A consumer segmentation study with regards to genetically modified food in urban China

The objective of this study is to identify the underlying subgroups of Chinese consumers in terms of their perceptions and attitudes toward GM foods. In particular, we address the following specific questions: may researchers segment Chinese urban consumers in terms of their attitudes and perceptions toward GM foods? Are there any relationships between segmented consumer groups and other factors – such as their exposure to GM knowledge and socio-demographics? And, what policy implications can be drawn from this research to the future biotech development in China? Based on a large-scale survey data collected by the authors in 2002 and 2003 in 11 cities of China, this research applies consumer research methodologies. The combination of factor and cluster analysis enables us to identify successfully and consistently four Chinese consumer clusters based on their perceptions and attitudes toward GM foods, which include a food safety cluster, a nutritional technologist cluster, a GM skeptic cluster, and a cluster of GM for non-food promoter.     

Factors underlying support or opposition to biotechnology among Australian food consumers and implications for retailer-led food regulation

Despite current findings that consumers, on average, have negative attitudes to biotechnologies such as cloning and genetic engineering, considerable variability can be found in the direction and strength of these attitudes. This paper presents a path analysis of attitudinal, motivational, demographic and behavioural variables that influence consumer dispositions towards biotechnology. Among these variables, those found to be most important were: consumers’ level of motivation to find natural foods; the extent to which they were motivated by convenience; whether they did the shopping for their household on a regular basis; and their sex. In terms of direct effects on dispositions to biotechnology, motivation to find natural foods had a very strong negative effect while convenience had a very strong positive effect. Sex had a moderate direct effect with women less likely to be positively disposed towards biotechnology than men. In an apparent contradiction, taking responsibility for household shopping had an equally strong positive effect on both naturalness and convenience. However, sex also played a crucial role here with a very strong effect on motivation to find natural foods (women more motivated), a minor effect on convenience (women less motivated) and a strong effect on responsibility for household shopping (women more likely to shop). The policy implications of these findings are important, given the apparent oppositional trends of some sections of the food industry to endorse biotechnology, and of the supermarkets to deliver ‘clean and green’ non-GM foods to consumers.     

How would Swiss consumers decide if they had freedom of choice? Evidence from a field study with organic,conventional and GM corn bread

In 2005, the Swiss expressed their negative attitude towards genetic engineering in agriculture by voting in favor of a ban to use genetically modified (GM) crops in domestic agriculture. At the same time, certain GM food products remain approved but are not on offer since retailers assume that consumers would shun labeled GM food. In our study we tested this claim by conducting a large-scale field study with Swiss consumers. In our experimental design, three clearly labeled types of corn bread were offered at five different market stands across the French and German-speaking part of Switzerland: one made with organic, one made with conventional, and one made with genetically modified (GM) corn. In addition, we tested the consistency between purchasing decision at the market stand and the previous voting decision on GMOs in 2005 by means of an ex-post questionnaire. The results of our discrete choice analysis show that Swiss consumers treat GM foods just like any other type of novel food. We conclude from our findings that consumers tend to appreciate transparency and freedom of choice even if one of the offered product types is labeled as containing a genetically modified ingredient. Retailers should allow consumers to make their own choice and accept the fact that not all people appear to be afraid of GM food.     

Interaction between message framing and consumers’ prior subjective knowledge regarding food safety issues

This study analyzed the interaction between message frames and recipients’ prior knowledge. The hypothesis is that less prior consumer knowledge will result in a larger framing effect. That is, if the subjective knowledge of the public is low, then the controversy created by mass media regarding a specific food-related event will be larger. Empirical results show that message frame has an influence on college students’ purchasing intentions. College students showed distinct responses in purchasing intention based on different headlines and different amounts of information within articles. The results further suggest that the framing effect depends not only on message frames, but also on the prior knowledge of the message recipient. Those who have less knowledge have larger variation in their purchase intention when responding to different message frames. This suggests that people with less knowledge are more likely to panic due to mass media reports regarding a food hazard issue. More informed consumers have less dramatic responses to food safety issues compared to less informed people.     

