Non-market provision of food by low-income households

A model of food provision through growing, hunting or raising food was developed. Food supply was less of a problem for those who grew, raised or hunted their food than for others. Non-market food provision was a viable alternative for consumers regardless of educational levels, income levels and employment status. Home food production varied by other characteristics. There was not a significant difference between urban and rural households in some types of food provided. Results of this study can be helpful to professionals assisting households with resource use and to policy makers concerning policies to assist low-income consumers.     

How practices inform the materialization of cultural ideals in mundane consumption

This study examines how consumers enact cultural ideals in mundane consumption. The empirical context is a weekday dinner practice among Finnish households. The findings demonstrate how practices inform consumers how, where, when, and with whom to enact and compromise cultural ideals and identity projects. Thus the practices guide food consumption choices and the meanings that the consumers ascribe to food consumption objects. The consumers are pragmatic, flexible and fragmented as they enact identity projects and cultural ideals in mundane consumption in relation to practices. They compromise the identity projects and the cultural ideals in some practice(s) but not across practices. As the practices serve different ends for the consumers at different times, the meaning of the practices is constantly re-created by the consumers. The perceived value of mundane consumption is related to how well and how frequently the consumers can enact their identity projects and cultural ideals in practices.     

Perception of food safety and changes in food consumption habits: a consumer analysis

The relationship between seven types of food safety concerns and the corresponding change in food consumption habits of 236 households in Georgia, USA was evaluated. Results showed a gap between food safety concerns and food consumption habits. Gaps were particularly evident in the cases of pesticide residues, animal drug residues, growth hormones and bacteria. For example, more than 54% of sample households were extremely concerned about pesticide residues, but only 35% actually took extreme precaution in buying items considering this perceived threat. The study indicated that educating consumers about preventive methods to reduce food safety threats will lead to reduced concerns and changes in food consumption habits.     

Is an Increase in Organic Consumption Accompanied by A Healthier Diet? A Comparison of Changes in Eating Habits among Danish Consumers

Several studies have shown that consumers with a high organic consumption often have dietary habits that include more fruit and vegetables but less red meat. This paper takes a novel approach by investigating whether changes in consumption of organics and improvements in dietary habits also are related. The results show that many consumers seem to improve their diet while increasing the organic consumption. Further, the study suggests that some households already have a relatively healthy diet in terms of fruit, vegetables, and meat consumption, when they start buying organic food. When organic consumption reaches a certain level, further increases in organic consumption are more likely to take place at the same time as dietary habits are improved. References to health and climate considerations seem to be the most important motivations for reducing meat consumption, while higher availability of organics is the most important reason for increasing organic consumption.     

The effect of the WIC program on consumption patterns in the cereal category

The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) is a federally-funded food assistance program for low income participants who are at nutritional risk. Beneficiaries receive vouchers for specific foods and brands, selected for their nutritional value. While the program is designed to improve nutrition, it may also induce changes in consumption behavior that persist beyond participation in the program. In this paper, we study how participation in WIC impacts the consumption patterns and preferences during and after the program. Our analysis focuses on the cereal category, in which the subsidized brands must meet certain nutritional guidelines. As expected, during the program households increase cereal consumption volume and shift their choices towards the WIC-approved brands. More interesting is that once households exit the program, the higher category consumption rate and elevated share of WIC brands persist. To understand the behavioral mechanism underlying these consumption patterns, we estimate a choice model and find an increased preference for WIC brands after controlling for state dependence. The evidence suggests that this targeted food subsidy program is effective in creating behavior change that persists even after the incentive is withdrawn.     

