Food additives’ role in consumer shopping decisions according to conjoint analysis

Abstract

THE AIMS OF THE PAPER

In spite of the rigorous legal regulations, more and more conscious consumers worry about the widespread application and safety of food additives. The main aim of the research was to get acquainted with the role of food additives and the effect of price during consumers’ shopping decisions.

METHODOLOGY

For this purpose consumer perception of artificial and natural preservatives as well as the presence and absence of packaging gases were analysed on three different price levels. Two conjoint methods (rating and choice based) were conducted in – three countries having different levels of worry against food additives − Hungary, Spain and Romania. ‘Natural preservatives’ affected most favourably the consumers’ buying decisions concerning the analysed foodstuffs (pre packed cheese and chips).

MOST IMPORTANT RESULTS

On the basis of the restricted comparison of the two conjoint methods, it is stated that the choice based analysis resulted in a higher rate of valid questionnaires, as well as more differentiated relative importance and utility values.

RECOMMENDATIONS

‘Natural’ is a positive designation for consumers, which can influence their shopping decisions favourably. However, during the determination of the price of ‘additive-free’ and ‘natural’ substances containing foodstuffs, the producers must be careful, because too high of a price can have negative effect on the judgement of the product. The selection of the conjoint analysis method has to be planned carefully and the foodstuffs as well as their order represented the study have to be considered thoroughly. Thus, in order to understand real consumer needs, when more than one product is analysed (due to the different judgements of the products) the order of the evaluable products has to be determined for the participants by taking into consideration the possible product combinations. Towards the rising of trust for the foodstuffs, the avoidance of misunderstandings, as well as for mindful consumer decisions, accurate and reliable information - taking into consideration country peculiarities - must be ensured for consumers; furthermore, authentic sources have to designated.