Perceptions of urban people toward bear garlic gathering, organic and conventional production

Abstract

Allium ursinum L. (bear garlic) is often consumed as an edible and medicinal plant in Serbia. It is harvested in nature for consumption or sale in urban green markets. Although there are reports of production of bear garlic in some European countries, it is not cultivated yet in Serbia. The objective of this study was to investigate the willingness of people living in cities and not having the opportunity to collect bear garlic by themselves (consumers) to buy cultivated bear garlic instead of wild ones. The survey using semi-structured interviews was conducted in Belgrade in May 2021. The responses varied according to the age, education, and income of interviewees. Respondents (74.2%) prefer purchasing wild plants or organically produced ones because they believe that these plants have better medicinal and nutritional characteristics than plants produced by conventional ways. However, even 56.7% interviewees believe that plants marked as organically produced can be mislabeled and in fact produced by conventional ways. Only 22.5% of respondents would choose to buy cultivated bear garlic to help reduce its collection in natural habitats and those are mainly people 30-40 years old with higher education degrees. Obtained results showed that both conventional and organic technology for bear garlic production should be established for its cultivation in Serbian conditions. At the same time, it is necessary to raise the awareness of citizens about the importance of reducing the mass-collection of wild bear garlic and to strengthen trust in institutions that control the quality of organic production.