surabhi singh asked:


In the past, it was wrongly presumed that consumer’s choice was spontaneous and instinctive. In fact, human behavior is the result of stimuli from environment, acting upon instincts, appetites and emotions. The consumer is said to be free to choose what goods he will buy and in what proportions he will by them. Consumers want to get maximum satisfaction to choose any of the goods and services. If we see the food choices of consumers, there is long term gradual change in this. Now consumers are more conscious about their health and they want nutritious and healthy food even for giving high prices. Table 1.1 shows in a schematic way the long term and differentiation of consumer preferences for food in a growing economy. The development may be divided into 3 phases-

 

Table 1.1 Change and differentiation of consumer preferences for food in a growing

economy

 

Influence of income and prices

Strong (1st phase)

Decreasing (2nd phase)                    Small (3rd phase)

Get enough food

 Eat more

(Health trend)                                  Concern about residuals

Eat healthy                                      Concern about the environment

Less calories                                   Eat, buy and prepare food more

More vitamins                                eventfully

(Diversification trend)                    More transparency

Eat better and more                        Less anonymous mass

Diversified                                     Consumption

Enjoy food                                     Back to nature

(Convenience trend)

Eat, buy and prepare

Food with more convenience   

 

Phase 1. The situation is characterized by a general food scarcity. For this reason food demand is dominated by the nutritional need of getting food. The income and price elasticities of demand are high. The development of the per capita demand for food depends very much on income development.

 

Phase2. With growing income the basic physiological needs are satisfied resulting in a decline of the income and price elasticities of demand for basic food. Other motives behind food demand are gaining relative importance: the health trend, the desire to enjoy food/the diversification trend and the convenience trend.

 

Phase 3. The income and price elasticities of food demand are very small. The main trends of phase 2 prevail; however, they are differentiated and partly reversed. A growing concern about residues is promoting the demand for more food safety. The growing concern about residues is promoting the demand for more food safety. The growing concern about the environment is stimulating the search for problem solutions, which preserve resources. These trends are partly accompanied by a nostalgic move “back to nature” and by wish for more transparency and less anonymous mass consumption. They are contrasted by an increasing hedonism, the desire to eat, buy and prepare food more eventfully. For many people food consumption is becoming part of an “adventure seeking behavior”

Who are the organic consumers?

            What we consider as the “organic consumer” is that person who is responsible for buying food for the household and who buys organic food at least once or twice per month. So, if there are people who buy randomly or less than once a month then they are not considered regular organic consumers.

 

Values and behavior of organic consumers

What do organic consumers think, that is, what is in their minds concerning organic products, is a determinant factor of consumer preference for organic food. In spite of taking cognizance, a change in attitude and thinking about organic food is prerequisite, in order to feel confident and positive about this new direction.

 

An organic consumer has more positive beliefs concerning organic products. For example, this product tastes better, is more natural, is healthier-they believe that more than non-organic consumers. They believe that the people who are important to them, people who are close to them, also by organic products- they believe that it is a good thing that they buy organic products. The other aspect of what the organic consumer think, as compared to non-organic consumers, is their moral norms indicate they are doing a very good thing for the environment, the right thing for society. This is something that differences them from non-organic consumers. Non-organic purchases do not associate those beliefs to buy organic products.

Consumers’ values to make a choice for organic food can be seen in two terms-use values, such as utility from taste, health and freshness, i.e., private good attributes which can only be enjoyed by actually consuming the product. The other non-use values are public good values related to improved environment and animal welfare. The majority of all consumers-acknowledges and value organic goods for their non-use values (environmental or animal welfare attributes), as well as for their use values (health, taste or freshness attributes). The group of consumers having use values only is negligible. In the same way that most people agree exercise- is important; they also agree that a sustainable, clean environment is important.

Wier and Anderson (2003) studied consumers’ attitudes, values and purchasing behavior for organic foods. They concluded that organic buyers were more health concerned, more focused on residues, animal welfare and environmental attributes, less focused on low prices and more often they preferred domestic products.

But only some walk their talk. To better understand which consumers buy green and why, we have to look beyond what consumers say they do. To examine what they actually do.

 There is no question that consumers are changing the way they buy. A variety of societal factors are driving consumers to increasingly seek out unique and differentiated products that fit their lifestyle. Consumers purchase of green or sustainable organic products are not just motivated by the produces themselves but by the values they represent. We can change non-organic consumers minds to make them believe that organic products are better in different ways-for the taste, health or the environment and demonstrate that people who are important to them, whether it’s people who are related or not, such as celebrities, if they buy and consume organic product, then we might be able to move these consumers into the organic market.

 

References

GFK Denmark (2001): GFK ConsumerScan. Den okologiske forbruger 2000 (in Danish), Copenhegen. Okologisk Landsforenin (2002): Forbrugarnotat 2002 (in Danish). Arhus.

 

Wier, M. and Anderson, L.M. 2003: Demand for Organic foods-Attitudes, Values and Purchasing Behaviors. Newsletter from Danish Reaseach Center Farming. 2.pp 1-3

 

Blake, F. 1987. The Handbook of Organic Husbandary. The Cordwood press. pp 9-70.

 

Muna wa Wanjiru asked:


Whether you’re looking for organic foods online or in your local supermarket, the one thing that you can be assured of is that you will be able to find at least one or two organic products. Granted you will want more than one or two organic products to tide you over for the week, but it does go to show you how far organic foods have really come in the last few years.

