AgrEconLab

Prof. George Vlontzos

Full Professor, Director of the Laboratory of Agricultural Economics and Consumer Behavior

Research Field: Agricultural Economics and Consumer Behavior

Expertise

  • Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs)
  • Principal Component Analysis (PCA)
  • Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA)
  • Stochastic Frontier Analysis (SFA)

George Vlontzos is a Full Professor, Director of the Laboratory of Agricultural Economics and Consumer Behavior. His research interests focus on, among others, economic and environmental efficiency assessment, and on consumer behavior characteristics for agricultural inputs and foodstuff. For this, various models are being implemented like Data Envelopment Analysis, Stochastic Frontier, Artificial Neural Networks, the Theory of Planned Behaviour, the Health Belief Model, etc. He has published several papers in journals under double blind peer review evaluation and participated in international congresses and seminars. Finally, he has participated, in competitive projects co-financed by the EU, national funding as well as private funding projects. He participates in EU funded projects, including ALLIANCE HORIZON EUROPE,  NATAE HORIZON EUROPE and GreenDriedFruits PRIMA. Prof. George Vlontzos teaches agricultural economics and consumer behavior at the University of Thessaly, Greece.

He was a visiting professor at the Center of Applied Optimization, University of Florida, USA from 1-2-2016 until 31-7-2016. Finally, he has a close collaboration with the Agricultural Institute of Montpellier, France, teaching consumer behavior for agricultural products and food in the MSc MIDAS program.

Education

  • PhD – Department of Planning and Regional Development, University of Thessaly, Volos, Greece
  • MBA in Agribusiness – University of Wales, Aberystwyth, United Kingdom
  • BSc in Agriculture – School of Agriculture, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece

Publications

85 publications
  1. 2026

    Understanding the Impact of Agroecological Products: The Algerian Case Study

    Christina Kleisiari, Aissa Belhadi, Karima Boudedja, Aissa Bekkouche, Leonidas-Sotirios Kyrgiakos, Marios Vasileiou and 5 more

    Proceedings · Conference papers

    doi:10.3390/proceedings2026134032
  2. 2026

    Mapping the Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystem (WEFE) nexus: Insights and limitations from a systematic literature review on interconnected resource management

    Dimitra Despoina Tosiliani, Marios Vasileiou, Leonidas Sotirios Kyrgiakos, Fadi Abdelradi, Christina Kleisiari, Kyriaki Kechri and 2 more

    Agricultural Water Management · Journal articles

    doi:10.1016/j.agwat.2026.110650
  3. 2026

    Towards pollinator stewardship in all policies: Policy incoherence in the EU is a major barrier to pollinator restoration

    Jeroen P. van der Sluijs, Noa Simon Delso, Johan Axelman, Ignasi Bartomeus, Tom Breeze, Scott Bremer and 33 more

    Other

    doi:10.5281/ZENODO.20715670
  4. 2026

    Cultivating Demand: A Systematic Literature Review on Agroecology's Role in Consumer Behavior

    Christina Kleisiari, Leonidas Sotirios Kyrgiakos, Marios Vasileiou, Vasileios Angelopoulos, Asimina Oikonomou, Georgios Kleftodimos and 3 more

    Cleaner and Responsible Consumption · Journal articles

    doi:10.1016/j.clrc.2026.100413
  5. 2026

    METHOD FOR AUTOMATIC CALCULATION OF FOOD DISINFECTION TIME WITH LOW MOISURE CONTENT

    George Vlontzos, Athanassiou Christos, Marios Vasileiou, Maria Sakka, Marina Gkourgkouta, Leonidas Sotirios Kyrgiakos and 1 more

    Patents

  6. 2025

    Assessing the Economic Impact of Insect Pollination on the Agricultural Sector: A Department-Level Case Study in France

    Yasmine Blili, Elie Abou Nader, Iciar Pavez, Paolo Prosperi, Rachid Harbouze, Leonidas Sotirios Kyrgiakos and 5 more

