MAPP Centre, Aarhus University

About MAPP Centre, Aarhus University

The MAPP Centre at Aarhus University is a research centre focused on value creation in the food sector for consumers, industry, and society. It studies how stakeholders, customers, and citizen-consumers perceive and behave within the agricultural and food system, and turns those insights into implications for industry and public policy.

Its work sits at the intersection of food, drink, and related services and sectors. The centre positions itself as a source of consumer and market insight for current food-system transitions, including sustainability, novel foods, and changing retail environments.

Core Values

• Evidence-based insight: The centre emphasises research that generates concrete understanding of consumer perception and behaviour rather than assumptions. Its output is intended to inform practical decisions in industry and public policy.
• Sustainability: Sustainability is a recurring theme in the centre’s work, from food sustainability understanding to plant-based eating, upcycling, and precision fermentation. The centre treats sustainability as both a consumer issue and a system-level transition challenge.
• Societal relevance: MAPP frames its research around value creation for consumers, industry, and society. This suggests a strong focus on work that can support broader food-system change, not only commercial outcomes.
• Innovation and openness to change: The centre studies emerging concepts and technologies in food and retail, including novel foods and new pricing paradigms. It appears oriented toward understanding how markets adapt to change and how consumers respond to it.

Unique Aspects

• Aarhus University base with food-sector focus: MAPP is embedded in Aarhus University’s Department of Management, giving it an academic research platform while maintaining a clear focus on the food sector.
• VR Retail Lab: The centre has jointly developed the VR Retail Lab with the Commercial and Retail Management group, creating a specialised environment for studying retail behaviour.
• Cross-country consumer research: Its projects include representative surveys and comparative studies across regions such as the Nordic-Baltic area, Italy and Denmark, and Chile, showing a broad comparative research reach.
• Work on emerging food transitions: Recent publications and projects show attention to cultured meat, seafood, plant-based eating, precision fermentation, upcycling, and agrivoltaics, indicating a strong role in analysing food-system transitions as they emerge.