From near obscurity to actually being sold in places outside of health food stores is no small feat, especially when you take in the opposition it has to face in the guise of processed foods, and the more readily available non-organic foods. If you’re looking for a ready source of organic foods however, your best bet is to turn to suppliers of organic foods online.

These organics foods suppliers come with more than a few benefits, one of which is the fact that your foods will more often than not, be delivered straight to your door. This saves you the hassle of fighting your way through rush hour traffic to get to your grocers, and also saves you the trouble of having your toes run over by errant shopping carts.

That’s just one benefit of course that you gain by getting your organic foods online. Another great benefit is that you have a ready supply of organic foods at the touch of a button. You also have a larger supply of organic foods to choose from, both the natural organic food variety as well as the processed organic food variety.

This means that you have necessarily a larger choice than you would otherwise have had in a normal grocery store selling organic foods. You will also find that this applies to the online version of your favorite supermarket. Their selection of organic foods online will be greater than what you might find in their stores, and these also include the maybe-not-so-readily available organic meats.

It’s easier to find organic produce and organic processed foods than it is to find organic meats, but by using the internet to facilitate your weekly shopping you will find just about all your organic foods online.

And if you’re still not convinced, you also have an added benefit in the form of lowered monthly food bills. You might have gone organic, but that doesn’t mean that you need to pay through your nose for it. If you get your organic foods in-store, be it a supermarket or a health food store, you will find that your weekly expenditure is more.

By getting your organic foods online you will find that your costs come down a significant amount. Of course to get this last benefit you will need to do a little bit of research and find an online store which will give you lower prices with the same great quality that you look for, but in the end it will be worth the effort.

amy asked:


I live in Anaheim, are there any local stores i can buy organic food?

Leo D Pierson, Jr. asked:


t is organic food: How is it produced?

The process in most cases starts with organically grown crops so a quick explanation: Organic farming produces crops and rears cattle without the use of chemicals and artificial additives. It is farming the natural way and concentrates on producing a fertile soil.

Animals reared on organic farms are housed properly they have room to move about and behave like animals.They are fed healthy food sources and not those laden with drugs and other chemicals.

So in summary the answer to what is organic food is.…crops and animals produced and fed with natural food and without the use of chemical additives.

What is organic food: How can it benefit me?

To answer this question, I’ll highlight two items:

1. Milk: “When you choose a glass of conventional milk, you are buying into a whole chemical system of agriculture,” says Dr. Greene. People who switch to organic milk typically do so because they are concerned about the antibiotics, artificial hormones and pesticides used in the commercial dairy industry.

One recent United States Department of Agriculture survey found certain pesticides in about 30 percent of conventional milk samples and low levels in only one organic sample.

The level is relatively low compared to some other foods, but many kids consume milk in large quantities.

2. Potatoes: Potatoes are a staple of the American diet — one survey found they account for 30 percent of our overall vegetable consumption.

A simple switch to organic potatoes has the potential to have a big impact because commercially-farmed potatoes are some of the most pesticide- contaminated vegetables. A 2006 U.S.D.A. test found 81 percent of potatoes tested still contained pesticides after being washed and peeled, and the potato has one of the the highest pesticide contents of 43 fruits and vegetables tested, according to the Environmental Working Group.

WHY DO ORGANIC PRODUCTS COST MORE?

The first place I go upon entering the grocery store is the produce section. Here is where I do most of my shopping, and inevitably where I tend to spend most of my money. Does that surprise you? It shouldn’t if you buy organic produce. Many people are turned off to the choice of purchasing organic products because they tend to be more expensive. Others, meanwhile, are seeing the benefits of buying organic as a necessity for good health.

The reason for the added expense in terms of organic products is that organic dairy, wheat/grains, meat, and produce farmers are not able to produce the mass quantities that other non-organic farmers can. They follow strict guidelines which require the use of no hormones, antibiotics, or pesticides in order to keep the food safe and healthy.

The increasing demand for organic products by the consumer has resulted in more and more corporate conglomerations capitalizing on this rising trend (and letting nutrition and quality fall by the wayside), but still doing just enough to slap the “organic” symbol on their packaging and charge a premium price.

This results in the consumer standing between two food options (maybe it’s the organic cereal vs. the non organic cereal or even the organic milk vs. the non -organic milk), and trying to decipher if the cost difference is worth the health benefits.

TASTE AND NUTRITIONAL VALUE:

The biggest study ever of organic food was completed in 2007 and found that organic fruit and vegetables contain up to 40% more antioxidants than conventional equivalents, and that the figure was 60% for organic milk. The 4-year study was funded by the European Union and was the largest of its kind ever undertaken.

These results were simply announced to the popular press, and have not yet undergone the rigors of scientific peer review, so conclusiveness of this study is debatable.

Some studies have shown higher nutrient levels in organic fruit and vegetables compared with conventionally grown products. However, due to the difficulty with designing such experiments, the evidence was not considered conclusive.

A 2001 study by researchers at Washington State University concluded, under judgement by a panel of tasters, that organic apples were sweeter. Along with taste and sweetness, the texture as well as firmness of the apples were also rated higher than those grown conventionally. These differences are attributed to the greater soil quality resulting from organic farming techniques compared to those of conventional farming.

However, a 2002 meta-analysis (a review of all past studies on the subject) found no proof that organic food offers greater nutritional values, more consumer safety or any distinguishable difference in taste.

Reasearch like this continues HERE: http://www.GoodHealthInfo.info

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Lola asked:


I don’t really eat anything organic and am wondering if I should. What is so bad about normal food? I understand that things are chemically treated etc., but I guess I would like to know what that causes and why organic food is so good.