    Journal articles

    doi:10.2139/ssrn.5337910
  7. 2025
  8. 2025

    Emerging Technologies for Investigating Food Consumer Behavior: A Systematic Review

    Kyriaki Kechri, Christina Kleisiari, Leonidas Sotirios Kyrgiakos, Marios Vasileiou, Dimitra Despoina Tosiliani, Vasileios Angelopoulos and 2 more

    Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety · Journal articles

    doi:10.1111/1541-4337.70340
  9. 2025

    Multidimensional and Multiscale Evaluation Framework Considering Water–Energy–Food–Ecosystem Nexus

    Leonidas Sotirios Kyrgiakos, Dimitra Despoina Tosiliani, Vasileios Angelopoulos, Veronica Bonomelli, Georgios Kleftodimos, Marios Vasileiou and 5 more

    Proceedings · Conference papers

    doi:10.3390/proceedings2025117012
  10. 2025
  11. 2025

    Digital Transformation of Food Supply Chain Management Using Blockchain: A Systematic Literature Review Towards Food Safety and Traceability

    Marios Vasileiou, Leonidas Sotirios Kyrgiakos, Christina Kleisiari, Pantelis Z. Lappas, Christos Tsinopoulos, Georgios Kleftodimos and 4 more

    Business & Information Systems Engineering · Journal articles

    doi:10.1007/s12599-025-00948-0
  12. 2025

    Assessing Consumer Awareness and Willingness to Pay for Agroecologically Produced Food in Tunisia

    Kyriaki Kechri, Christina Kleisiari, Wafa Koussani, Khawla Hanachi, Haifa Benmoussa, Mehdi Ben Mimoun and 6 more

    Proceedings · Conference papers

    doi:10.3390/proceedings2026134019
  13. 2024

    Transforming weed management in sustainable agriculture with artificial intelligence: A systematic literature review towards weed identification and deep learning

    Marios Vasileiou, Leonidas Sotirios Kyrgiakos, Christina Kleisiari, Georgios Kleftodimos, George Vlontzos, Hatem Belhouchette and 1 more

    Crop Protection · Journal articles

    doi:10.1016/j.cropro.2023.106522
  14. 2024

    Variable RTS in hierarchical network DEA: Enhancing efficiency in higher education systems

    Siwei Xiao, Marios Kremantzis, Leonidas Sotirios Kyrgiakos, Aniekan Essien, George Vlontzos

    Socio-Economic Planning Sciences · Journal articles

    doi:10.1016/j.seps.2024.102112
  15. 2024

    Promoting excellence or discouraging mediocrity – a policy framework assessment for precision agriculture technologies adoption

    Georgios Kleftodimos, Leonidas Sotirios Kyrgiakos, Stelios Kartakis, Christina Kleisiari, Marios Vasileiou, Marios Dominikos Kremantzis and 1 more

    Precision Agriculture · Journal articles

    doi:10.1007/s11119-024-10160-x
  16. 2024

    Is Blockchain a Panacea for Guarding PDO Supply Chains? Exploring Vulnerabilities, Critical Control Points, and Blockchain feasibility in Greece

    Marios Vasileiou, Leonidas Sotirios Kyrgiakos, Christina Kleisiari, Paolo Prosperi, Georgios Kleftodimos, Athanasios Ragkos and 4 more

    Advanced Sustainable Systems · Journal articles

    doi:10.1002/adsu.202400257
  17. 2024

    Assessing climate change awareness among Mediterranean university students: a comparative study of French and Greek universities

    Aybike Bayraktar, Georgios Kleftodimos, Leonidas Sotirios Kyrgiakos, Christina Kleisiari, George Vlontzos, Hatem Belhouchette

    Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences · Journal articles

    doi:10.1007/s13412-024-00946-w
  18. 2024

    Embracing fairness within a cross-efficiency hierarchical network DEA system

    Siwei Xiao, Marios Dominikos Kremantzis, Leonidas Sotirios Kyrgiakos, George Vlontzos, Panos M. Pardalos

    Operational Research · Journal articles

    doi:10.1007/s12351-023-00811-8
  19. 2024

    Assessing Agroecology Terms for North African Countries: A Literature Review

    Malak Hazimeh, Leonidas Sotirios Kyrgiakos, Georgios Kleftodimos, Christina Kleisiari, Marios Vasileiou, George Vlontzos

    Conference papers

    doi:10.3390/proceedings2024094004
  20. 2024

    The Food Fraud Landscape: A Brief Review of Food Safety and Authenticity

    Leonidas Sotirios Kyrgiakos, Malak Hazimeh, Marios Vasileiou, Christina Kleisiari, Georgios Kleftodimos, George Vlontzos

    Conference papers

    doi:10.3390/proceedings2024094006
  21. 2024

    Consumers’ Behavior toward Plant-Based Milk Alternatives

    Dimitris Alexandridis, Christina Kleisiari, George Vlontzos

    Conference papers

    doi:10.3390/proceedings2024094060
  22. 2024

    Enhancing Sustainability through Weather Derivative Option Contracts: A Risk Management Tool in Greek Agriculture

    Angelos Prentzas, Thomas Bournaris, Stefanos Nastis, Christina Moulogianni, George Vlontzos

    Sustainability · Journal articles

    doi:10.3390/su16177372
  23. 2023

    Linking Beekeepers’ and Farmers’ Preferences towards Pollination Services in Greek Kiwi Systems

    Elie Abou Nader, Georgios Kleftodimos, Leonidas Sotirios Kyrgiakos, Christina Kleisiari, Nicola Gallai, Salem Darwich and 3 more

    Animals · Journal articles

    doi:10.3390/ani13050806
  24. 2023

    Assessing efficiency differences in a common Agriculture Decision Support System - A comparative analysis between Greek and Italian durum wheat farms

    George Vlontzos

    Int. J. Food System Dynamics · Journal articles

  25. 2023

    Embracing fairness within a cross‑efciency hierarchical network DEA system

    George Vlontzos

    Operational Research · Journal articles

  26. 2023

    A fuzzy TOPSIS model for selecting digital technologies in circular supply chains

    Umair Tanveer, Marios Dominikos Kremantzis, Nikos Roussinos, Shamaila Ishaq, Leonidas Sotirios Kyrgiakos, George Vlontzos

    Supply Chain Analytics · Journal articles

    doi:10.1016/j.sca.2023.100038
  27. 2023

    Assessing efficiency differences in a common Agriculture Decision Support System

    Leonidas Sotirios Kyrgiakos, Georgios Kleftodimos, Marios Dominikos Kremantzis, Panos M. Pardalos, George Vlontzos

    International Journal on Food System Dynamics · Journal articles

    doi:10.18461/ijfsd.v14i1.e2
  28. 2023
  29. 2022
  30. 2022
  31. 2022

    Understanding consumer patterns on meat and dairy products derived from animals fed with locally produced feed

    George Vlontzos

    International Journal of Agricultural Resources, Governance and Ecology · Journal articles

    doi:10.1504/ijarge.2022.124651
  32. 2022

    R&D Performance Evaluation in the Chinese Food Manufacturing Industry Based on Dynamic DEA in the COVID-19 Era

    Shiping Mao, Marios Dominikos Kremantzis, Leonidas Sotirios Kyrgiakos, George Vlontzos

    Agriculture · Journal articles

    doi:10.3390/agriculture12111938
  33. 2022

    Why Go on Vacation to Crete? Assessing the Role of Local Cuisine

    Christina Kleisiari, Stelios Kartakis, George Kleftodimos, George Vlontzos

    Cooperative Management · Books & chapters

    doi:10.1007/978-3-031-08317-4_7
  34. 2021
  35. 2021

    Assessing the efficiency of cotton farms considering qualitative factors under a DEA TOPSIS model

