Consumer Preferences for Organic Food and for the Shares of Meat and Vegetables in an Everyday Meal

Abstract

It is well established that consumers with positive preferences for organic products generally also tend to have healthy eating habits involving many fruits and vegetables but less meat. While most studies are based on single product comparisons, this study investigates consumer preferences for organic ingredients and content of meat and vegetables in the context of an everyday evening meal. Moreover, we address heterogeneity in preferences. The study is based on an online survey including a choice experiment with 506 consumers. Using principal component and latent class analyses, we identify three segments of consumers that differ with respect to preferences for organic production and content of meat and vegetables in their meals. Our findings may be valuable for authorities promoting healthy food consumption just as they provide valuable input to the catering industry and other suppliers of dinner dishes in the development and marketing of both organic and non-organic ready meals.

Keywords:

• Organic consumption
• choice experiment
• healthy eating
• latent class

Additional information

Funding

The research was supported by Organic RDD 2.2 Program. The Organic RDD 2.2 program is coordinated by ICROFS (International Center for Research in Organic Food systems). It is funded by the Green Development and Demonstration Program under the Danish Ministry of Environment and Food.