CHALLENGES OF EDUCATION OF YOUNG PEOPLE FOR RESPONSIBLE FOOD CONSUMPTION

Abstract

Ecology of nutrition is, in optics of theorists, a science having as stakes a ' sustainable ' nutrition and global food security. Currently has become a necessity to adopt a more global point of view on these issues. Sustainable consumption is proposing a new way of consumption, more respectful with natural resources, both upstream to production (quantity and nature of raw materials used) and downstream depending on the life cycle of products for what is related to the recycling of waste. In the first part of this article our interest was focused on defining some concepts already rendered in the practice of development challenges: urban development, ecology, ecology of nutrition, sustainable consumption. The term "consom'actor ' appeared due to emergence of sustainable development, favor to sustainable concept development expansion. This term specially covers issues of social responsibility of the consumer-citizen. "Consom'actor" is a consumer who is emancipating for products and ways of life that market conceive for him, becomes autonomous in his choices and he may, due to this fact, to contribute to the settlement of the consumer society. The term translates as well, the fact that the consumer has the ability, through its purchasing choices, to weigh upon the manufacturers offer and so becoming a veritable "actor" of the market. The second part of the article presents the results of a research among a sample of students who pursued the knowledge of their perceptions toward these concepts. The field research aimed to establish the level of the knowledge held by the students from the Faculty of Economics of the University "Valahia" Targoviste in the organic food sector and, on the basis of its results, were outlined some strands on the possibilities of modeling of the ecological consumer behavior. Sample characteristics (gender, specialization of the faculty, year of study and level of education of the parents), were selected to measure if opinions differ. The research aimed also to test a measuring scale for aggregation of the indicators, which measure purchasing behavior. Taking into account the recommendations of specialists in the field (Equité, 2004, p. 12) we consider that all the actors that comprise the system of interactions in which one can shape a sustainable consumption (public powers and organizations/communities, businesses, media and associations) have to cooperate actively and interactively to educate young people in the spirit of responsible consumption.