Interdependence between consumption in the North and sustainable communities in the South

The issues we want to address and discuss in this article are related to the interdependence between consumption in households in high‐income countries and life in the low‐income countries, seen in a sustainable perspective. In the consumer society the underlying premise is that ever‐escalating consumption is accepted, even desirable. During the past decade, an increasing critique of consumer lifestyle has come from environmentalists, who argue that the resource use to maintain a consumer lifestyle is putting too hard a burden on the ecosystems. We give examples of the abundant evidence of interdependence between North and South at global levels, such as climate change and appropriation of ecosystem capacities, and related to specific types of consumption such as clothing, flowers, food and cosmetics. We argue that the loss of feedback to individual households in the North is a serious barrier for change towards more sustainable consumption habits, and raise a question about how impacts of production and consumption can be communicated to consumers. On the basis of previous and ongoing research, we highlight some impacts of positive and negative labelling schemes as well as extended environmental information.     

Rural families food intake behaviour in relation to livelihood diversification,income differences and family size

The livelihood diversification significantly contributes to the family income having effect on food varieties' consumption in rural families of different sizes. This study investigated the food intake differences among rural families considering different income levels and family sizes. Moreover, barriers faced by the rural families to increase the consumption of food varieties were also analysed. A total of 200 rural families were selected through multistage purposive and random sampling techniques in the Punjab province of Pakistan and were directly interviewed and categorized first into low and high livelihood diversified families. The food groups were derived by assigning individual food to conventional food group taxonomies, and two‐way ANOVA (4 (income groups) × 3 (family size groups) was separately conducted for low and high livelihood diversified families. The income instability, prices of food items, market distance and storage were perceived as barriers for increasing food consumption. The high livelihood diversified families significantly and regularly consumed more food items than low diversified families. The rural households both in low and high livelihood diversified family categories having low income and high family size consumed less expensive food items. The regular consumption of fruits, bakery products, and livestock and dairy items was greatly associated with high income and small family size. One of the most remarkable findings of the multivariate multiple regression model was the households belonging to the lowest income group were significantly lowering the consumption of livestock and dairy food items as the family size increased from small to large family size. The interaction effect was highly associated with per capita income because the consumption of food items increased with the rise in income irrespective of the family size. However, family size groups showed different patterns of food intakes with different income levels. Government agencies should assist rural households to diversify their income portfolios for better nutrition.     

Consumption as a social integration strategy in times of crisis: The case of vulnerable households

In this article, we focus on consumption in a context of economic hardship. From an empirical perspective, and using a qualitative methodology, we show how disadvantaged individuals and households maintain a level of consumption commensurate with the society in which they are integrated through a type of consumption conceived of here as “resilient”. Resilient consumption is characterized by being a type of expenditure oriented towards maintaining the role of consumer, that is, maintaining a minimum level of purchasing power, modifying to this end both the level and the structure of consumption, both of which are key elements in the resilience process. We identify five main strategies used by households that modify and restructure the consumption of basic goods and necessities in response to economic hardship. Key resilient consumption strategies include: reduction (cutting down on spending), substitution (replacement of one difficulty with another), compensation (pseudo‐consumption or reduced usage), transference (meta‐resilience) and integration (reinterpretation of difficulties as opportunities). We conclude that although consumption is a naturally resilient behaviour, in a crisis context, resilient practices focus on maintaining acquisition capacity in spite of reduced income.     

Use of microcredit for household income and consumption smoothing by low income communities

This paper discusses findings of a study that investigated income, savings and consumption patterns of low income people and critical factors that influence the use of microcredit—a form of small instant loans targeted for low income people—for household income and consumption smoothing. The sample of the study consisted of households from low income communities living in a lower‐middle income country—Sri Lanka. It was found that microcredit borrowers were using the loans for purposes that can be identified as income and consumption smoothing, which is beyond the ideas and intended practice of microcredit. The findings suggest that the consequences of using microcredit for income and consumption smoothing could be costly for households and the society at large.     