    George Vlontzos

    International Journal of Sustainable Agricultural Management and Informatics · Journal articles

    doi:10.1504/ijsami.2021.121980
  36. 2021

    Investigating the regional efficiency disparities in arable crops production at the global level

    George Vlontzos

    BIO-ECONOMY AND AGRI-PRODUCTION: Concepts and Evidence · Books & chapters

  37. 2021

    New Technologies Contribution on the Agrifood Sector for Achieving Circular Economy Goals

    George Vlontzos

    Modeling for sustainable management in agriculture food and the environment · Books & chapters

  38. 2021

    Ranking EU Agricultural Sectors under the Prism of Alternative Widths on Window DEA

    Leonidas Sotirios Kyrgiakos, George Vlontzos, Panos M. Pardalos

    Energies · Journal articles

    doi:10.3390/en14041021
  39. 2021

    COVID-19 Pandemic and Lockdown Fine Optimality

    Spyros Niavis, Dimitris Kallioras, George Vlontzos, Marie-Noelle Duquenne

    Economies · Journal articles

    doi:10.3390/economies9010036
  40. 2021

    E-Commerce in the Retail Chain Store Market: An Alternative or a Main Trend?

    Christina Kleisiari, Marie-Noelle Duquenne, George Vlontzos

    Sustainability · Journal articles

    doi:10.3390/su13084392
  41. 2021

    Pest Control in Primary Sector: Towards the Identification of Knowledge Gaps

    Angeliki Stefopoulou, Dionyssia A. Maselou, Dimitrios Papachristos, Antonios Kolimenakis, Antonios Michaelakis, Christos Athanassiou and 1 more

    Agronomy · Journal articles

    doi:10.3390/agronomy11081596
  42. 2021

    Socioeconomic Impact of Climate Change in Rural Areas of Greece Using a Multicriteria Decision-Making Model

    Ioannis Georgilas, Christina Moulogianni, Thomas Bournaris, George Vlontzos, Basil Manos

    Agronomy · Journal articles

    doi:10.3390/agronomy11091779
  43. 2020

    Research and Innovation Towards Sustainable Development Goals in Agriculture

    Encyclopedia of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Springer, Cham · Books & chapters

  44. 2020
  45. 2020
  46. 2020
  47. 2019
  48. 2019
  49. 2018
  50. 2018
  51. 2018
  52. 2017
  53. 2017
  54. 2017

    Does economic crisis force to consumption changes regarding fruits and vegetables?

    Vlontzos, G., Duquenne, M.N., Haas, R., Pardalos, P.M.

    International Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Information Systems · Journal articles

    doi:10.4018/IJAEIS.2017010104
  55. 2017
  56. 2017
  57. 2017
  58. 2017
  59. 2017
  60. 2016
  61. 2016

    To eat or not to eat? The case of genetically modified (GM) food

    Vlontzos, G., Duquenne, M.N.

    Nutrition and Food Science · Journal articles

    doi:10.1108/NFS-12-2015-0153
  62. 2016

    Evaluating consumer beliefs for traditional and localized foodstuff under economic stress

    International Journal of Sustainable Agricutlural Management and Informatics · Journal articles

    doi:10.1504/IJSAMI.2016.081995
  63. 2015
  64. 2015

    Using a lethality index to assess susceptibility of Tribolium confusum and Oryzaephilus surinamensis to insecticides

    Agrafioti, P., Athanassiou, C.G., Vassilakos, T.N., Vlontzos, G., Arthur, F.H.

    PLoS ONE · Journal articles

    doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0142044
  65. 2015

    Assess the impact of traditional and localized food under economic recession

    Vlontzos, G., Duquenne, M.N., Niavis, S.

