## 1 Introduction
Overall, TFs can contribute to enhancing the destination attractiveness and, thus they can support local agro-economies [28]. In recent years, increasing market interest in TFs can be observed, both in Greece and in other countries such as Poland [29] and in the EU itself [30; 31; 32]. In fact, sales of protected products are worth more than \(\epsilon\)50 billion, representing around 6% of the sales value of the entire EU food and drink market. Wine accounts for more than half, around 56% of the value of the market for traditional and regional products, followed by agricultural and food products and spirits [33]. Southern European countries have a more traditional food character due to a greater market share of small companies and a better climate, which supports a more widespread availability of TFs [34]. France has the largest market share, followed by Italy. Other significant producers include Spain, Greece, and Austria. A recent study has shown that TFs have to claim their place within this digitized landscape, grown rapidly in the COVID-19 era and beyond, by finding the balance between old and new, between preferences for food taste passed through generations and new lifestyles at 5G speed [35]. Currently, in the EU, Council Regulation (EC)1151/2012 on quality schemes for agricultural products and foodstuffs aims to help producers of these products to communicate the product characteristics and farming attributes to buyers and consumers by establishing voluntary quality schemes. The definition of the term \"traditional\" in the above document means proven usage on the domestic market for a period that allows transmission between generations; this period is to be at least 30 years. As an EU member state, Greece incorporated the provisions of the Regulation in the national Legislation with Ministerial Decree (3321/145849) issued by the Hellenic Ministry of Agricultural Development and Food. Furthermore, a system of checks at all stages of production, processing, and distribution of geographical indications and traditional specialties guaranteed was established and is being implemented by the Hellenic Agricultural Organization-Demeter (AGROCERT). Greece has registered 79 protected designation of origin (PDO) products out of a total of 661 [36]. The majority of the Greek PDO (27) belong to the class \"fruit, vegetables, and cereals fresh or processed\". There are 34 Greek products designated with a protected geographical indication (PGI) out of 881 in the register. Surprisingly, there is no designation of traditional specialty guaranteed (TSG) for any product in Greece, despite the vast variety of traditional products and food recipes. It is worth mentioning the small number of TSGs in the register (only 64). As a result, the market of products that bear the term \"traditional\" is not adequately regulated despite their share in the market also connected with the tourism sector. Producers of traditional products conforming with the provisions of Council Regulation (EC)1151/2012 need obviously stronger incentives to apply for the quality scheme of TSG or are disappointed by the bureaucracy behind it. The aim of this work was to assess the factors associated with the consumption and preference for TFs, within the COVID-19 pandemic period, in the Greek northwest region of Epirus. Even though there is adequate research related to consumers' behavior toward TFs, this is the first study in Europe that explores consumers' motives within the current health crisis, since it was conducted at the end of 2020, and there were no other related publications published by that time. The region of Epirus was chosen because it produces a significant number of local TFs, such as a typical southern European region, which shows a preference for its own foods [34]. It is a mountainous region, isolated from the rest of Greece until 10 years ago due to the lack of proper highways, with a long history of local traditional food production such as traditional green pies used for the feeding of its own residences.