Health-related attitudes as a basis for segmenting European fish consumers

This paper identifies and profiles consumer segments based on health-related attitudes. Cross-sectional data were collected in 2008 through a pan-European consumer survey (n = 2400) with samples representative for age and region in France, Poland and Spain. Four distinct consumer segments based on health-related attitudes are identified: low interest in healthy eating consumers (29.4%), positive health enthusiasts (28.2%), health strivers (35.0%) and health uninvolved (7.4%). The segments differ significantly with respect to fish consumption, attitudes and knowledge about the health benefits of fish, interest in potential informational cues when purchasing fish, and individual socio-demographic characteristics. The segment low interest in healthy eating is characterised by younger age, more males, higher BMI, low fish consumption and low interest in information, and herewith emerges as a relevant though difficult to reach segment from a food and health policy perspective. Positive health enthusiasts and health strivers have a strong involvement with food, and a strong interest in healthy eating. Both segments have a very favourable disposition towards fish consumption, which would fit with their focus to either stay healthy (positive health enthusiasts) or improve their current health status (health strivers). Health uninvolved consumers do not care strongly about health in general; though attach high importance to eating healthily.     

Understanding beliefs and concerns towards palm oil: Empirical evidence and policy implications

Over the last years palm oil has become a controversial product, due to its alleged harmful environmental and health effects. As a consequence, many food companies have taken concrete actions for meeting growing concerns. In this respect, a field survey was carried out amongst a sample of 607 Italian respondents, in order to highlight the potential effect of consumers’ attitudes towards health, social and environmental worries referred to palm oil consumption. Individual responses were statistically processed by means of a mixture model which allows for the detection of agreement and heterogeneity among respondents with respect to a given item. The results of this study suggest that respondents are worried for the current discussion on palm oil issues. This preoccupation affects both decision of purchasing and interest in further accurate knowledge. Overall, the consumer envisioned by the present study gives some hope on the effectiveness of consumer social responsibility in helping tackle food system sustainability concerns.     

Consumer welfare and GM food labeling: A simulation using an adjusted Kumaraswamy distribution

Genetically modified (GM) food products and their labeling have become a major policy issue with impassioned public debates. We explore the impact of different labeling regimes on consumer attitudes towards GM products and consumer welfare. Our experimental results illustrate that these consumer attitudes do not follow the Uniform distribution as has often been assumed in the literature but instead fit an adjusted Kumaraswamy distribution. If a Uniform distribution is assumed, the advantage of mandatory labeling would be exaggerated. Using an adjusted Kumaraswamy distribution our simulation results demonstrate that voluntary labeling is superior to mandatory labeling with the higher separation cost, while mandatory labeling is not necessarily better with lower separation cost. Therefore, the governments of China and other countries with similar consumer characteristics should consider voluntary labeling for GM food while encouraging innovations that reduce the price of GM food as well as controlling the opportunistic behavior of its producers so as to enhance the advantage of voluntary labeling.     

Traffic lights and food choice: A choice experiment examining the relationship between nutritional food labels and price

In this paper we investigate how consumers respond to the UK nutritional food label Traffic Light System (TLS). Employing a choice experiment (CE) we find that consumers appear to behave in a manner consistent with our expectations regarding the impact of the TLS. We identify a strong preference on the part of respondents to avoid a basket of goods containing a mix of foods with any “Red” lights. In addition, we find that consumers have a hierarchy of importance in terms of perception of the various nutrients examined and there are clear behavioural differences associated with particular socio-economic characteristics confirming early research on the use of nutrition labels. Overall our results indicate significant heterogeneity in the attitudes and responses of consumers to the TLS nutritional food labels within and across socio-economic strata.     

Combining attitudinal statements with choice experiments to analyze preference heterogeneity for functional dairy products

In this article, we employ a discrete choice experiment to examine preferences for functional dairy product attributes and willingness-to-pay estimates for consumers in Germany. We estimate preference heterogeneity by linking stated preference choice data not only to socioeconomic characteristics but also to attitudinal statements in a latent class framework. The empirical results indicate the existence of class-specific preference heterogeneity based on the consumers’ attitude towards functional foods, emphasizing the importance of attitudinal data in explaining consumers’ choice behavior. Our estimates demonstrate that within a class, consumers’ preferences are in accordance with their responses to attitudinal statements, that is functional food skeptics prefer non-functional dairy products, while functional food advocates have a negative preference for non-functional dairy products. The findings also show that all consumers place high value on dairy products enriched with known functional ingredients such as omega-3 fatty acids.     

