Search

Imports are necessary to satisfy consumer demand for a varied organic food assortment. In developed economies, consumers generally prefer domestic products, while consumers in developing and emerging economies tend to prefer imported. Underlying reasons for these organic food preferences are explored in an emerging and a developed economy, China and Germany, employing a comparative mixed-methods approach consisting of in-store interviews, focus groups, and an online survey. Contrary to prior research, we find a domestic country bias for organic foods in China, but smaller than in Germany, and Chinese consumers trust the organic standards of developed countries more than their own. Chinese consumers' primary reasons for preferring organic foods are food quality and safety concerns. German consumers prefer domestic products and imports from geographically close countries and environmental concerns are the primary reasons for this and for preferring organic foods. Results suggest that higher consumer trust in institutions in developed ("WEIRD") countries is a competitive advantage for producers in these countries, not only on the domestic market, but also in the world market for organic food. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Country-of-origin (COO) effects and consumer evaluation of organic food products are rarely studied in combination. The aim of this study was therefore to investigate organic consumers' preferences for imported organic food products from different origins and the underlying reasons for these preferences, including how consumers' COO preferences depend on the geographical distance to the COO. We employed a multi-method, qualitative approach consisting of in-store interviews (N = 255) and focus groups (six, N = 38) with organic consumers in three German cities located in the north (Hamburg, close to Denmark), west (Münster, close to The Netherlands) and south (Munich, close to Austria). The interviews confirmed the well-known preference for domestic (also for) organic products. It also revealed a preference for geographically close countries as origin for imported organic products. The main reason for this preference is the perceived negative environmental impact of transportation, followed by trust in the country and general country image. Implications for exporters of organic food products are discussed, underlining the importance of building trust and supporting a positive country image, especially in geographically close export markets., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

This study aims to find out whether front-of-pack nutrition label formats influence the healthfulness of consumers' food choices and important predictors of healthful choices, depending on the size of the choice set that is made available to consumers. The predictors explored were health motivation and perceived capability of making healthful choices. One thousand German and Polish consumers participated in the study that manipulated the format of nutrition labels. All labels referred to the content of calories and four negative nutrients and were presented on savoury and sweet snacks. The different formats included the percentage of guideline daily amount, colour coding schemes, and text describing low, medium and high content of each nutrient. Participants first chose from a set of 10 products and then from a set of 20 products, which was, on average, more healthful than the first choice set. The results showed that food choices were more healthful in the extended 20-product (vs. 10-product) choice set and that this effect is stronger than a random choice would produce. The formats colour coding and texts, particularly colour coding in Germany, increased the healthfulness of product choices when consumers were asked to choose a healthful product, but not when they were asked to choose according to their preferences. The formats did not influence consumers' motivation to choose healthful foods. Colour coding, however, increased consumers' perceived capability of making healthful choices. While the results revealed no consistent differences in the effects between the formats, they indicate that manipulating choice sets by including healthier options is an effective strategy to increase the healthfulness of food choices., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)