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In the past two decades the popularity of artisan cheese emerged. The present study aimed to investigate similarities and differences in beliefs towards artisan cheeses among participants from Serbia, Croatia and Spain and to determine consumer profiles. Better understanding of their behaviours and beliefs could serve as the basis for the development of appropriate production and marketing strategies and for further popularisation of artisan cheeses.

The data on demographic structure, behaviours and beliefs of 947 participants in total were obtained via a questionnaire collected online. In order to identify consumer profiles and to define their specific beliefs, a cross-country cluster analysis has been conducted. Four clusters were identified: “highly educated men”, “highly educated women”, “millennials” and “educated senior women”. Mann–Whitney U test was used to identify statistically significant differences between countries and clusters.

Respondents from different countries had different preferences for cheese types and different ways of consumption. All participants valued artisan cheeses more than industrial cheeses in terms of healthiness and quality, but they believe that there is still much to be done in terms of proper packaging, labelling, branding, widening of assortment and providing better availability. The results of the present study revealed that participants had no clear opinion regarding trust in artisan cheese safety.

Up to date, no study investigated beliefs of consumers from Serbia and Croatia towards artisan cheese. Original consumer pool has unique characteristics: they are far more oriented towards open markets and purchasing cheese directly from producers; they have different preferences towards cheese types and different consuming habits. Unique consumer characteristics provided original findings considering their beliefs.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the ability of the computer vision system (CVS) to evaluate the colour of poultry meat. The advantages of the CVS over traditional methods were also explored.

The research was carried out on m. pectoralis major samples of three animals for each of the following four species: chicken, turkey, duck and goose. The total colour difference (ΔE) and the degree of difference of hue, chroma and lightness between the methods were calculated. In addition, a trained panel of 14 people was used to carry out three different similarity tests analysed using χ² one sample test and one-way ANOVA. The correlation coefficient between CVS and colourimeter measures was evaluated using the Spearman rank correlation test.

The total colour difference (ΔE) between the methods employed was so large that the generated colour(s) could be considered more opposite than similar. The CVS-generated colour chips were more similar to the sample of the meat products visualised on the monitor compared to colourimeter-generated colour chips in all (100 per cent) individual trials performed. The use of the colourimeter for colour evaluation of lighter coloured poultry meat (chicken and turkey) was unrepresentative.

In this study, a CVS was developed to measure the colour of poultry meat as an alternative to conventional colourimeters.

The research has demonstrated that the use of a CVS should be considered a superior alternative to the traditional method for measuring colour of chicken, turkey, duck and goose meat.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the microbial profile of food contact surfaces (FCS) in foodservice industry of Serbia.

The research covered 21,485 samples collected from 1,085 foodservice establishments during a period of 43 months. Results were deployed in terms of food contact materials, types of FCS and types of foodservice establishments.

Highest share of results=2 log₁₀ CFU/cm² were present on plastic surfaces during Autumn, while on ceramic and stainless steel surfaces highest share were observed during the Summer season. Take-away food establishments had the highest share of results=2 log₁₀ CFU/cm² for both stainless steel and plastic surfaces. Highest share of stainless steel surfaces with microbial load=2 log₁₀ CFU/cm² were cutlery, dishes and knives. Plastic dishes had the highest share of results=2 log₁₀ CFU/cm² while cutting boards had the majority of results between 1 log₁₀ CFU/cm² and 2 log₁₀ CFU/cm².

Limitations of the research stem from the discussion of the nature of the FCS like porosity and other physical characteristics.

This research has a practical application in terms of establishing process hygiene levels depending on types of food contact materials and types of FCS and seasonal variations.

The findings of this study are worthy, in respect to possible correlation between seasonal variation and process hygiene requirements and can facilitate a better understanding of microbial risks associated with food preparation.

The purpose of this paper is to analyze perceptions of quality in the chicken meat supply chain.

This survey covered 74 different farms, slaughterhouses, meat processors, and retailers and 500 consumers, using two methods. From the farm to retail, analysis covered “customer – supplier” viewpoints in different stages of the supply chain. From the consumers to the farms, the quality function deployment method was used. Five houses of quality have been developed using the Delphi method to synthesize the opinions of experts.