Being Innovative While Being Green: An Experimental Inquiry into How Consumers Respond to Eco‐Innovative Product Designs

Eco‐innovations are an effective way for companies to strategically align themselves with customers’ growing environmental concerns. Despite their crucial role, scant research has focused on eco‐innovative product designs. Drawing from the sustainability and innovation literature, this article proposes that in the design of an eco‐innovation, its degree of innovativeness, level of eco‐friendliness, and detachability significantly affect consumers' adoption intentions. This article develops various conceptual models tested through three independent online experiments with U.S. consumers. The findings support the hypotheses and provide useful insights into the underlying mechanisms of how and why consumers respond to eco‐innovative product designs across various high‐tech product categories. Specifically, the results show (1) a positive effect of innovativeness degrees of eco‐innovative attributes on consumers' perceptions of product eco‐friendliness and on their adoption intentions as well as a significant moderating role of consumers' need for cognition (Study 1); (2) a positive influence of eco‐friendliness levels of eco‐innovative attributes on consumer adoption intentions in the case of high‐complexity products but not for low‐complexity products, emphasizing the need to adopt different approaches when developing eco‐innovations to ensure favorable consumer reactions (Study 2); and (3) a significant impact of the detachability of eco‐innovative attributes on consumers' perceptions of trade‐offs between environmental benefits and product functionality and on their intentions to adopt eco‐innovations (Study 3). These findings add to existing theoretical knowledge, provide actionable managerial implications, and identify fruitful avenues for future research.     

Competition for imperfect consumers

This lecture provides a selective discussion of some issues in the economics of competition for imperfect consumers. Limited consumer awareness – about what deals are on offer, or about the consequences of purchasing decisions – is a central feature of many markets. Consumer imperfection can give rise to market power, but can also co-exist with strong rivalry between firms, and then is more for ‘consumer policy’ than competition policy. Two recent court cases illustrate some of the issues involved. The lecture then reviews a line of theoretical work on competition for imperfect consumers. The analysis highlights some policy tradeoffs, and a key theme is how patterns of consumer awareness matter for patterns of competition among firms.     

Modeling the factors affecting rural consumers’ purchase of organic and free-range produce: A case study of consumers’ from the Island of Arran in Scotland,UK

This paper investigates the roles of personal, product related and economic factors in predicting rural consumers’ attitudes and purchase intentions towards organic and free-range produce. A conceptual model is derived and tested via structural equation modeling on a sample of 222 rural consumers. The results show that attitude is explained by consumers’ food safety concern, ethical lifestyle and price perceptions. Attitude partially mediates the effects of ethical lifestyle and price on intention to purchase organic produce as well as the effect of ethical lifestyle on intention to purchase free-range produce. Attitude assumes a more central role in fully mediating the effect of food safety concern on intention to purchase organic produce, as well as the effect of price on intention to purchase free-range produce. Overall the conceptual model of consumer decision making performs well in both organic and free-range contexts yielding similar results.     

Genetically modified food labeling: The impacts of message and messenger on consumer perceptions of labels and products

We analyze responses to a survey designed to elicit consumer reaction to various approaches to labeling genetically modified (GM) foods. Consumers were shown sample labels that differed with respect to claims concerning the presence and potential effects of GM ingredients and the agency that certified these claims. A sample of 1898 US consumers rated 3681 labels with regard to the credibility and adequacy of the information content, with regard to perceived health and environmental impacts of the product and with regard to purchase intent. Simple claims that a product contains GM ingredients are viewed as most credible while simple claims of no GM content are viewed as most adequate. Label claims certified by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are, in general, viewed as most credible and adequate and products with FDA certified claims are perceived to have fewer long-term health problems. Several practical policy implications of the results are discussed, including how different label messages may impact consumer reactions in markets involving GM products.     

Commercial software,adware, and consumer privacy

I study the choice between selling new software commercially and bundling it with ads and distributing it for free as adware. Adware allows advertisers to send targeted information to consumers which improves their purchasing decisions, but also entails a loss of privacy. I show that adware is more profitable when the perceived quality of the software is relatively low, when tracking technology improves, when consumers benefit more from information on consumer products and are less likely to receive it from external sources. I also show that improvements in the technology of display ads will lead to less violation of privacy and will benefit consumers, that depending on the software's quality, there are either too many or too few display ads in equilibrium, and that from a social perspective, adware dominates commercial software.     