Changes in family food habits: the role of migration

The food habits of people generally dictate their nutritional well‐being, which subsequently affects their physical and mental health. A change in environment is one of the major factors that could bring about positive or negative changes in food consumption patterns. The food habits of 50 migrant families living in a suburb of Accra were studied to find out what changes have taken place as a result of a change in living environment. The homemaker in each family was interviewed to obtain information on socioeconomic characteristics, past and present food procurement and consumption patterns, food avoidances and factors that influence food selection and consumption. The findings revealed that, although the majority stuck to foods they were accustomed to, there were striking changes in sources of food procurement, the number of meals prepared at home and the relative frequency of consumption of some staple foods. One‐third of the study group felt that their diets had become poorer as a result of the change in environment. Two factors, time and money, were associated with the changes that had taken place. The study provides some evidence for the existence of inadequate diets among migrant families. This might even reflect a more serious situation facing the numerous migrant youth, who have no families to cater for them and, hence, put their health at risk. Home economists and other related professionals could be instrumental in drawing up intervention programmes to ensure adequate selection and consumption of food to promote good health among migrants to the city.     

Country-of-Origin Effects on Russian Wine Consumers

In recent years, Russia has experienced significant economic growth. The wine industry is among those most affected by increases in disposable income. As a consequence, Russian wine importers have widened the range at the upper end of the quality spectrum. In the current scenario, some key questions arise concerning consumer attitudes toward wine and the way it is perceived in this evolving market. This article attempts to investigate such concerns through a choice experiment approach conducted by means of a questionnaire-based survey submitted to 388 Russian households located in the country's three largest cities (Moscow, Saint Petersburg, and Novosibirsk). In the experiment, respondents were asked to choose their favorite wine among seven dry red wines. The stated choices are analyzed using a random utility model to obtain an estimation of the price effect through a triangular distribution. Our results indicate the presence of three distinct market segments in the Russian wine market: a segment with only high-quality, highly priced Italian and French wines, a medium-quality segment currently limited to Spanish wines, and a much lower quality segment of wines in which demand for alcohol is essentially satisfied.     

Mapping market mobility: Psychographic profiles and media exposure

Are there households in trading areas that have unique mobility predispositions? Can mobility types be monitored? And does mobility type relate to the life style and consumption patterns of households? This study examines the mobility and life style characteristics of suburbanites in a medium-sized city in an effort to discover the answers to these and other questions.In particular, the article suggests that mobility relates to life style and media usage, which in turn largely determines the quality of consumer demand and the most efficient media to reach such a market. If the composition of mobility types within a shopping area is changing, retailers should monitor these changes so that they can better predict retail demand—both quality and quantity.A self-administered questionnaire was designed to measure (1) the mobility characteristics of consumers—including their local moves, long-distance moves, and their predisposition to move; (2) the life styles and socioeconomic characteristics of consumers; and (3) the median exposures of households. The instrument was administered by personal interviews with 322 suburban housewives within a medium-sized trading area. The usage sample included 304 cases.The data support the hypotheses of the study; mobility types emerged from the analysis and these had distinctive life styles and media habits. Periodic sampling of households is suggested as an approach to monitoring mobility composition within the trading area.     

Are nutrition labels useful for the purchase of a familiar food? Evidence from Chinese consumers�� purchase of rice

Nutrition labeling has been accepted by Chinese consumers as an information source to learn about food quality and safety. This paper uses Chinese consumers’ rice purchase as an example to study how consumers use food nutrition labels to make purchase decision of a familiar food product. The goal is to understand how consumers seek information from the labels to make purchase when extensive experience with the food has been developed. Survey data from 400 random respondents in Beijing were analyzed using an empirical framework and a Mont Carlo integral econometrics model. We find that more than 50% of the consumers in Beijing have heard of food nutrition labels in general, 36.50% carefully use label information even if they are familiar with the food, and nearly 70% consider mandatory food nutrition labels as beneficial. Those who are more knowledgeable about rice nutrition labels are more likely to use the labels when purchasing rice, no matter how familiar they are with the product. Frequent users of nutrition labels are more likely to consider food mandatory nutrition labels as beneficial. This study suggests that consumers still use the label information to reassure the quality and safety of food despite a history of consumption.     

Residential energy behaviour: does generation matter?