    Know Your Food · Books & chapters

    doi:10.3920/978-90-8686-813-1_31
  66. 2015

    Measuring efficiency of the Greek flourmill firms using data envelopment analysis

    International Journal of Sustainable Agricultural Management and Informatics · Journal articles

    doi:10.1504/IJSAMI.2015.069046
  67. 2014

    Introduction on themarket of tsipouro, a greek traditional liquor, precursor of ouzo

    Vlontzos, G., Niavis, S., Duquenne, M.-N.

    International Journal of Euro-Mediterranean Studies · Journal articles

  68. 2014

    A DEA approach for estimating the agricultural energy and environmental efficiency of EU countries

    Vlontzos, G., Niavis, S., Manos, B.

    Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews · Journal articles

    doi:10.1016/j.rser.2014.07.153
  69. 2014
  70. 2014

    Investigation of the relative efficiency of LEADER+ in rural areas of Northern Greece

    Vlontzos, G., Arabatzis, G., Manos, B.

    International Journal of Green Economics · Journal articles

    doi:10.1504/IJGE.2014.064470
  71. 2014

    Assess the impact of subjective norms of consumers' behaviour in the Greek olive oil market

    Vlontzos, G., Duquenne, M.N.

    Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services · Journal articles

    doi:10.1016/j.jretconser.2013.09.003
  72. 2014

    Assessing the efficiency of switchgrass different cultural practices for pellet production

    Giannoulis, K.D., Vlontzos, G., Karyotis, T., Bartzialis, D., Danalatos, N.G.

    Land Use Policy · Journal articles

    doi:10.1016/j.landusepol.2014.04.004
  73. 2014

    Economic crisis and food selection: The financial, social and spatial dimension

    Vlontzos, G., Duquenne, M.-N.

    International Journal of Agricultural Resources, Governance and Ecology · Journal articles

    doi:10.1504/IJARGE.2014.063584
  74. 2014

    Agricultural Cooperative Management and Policy

    George Vlontzos

    Springer International Publishing · Books & chapters

    doi:10.1007/978-3-319-06635-6
  75. 2013

    Efficiency and productivity change in the greek dairy industry

    Vlontzos, G., Theodoridis, A.

    Agricultural Economics Review · Journal articles

  76. 2013

    Economic efficiency of different agricultural practices of "Panicum virgatum L. (switchgrass)" for Fodder Production

    Giannoulis, K.D., Vlontzos, G., Karyotis, T., Bartzialis, D., Danalatos, N.G.

    Journal of Agricultural Science · Journal articles

    doi:10.5539/jas.v5n12p132
  77. 2012

    The Greek olive oil market and the factors affecting it

    Duquenne, M.-N., Vlontzos, G.

    Economia Agro-Alimentare · Journal articles

    doi:10.3280/ECAG2012-003006
  78. 2011

    Applications of Informatics in a Leonardo da Vinci project with reference to the organic farming in Greece and Europe

    Gousios, V., Tziortziou, A., Vlontzos, G., Tzortzios, S.

    CEUR Workshop Proceedings · Conference papers

  79. 2010

    Interrelationship between ethnicity and international trade of Greek virgin olive oil

    George Vlontzos

    Market orientation: Transforming food and agribusiness around the customer · Books & chapters

  80. 2009

    Evolution of trade flows for sheep milk cheese: An empirical model for Greece

    Vlontzos, G., Duquenne, M.-N.

    International Marketing and Trade of Quality Food Products · Books & chapters

    doi:10.3920/978-90-8686-661-8
  81. 2008

    Greek olive oil: How can its International Market Potential be realized

    Estey Centre Journal of International Law and Trade Policy · Journal articles

    doi:10.22004/ag.econ.42310
  82. 2008

    The impact of the new international cotton policy on the Greek cotton production sector

    NEW MEDIT · Journal articles

  83. 2007
  84. 2006

Source: ORCID · last updated 30 Aug 2026 · orcid.org/0000-0002-0735-2274