“I’m better than you”: assessing the presence of optimistic bias among Italian hunters

According to the latest scientific evidence, consumers appreciate hunted wild game meat (HWGM), but its consumption may expose them to some risks. Hunters produce HWGM, even if they may find it hard to identify themselves as food producers since in Western countries, hunting is practiced mostly as a leisure activity. Thus, hunters may underestimate the risk associated with HWGM handling, failing to preserve its safety during the production process. To test this hypothesis, our study aims to explore the presence of optimistic biases (OB) in a sample of Italian hunters. A sample of 408 hunters was asked to indicate their own risk and the perceived risk of their peers causing a foodborne disease to the final consumer, as well as the practices implemented during the phases of HWGM handling and preparation. Moreover, information about HWGM destinations, hunters' knowledge of basic principles of food safety, and risk perceptions of HWGM preparation were collected. Our results show that hunters generally tend to perceive themselves as "better than their peers" in performing actions to preserve HWGM safety, especially if the peers are unfamiliar to the respondent. Furthermore, OB correlates knowledge of basic principles of food safety with risk perceptions of HWGM preparation-related practices. Finally, hunters perceived themselves as "nature lovers" and "hunting enthusiasts" and did not recognize their role as food producers. Therefore, our findings emphasize the importance of improving hunters’ training to preserve public health, addressing the need for more targeted strategies able to enhance hunters’ awareness of their role as food producers.