Farm-slaughter comparison shows that final weight at farm gate and animal welfare are the most important quality attributes. The quality aspect important for slaughterhouses and meat processors is the cold chain. Retailers and meat processors highlight the portfolio of various chicken meat products as their most important quality attribute. At the points of sale, shelf illumination and product placement are prevailing.

The results suggest that there are different views on quality by all actors in the supply chain, from quality of chicken meat, food safety and quality of service in retail to profitability and animal welfare.

The paper enhances simplicity in analyzing quality aspects of different types of meat supply chains. This methodology enables a synergy of value chain promotion with other quality development approaches. It also creates possibilities for policy makers to improve competitiveness strategies.

Application of a similar approach to other parts of the food chain could offer a better insight into the transformation of quality.

This research shows how the perception of quality differs through the table egg chain and highlights the main quality characteristics for each studied chain participant (farm, retail, consumer).

Observing the change in perception starts from the farm, through retail to the end consumer using the customer–supplier interaction, while looking back from the consumer to the farm, the application of the quality function deployment (QFD) was used. The study included 30 farms, 50 retail stores, 1,000 customers and 300 households.

The farm–retail comparison highlights the type of production as the dominant factor affecting egg quality for both of these participants, followed by hen diet and the type of laying hen hybrid from the farmer's point of view, while retail focuses on packaging and egg damage. Egg quality aspects from the retail–household perspective emphasize the shell appearance and the origin of the eggs, while shelf life and egg class are equally important characteristics for both participants. The application of the QFD throughout the entire egg chain emphasizes quality vs price as the most important characteristic.

This study could serve to food policy makers as an introduction to further research and production orientation in relation to the set of quality requirements associated with the egg supply chain.

The purpose of this paper is to examine compositional differences between brown and white varieties of Agaricus bisporus during shelf life and to determine if the growing demand for the brown variety is scientifically justified.

Field research enabled analyzing consumers’ perceptions on intrinsic, extrinsic and quality characteristics of mushrooms. A total of 275 consumers participated in the survey. Obtained results were used for comparing white and brown varieties of A. bisporus over a period of 22 days. Mushrooms were packed in air and in modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) at 4°C. Samples were analyzed for their nutritional, antioxidative and microbiological characteristics.

Two weeks from harvest, white variety showed higher amount of essential nutrients, while during the third week, brown mushrooms were more nutritionally valuable. Brown variety had better antioxidative ability for all 22 days of storage. Aerobic plate count (APC) was as expected for the mushrooms. MAPs significantly lowered APC in both varieties. The number of Enterobacteriaceae was equal for both varieties at the beginning, but later on they developed much faster in the case of brown variety. Field research combined with specific analyses clarified that there are no nutritive or microbiological reasons for the precedence of brown variety over white.

Sensory aspect of the quality of mushrooms was not analyzed.

Market trend toward brown variety was scientifically challenged.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate if there is a difference in hygiene parameters of raw milk produced in organic and conventional farm of similar size. In parallel, the aim was to determine if there are differences in pasteurized organic and conventional milk samples delivered on the market.

Raw milk samples were analyzed for aerobic colony count (ACC), somatic cell count (SCC), acidity, temperature, fat and protein content. On the other side, final products of organic and conventional pasteurized milk with 2.8 percent declared milk fat were analyzed for Raman spectroscopy, color change and sensorial difference.

Results of raw milk analysis showed statistically significant differences in fat content, SCC, acidity, temperature and ACC (p<0.05). It is of note that ACC for organic milk were lower for approx. 1 log CFU/ml compared to conventional milk samples. Pasteurized organic milk samples had a significantly higher L* value than those samples originating from conventional farms, indicating that organic is “more white” compared to conventional milk. According to the results of triangle test, with 95 percent confidence no more than 10 percent of the population is able to detect a difference.

A limitation of this research is the fact that good veterinary practices at farms, namely, animal health and adequate usage of medicine for treating the animals, animal welfare and animal feeding were not analyzed.

This study analyzed potential differences in organic and conventional milk at two important production stages of the milk chain – at receipt at dairy plant (raw milk) and perceived by consumers (final product).

The purpose of this paper is to analyse consumer perception of quality characteristics of chicken meat and chicken meat products in Southeast European countries (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, FYR of Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia).

