared against established meat-alternative-based patties. The cultivation of Aspergillus oryzae resulted in a yield of 6 g/L dry biomass with a protein content of 37% on a dry weight basis. The taste and texture of the minimally processed fungal burger patties were to the liking of some participants. This was also reflected in diverse feedback provided by the participants. The cultivation of the fungus on oat flour and its utilization in developing burger patties shows its promising potential for the production of nutritious food. The applications of the fungus can be further developed by exploring other favorable ways to texture and season this relatively new functional food source to the preferences of consumers. 

Increasingly, scientific interest has been focused on the meaningfulness of engaging in occupations of daily life in individual ways, and especially so for people with migration backgrounds. This is because people who migrate to a new country will likely find themselves in a position in which they notice that some occupations are done differently from how they were used to prior to moving. Enculturation, a process in which cultural elements are recognized and internalized, informs the way immigrants engage in occupations. This study aimed to scope the occupational science and occupational therapy literature on the phenomenon in which enculturation leads to adjustments of habitus among immigrants. Descriptions of the phenomenon and its impact on daily occupations were qualitatively synthesized. The included studies entail documentations on how people who migrated enculturate and adjust their habitus regarding social etiquette, social expectations, women and gender perception, feeling of acceptance and belonging, disclosure of values and beliefs, work moral and sense of competency, and occupations involving meals. Despite the findings on the impact of occupations in migration contexts, further rigorous research is needed to investigate the way in which enculturation informs habitus adjustments and strengthen the evidence base on cultural sensitivity in occupational science.

The current study aims to assess how a novel fungi product made from the filamentous fungus Neurospora intermedia, cultivated on bread residuals, is perceived using questionnaires. Participants were asked to rate characteristic attributes of a fungi burger patty and state their preference when comparing it to Quorn and hamburger patties. The data were analyzed to assess whether gender or age was statistically associated with preference profiles. Neither age nor gender was associated with the preference profiles regarding the comparison of burger patties. Except for age and bitterness, age and gender were also not associated with the preference profiles regarding the sensory characteristics of the fungi burger patty. Most of the participants liked the characteristics of the fungi burger patty. The results indicate that fungi products from waste can become accepted products when information dissemination targets environmental benefits. Moreover, to be commercially accepted, the chewiness and bitterness of the product should be improved. Other improvements should target the overall taste in order to cater to people who prefer meat-based protein sources.

Given the increasing efforts at improving waste management in developing countries, this study aimed to analyze factors that influence participation in household waste sorting. It thereby is the first review that extends the published literature on this topic. A meta-analysis was conducted that analyzed twelve influencing factors. A moderate correlation was found for the most strongly influential factors—attitude, moral norm, subjective norm and perceived behavior control—which indicates that people’s perception of waste sorting is most influencing in prompting participation in household waste sorting in developing countries. The results of this meta-analysis indicate that knowledge, situational factors, such as physical conditions, and governmental incentives can influence participation in household waste sorting in developing countries but the relationship between those factors and other factors with high correlations should be studied further. Notably, socio-demographic factors have the weakest influence on the participation in waste sorting in developing countries despite a large body of research on such factors. It can be constructive to take the relationship across the identified factors and the participation in waste sorting into consideration when aiming to implement measures to increase the participation in waste management schemes through waste sorting. The outcome of this study may contribute to recommendations and policy suggestions regarding the promotion of sustainable waste management through household waste sorting in developing countries.

Several theories and case studies have shown that information has little or no direct influence on waste sorting behavior. However, it is often suggested that information plays a vital role by indirectly influencing behavior. This contribution sheds light on how instructive information influences users of a recycling scheme in terms of perception, knowledge and waste sorting behavior. The study was performed as a case study on a student population in a medium-sized city in Sweden. An intervention in the form of modified information that was provided to the users was studied. This information was instructive in nature and adapted to the participants’ needs using the Recycling Behavior Transition procedure, where the users are involved in the development and modification of recycling schemes. New information was designed after investigating how the participants perceived the original information on correct waste sorting, as well as ascertaining their preferred channel for providing the information. Pick analyses and surveys were conducted before and after providing the user-adapted information. The results indicated a trend towards correct participation in the recycling scheme. These results are also discussed in the theoretical context of the Motivation-Opportunity-Ability-Behavior model. The study shows that user-adapted, instructive information can have a significant influence on people’s knowledge of correct waste separation and their overall perception of information.

The aim of this scoping review was to gain an overview of the current state of the literature on the engagement in waste sorting post migration from an occupational perspective, in the light of two aspects sustainability efforts currently face: Increased human migration and environmental degradation. Both the resource recovery and occupational science literature were reviewed and analyzed. However, despite the current lack on studies on how migrants’ transition into waste sorting schemes at the household level, this scoping review was able to provide a broad picture of the engagement in daily activities that support sustainability, such as household waste sorting. Given the current initiatives to develop efficient resource recovery from waste, such knowledge contributes to efforts to engage households with different cultures and experiences in waste sorting. The results highlight the importance of future research to better understand how people who are new to waste management schemes experience these, and study the way that engagement in waste sorting shifts and transforms. This is because providing such knowledge can contribute to raising awareness of the environmental impact of waste sorting, and inform policies aimed at sustainable waste management.