Purchase Intentions of Non-Certified Organic Food in a Non-Regulated Market: An Application of the Theory of Planned Behavior

Abstract

This study is one of the first to investigate consumer preferences toward organic food in a developing country, Pakistan, where organic food is not certified. Responses to a survey based on the theory of planned behavior (TPB) were collected from a sample of 204 organic food shoppers. Data were analyzed by means of structural equation modeling (Partial least square). The model fits the data well and it shows moderate predictive power. Health beliefs and consumer ethnocentrism are found to be significant predictors of the organic buying attitude whereas trust and price beliefs are not. Subjective norms and the attitude toward buying are significantly related to purchase intentions while perceived behavioral control is not significant. These results differ slightly from studies on certified organic food in similar contexts. Implications for various stakeholders and directions for future research are discussed.

Keywords:

• Marketing factors
• non-certified organic food
• Pakistan
• purchase intentions
• sustainability

Notes

1 These products are sold at traditional markets, wherein, small farmers, vendors and enterprises claim their products as organic and sell them based on mutual trust among sellers and buyers.