Results were collected from a field survey by using data obtained from a questionnaire directed at 2,368 consumers during 2015.

This study identified four consumer segments: “typical”, “selective”, “chicken meat preparers” and “uninterested” chicken meat consumers.

Older consumers (50 years) have higher interest in chicken meat quality characteristics, while women are “chicken meat preparers”. Chicken meat consumers who prefer particular chicken parts and consume chicken meat because it is nutritious are found among the working population, while the most number of consumers “uninterested” in chicken meat come from Serbia.

The purpose of this paper was to evaluate food safety knowledge of among meat handlers in Serbian meat establishments along the meat chain, i.e. in slaughterhouses, meat processing plants and retail stores.

A structured, self-administrative questionnaire was designed and used to assess the level of food safety knowledge among handlers in different meat establishments. In total, of 352 meat handlers were involved in this study, with 110 handlers from slaughterhouses (31 per cent), 125 handlers from meat processing plants (36 per cent) and 116 handlers from retail stores (33 per cent). For each participant, the knowledge score was calculated by dividing the sum of correct answers by the total number of correct responses. Additionally, knowledge gaps among meat handlers were identified for each question across the three types of establishments (slaughterhouses, meat processing plants and retail stores).

The average knowledge score for all participants was 64 per cent, whereas handlers from slaughterhouses and meat processing plants obtained significantly better scores (65 per cent and 66 per cent, respectively) than handlers from retail (60 per cent, p < 0.05). The knowledge score among all meat handlers was significantly associated with the age, education and previous food safety trainings. Results indicated that 57.9 per cent meat handlers could identify that bacteria will readily multiply at 25 °C, but they do not understand the manifestation of bacterial growth and incidence in food, as only 5.5 per cent of all meat handlers knew that food contaminated with food poisoning bacteria cannot be recognized by visual, olfactory or taste checks.

This is the first research aimed to investigate the food safety knowledge among meat handlers in Serbia and also the first research performed to determine food safety knowledge among workers operating in different phases of the meat chain, namely meat handlers from slaughterhouses, meat processing plants and retail stores.

This paper aims to examine the relationship between business process management (BPM) and company performance. The research focuses on the instrumental aspect of core business processes and its controlling activities in small and medium-sized companies (SMEs) to identify the relationship to company performance.

The results presented in this paper are based on a survey of Slovene SMEs. A questionnaire was distributed to 3007 SMEs via e-mail and a response rate of 5.42% was achieved. The financial data of companies over a six year period as derived from the publicly available financial reports of SMEs along with an industry-specific financial risk measure and other financial data were used for the company risk-adjusted performance measures of relative residual income (ROE-r) and risk-adjusted ROE (ROE-a) calculation.

The results show that instrumental aspects of core business process controlling activities are related to risk-adjusted company performance measures ROE-r and ROE-a. Companies with lower ROE-r and ROE-a have been perceived to be more focused on the instrumental aspect of BPM. Presumably due to the small sample, the results of a non-parametric Mann–Whitney U test did not statistically confirm the developed hypothesis: “the instrumental aspect of controlling as a core process management activity has a statistically significant impact on company risk-adjusted performance measures such as ROE-r and ROE-a.” Despite this, the results show a possible negative correlation between risk-adjusted performance measures and BPM, which opens possibilities for further research.

The main limitation of the purposed study model is that the paper have studied only control activities of core business processes and relate it to company risk-adjusted performance measures. The study has been limited by the SME sample and the use of a survey as a research instrument. An additional limitation of the research is the degree of reliability implied by the assumptions of the models used to estimate the required return on equity and risk. Results concern investors, managers and practitioners to start BPM improvement initiatives, to set BPM priority measures and to set priority management decisions and further actions.

This paper presents the unique findings from an investigation of the instrumental aspects of BPM practices and their relationship to company risk-adjusted performance measures in SMEs. This paper developed a measurement instrument for measuring the instrumental aspects of BPM use. An additional original contribution is the use of company risk-adjusted performance measures such as ROE-r and ROE-a, which take into account the required profitability of companies in different industries according to the risk and allows comparable results of companies from different industries. The approach is innovative and interesting as regards researching the factors that affect the profitability of companies that operate in different industries.