In this study we tested the relevance of the generational hypothesis, that is, whether the era in which household members grew up matters when understanding and predicting their behaviour, on a sample of 600 Swedish households. These households participated in a survey where they answered questions about their own energy‐related residential energy behaviour. The answers were analysed for differences between age groups, between different attitudes to environmental issues, between income levels and between dwelling types. The results showed that age was as good an indicator as the other parameters. In several areas, older households had a more energy‐efficient residential behaviour than younger ones. Examples are laundry practices and indoor heat regulation. According to the generational hypothesis, this finding implies higher energy use in the future. The study also shows that there is a broad scope for improving residential energy behaviour in Swedish society by implementing changes in laundry avoiding practices, dishwashing behaviour and indoor temperature regulation.     

Are Two Incomes Needed to Prosper Today? Evidence from the 1960s to the 1990s

Consumer Expenditure Survey data from 1960 to 1996 are used to examine trends in real consumption, real after‐tax income, market work time, and real after‐tax wages for single‐earner and dual‐earner households. Over the entire time period, most households experienced substantial improvements in measures of their prosperity. However, economic progress was considerably reduced when the comparison was from 1972 to 1996. Also, wage changes dominated changes in market work time over all time periods.     

Purchases,food habits and waste management in households: exploring responses to local composting

This exploratory study focuses on processes of food purchases, food habits and waste management in the household. The purpose of the study has been to investigate what influences the amount and type of waste generated in the household. Information was collected in 13 households in a residential area close to central Göteborg, Sweden, where a separation of waste and local composting experiment had just been launched. The households registered purchases, meals served, and weight of biodegradable waste, for 2 weeks. In-depth interviews were also carried out. At a general level, environmental concern was found not to influence purchase behaviour. The results show that the households produced a higher level of biodegradable than non-biodegradable waste. Variations between families were found to be considerable. There are clear indications that the experience of participation in the experiment which required local composting per se was a very powerful determinant for increasing the awareness in families of the relationship between consumption and the nature and quantity of waste produced.     

The retailing environment in Ireland and its effect on the chilled ready meal market

Food retailing in the island of Ireland has experienced a number of changes with the relatively recent arrival of the UK multiples. This preliminary study examined retailing developments in Ireland focusing on the chilled ready meal sector and on an identification of the factors that influence chilled food choice. Interviews, supermarket analysis, consumer focus groups and questionnaires revealed that the chilled ready meal market was experiencing a period of growth assisted by the arrival of the UK multiples, but there was great potential to further expand the market. Convenience was cited as the primary reason for purchase of chilled ready meals but taste continued to play an important role in chilled food choice. Retailers must respond by informing and educating consumers about their product offerings. In addition, they must listen to the unique needs and wants of consumers on this island to assist in the development and provision of a range of chilled ready meals suitable for the Irish market‐place.     

Inflation-induced adaptive behavior

Periods of rapidly rising prices are seen by many as cyclical and pervasive phenomena in modern day economic systems. When rapid price increases occur, they are likely to induce adaptive behavior on the part of consumers. This article reports on a study seeking to analyze consumer inflation-induced adaptive behavior as it relates to three food-related consumer activities–food buying, preparation, and consumption. Results indicate that consumers, in general, attempt to adjust to the changing economic environment in several ways: they exercise more care and planning in food shopping, are more price sensitive and price conscious, are willing to sacrifice convenience but not quality, and try to maintain their usual level of food consumption and food habits. Results also indicate that inflation leads to greater adaptive behavior on the part of lower income consumers.     

Reducing household water consumption: a social marketing approach

Abstract

There is increasing pressure for society to move towards more sustainable use of its resources, and calls in the literature have been made to reassess marketing’s role in achieving such goals. This research examines how key behavioural factors influence household water use, in the context of a social marketing programme to reduce household water consumption. A model of the key drivers of household water consumption is developed and tested using a sample of 909 households in a regional city in Australia. The findings from this study support the model developed and show that in the absence of price as a rationing mechanism, the social marketing programme significantly reduces household water consumption.