Consumer-perceived risk model for the introduction of genetically modified food in Spain

Since the last part of the 20th century, the search for new forms of cultivation and food has basically centred on the application of biotechnology, giving rise to GM foods. Consumer acceptance is conditioned by the risk that they perceive from introducing food into their consumption habits processed through technology that they hardly understand. Besides, information is insufficient in the consumer ambit and moreover, it is influenced by ideological and ethical determining factors. The factors were analysed that influence this consumer-perceived risk through a structural equation model. This study was conducted in Spain, concretely in the province of Alicante, located in the southeast of this country.     

Consumer awareness of organic products in Spain: An application of multinominal logit models

Organically produced foods have shown remarkable industry growth. Even with strict adherence to the production practices and increasing availability, the majority of consumers are still not aware of organically produced alternatives. Awareness of organics does not necessarily translate into actual consumption. Achieving awareness and understanding the linkage between awareness and purchasing organics is fundamental to impacting the demand for organically grown products. This study focuses on the responses of Spanish consumers regarding their state of knowledge about organic foods products. Consumer demographic characteristics, knowledge of enriched foods, and price perceptions are shown to impact awareness and consumption. Multinomial logit models are used to predict probabilities of awareness. Then probit models are estimated to link awareness and the actual consumption of organic foods. Factors impacting both awareness and consumption are explored using simulation methods and the coefficients from the logit and probit models.     

Perspectives of gatekeepers in the Kenyan food industry towards genetically modified food

Attitudes and perceptions of stakeholders are crucial in the acceptability of GM foods. Past research focussed on consumers, but paid little attention to the food industry and its gatekeepers, especially in Africa. Therefore, a survey was conducted covering 39 respondents from the milling industry and supermarkets, the main processors and distributors of maize products, in seven urban centres of Kenya. Respondents, mostly from senior management, were well educated and had a good knowledge of biotechnology. Their major sources of information were the media for the supermarkets, and brochures and the food industry for the milling companies. Respondents generally appreciated the benefits of biotechnology, but had concerns about the environment, although few people considered GM food harmful to human or animal health. Most respondents found traceability of GM products important, but would prefer not to label them because of the costs and possible negative consumer reactions. Respondents were largely non-committal on the use of GM products in their companies, preferring to decide on a case-by-case basis. The few negative responses, mostly from the milling industry, were affected by high risk and low benefit perceptions. Most respondents do not like the idea of labelling GM food. Better communication between research and the food industry is now needed, and more research on the labelling of GM products.     

Comparative advertising: Superiority despite interference?

The effect of comparative versus noncomparative advertising on consumer cognitions, attitudes, and behavioural intentions toward an advertised brand with or without interference from other ads was investigated. The experimental results indicated that the superiority of comparative over noncomparative advertising on attitudinal and behavioural intention responses observed immediately after exposure diminished following interference from subsequent exposure to other ads. However, its superiority on two cognitive dimensions — perceived brand similarity and quality — was maintained despite such interference. Implications of the findings and directions for future research are discussed.The authors thank Joe Cote and Debbie Roedder John for their helpful comments on an earlier draft of this paper, and the National University of Singapore for funding this research.     

European consumer preferences for beef with nutrition and health claims: A multi-country investigation using discrete choice experiments

The European Union (EU) nutrition labelling policy aims to facilitate consumers’ food choice, stimulate innovation and facilitate the circulation of foods bearing claims across countries. However, the beef industry has not fully taken advantage of utilizing nutrition and health claims based on the EU nutrition labelling policy to differentiate beef products in the market. This study investigates consumer preferences for nutrition and health claims on lean beef steak. Two choice experiments were conducted among 2400 beef consumers in four EU countries (Belgium, France, the Netherlands, United and United Kingdom). Multinomial logit and error component models were estimated. Our results generally suggest that consumer valuation of nutritional and health claims varies across countries. In Belgium, the Netherlands and France, nutrition and health claims on saturated fat yielded higher utilities than claims on protein and/or iron, while the opposite was found among consumers in the UK. The results imply that marketing opportunities related to nutrition and health claims on beef are promising, but that different nutritional marketing strategies are necessary within different countries.