The relative influence of packaging,labelling, branding and sensory attributes on liking and purchase intent: Consumers differ in their responsiveness

The relative impact of several extrinsic attributes on informed hedonic liking and purchase intent for wine is measured by combining a blind hedonic test with an informed tasting of the same wine packaged in different product concepts. This study separated the relative effect of various attributes and also considers differences between consumers in their responsiveness to various product cues.Five-hundred and twenty-one regular wine consumers participated in a central location test in three German cities in 2005. Respondents first rated hedonic liking of a white wine in a blind condition, then evaluated elements of product concepts differing in four extrinsic attributes, region of origin, grape variety, brand and packaging style, before indicating their liking and purchase intent in an informed condition.Overall, label style and brand evaluation were the strongest drivers for informed liking followed by liking in the blind condition. Purchase intent was influenced directly only by informed liking and price evaluation; the effect of the extrinsic and intrinsic cues is mediated through informed liking. A latent class regression resulted in three consumer segments that differ in the responsiveness of their informed liking to the different product characteristics. Younger inexperienced consumers utilised a mix of various cues, wine experienced consumers based their evaluation mainly on grape variety and blind hedonic liking, and older frequent wine consumers were influenced most strongly by brand and packaging. These findings provide insights into the relative impact of product packaging, branding and labelling on overall product liking and indicate strong differences in how consumers respond to different product characteristics.     

Relative importance of texture properties in the sensory quality and acceptance of commercial crispy products

BACKGROUND: Understanding the textural properties of a food can be important for producers and marketers of crispy products. Relationships between texture, overall sensory quality (OSQ) and consumer acceptance of different products have been a field of interest for many authors. Despite this, results of research concerning the importance of texture remain inconclusive. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between texture and other sensory attributes on an example of potato chips and their OSQ and consumer acceptance. To determine which attributes played a dominant role in the OSQ of chips, statistical correlations were calculated. RESULTS: Among the 11 attributes analysed, three had a positive relationship with the OSQ. These were: fried potato odour (r = 0.487), fried potato flavour (r = 0.597) and crispness (r = 0.570). The negative relation was observed for off‐flavour notes (r = ? 0.740; ? 0.693). Among the texture attributes, also negative, but without a dominant influence on OSQ, were hardness and undesirable type of fragmentation. CONCLUSION: Texture properties were found to be significantly correlated with OSQ as well as with consumer acceptance, but other attributes, especially those with negative sensory effects, determined OSQ of the products examined and are of crucial importance for consumer acceptance. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry     

The economic effects of Rhyzopertha dominica on rice quality: Objective and subjective measures

Infestations of internal feeders such as Rhyzopertha dominica cause damage to stored grains, including rice. Few studies, though, have measured the economic effects of that damage. In this study, samples of rough long grain rice were infested with R. dominica at several rates (0, 20, and 200 adults/kg). The effects of these infestations on rice quality and quantity were measured objectively using color and milling yield. They were also measured subjectively with a blind taste/sensory consumer taste test and a non-hypothetical auction measuring consumer willingness to pay for the different qualities of rice.The objective quantity and value loss ranged from 2% for lightly-infested rice to 3.5% for heavily-infested rice. For subjective effects, results of the auction suggested that participants on average were willing to pay only a small premium for less infested rice. This test confirmed results of the sensory taste panel, which showed that participants on average detected very little difference among rice samples with alternative levels of infestation. However, when they were given extra information verifying that rice with lower infestation levels was higher quality or that the rice was stored using IPM methods, the potential price increase from reducing R. dominica infestation could range from $0.44/kg. to $0.79/kg., plus a $0.13/kg. premium for using IPM storage methods. However, results suggest that in order to capture that value rice sellers must be able to convey information about quality and storage attributes to consumers in a way that is relevant and trustworthy.     

Economic analysis of consumer choices based on rice attributes in the food markets of West Africa—the case of Benin

The focus of this study was to investigate consumer preferences for various attributes of rice marketed in Benin. Consumer choice theory postulates that products are consumed not for themselves, but for the characteristics they possess that satisfy consumers’ greater liking of one attribute over another. In the case of rice, quality attributes, as incentives for both producers and consumers, have important price implications. In this study, we empirically analyzed the relationship between the price paid by consumers for their choice of rice and its attributes in the markets of Benin using hedonic pricing and discrete choice models of demand. We used data collected from rice-consuming households in four major provinces of Benin, in both rural and urban areas, during 2006. The results of this econometric estimation indicated that there was considerable variability in consumer preferences for different rice attributes across the regions studied. Nevertheless, consumers paid a premium price for observable attributes, such as grain size and breakage. In addition, both urban and rural consumers preferred imported and parboiled rice to domestic and raw rice. The study results showed that implicit prices paid by consumers for both domestic and imported rice were based on quality attributes. These findings have important implications for future breeding programs aimed at making domestic rice more competitive with imported rice.     

Influence of functional information on consumer liking and consumer perception related to health claims for blueberry functional beverages

The objective of this study was to investigate the impact of functional labelling on the consumers acceptability and purchase intentions of blueberry functional beverages (BFB). A 2‐day consumer acceptance test was conducted independently with functional information (n = 60) and without any information (n = 80). The presence of functional labelling did not influence the liking attributes of BFBs (P > 0.05). However, functional information positively affected consumer perception of health‐related perceptions associated with BFBs, such as ‘aiding eye health improvement’ and ‘eye fatigue relief’. Subjects perceived more health‐related perceptions when informed test was conducted. The first‐order effect was observed, in which the degree of the first‐order effect was greater for BFBs that had a thicker mouthfeel. Findings from the results can practically guide product developers and marketers in the functional drink industry by providing the strategy for how to evaluate reformulated functional beverages for the consumer acceptance test by warning a counter‐balanced sample presentation.     

Effect of information about animal welfare on consumer willingness to pay for yogurt

This study aimed to verify whether consumers confirm their willingness to pay extra costs for higher animal welfare standards in a situation where a potential purchase performed by consumers, such as the Vickrey auction, is used. A 104-member consumer panel was asked to rate its willingness to pay (WTP) for plain and low-fat yogurts in 3 information conditions: tasting without information (blind WTP), information about animal welfare without tasting (expected WTP), tasting with information about animal welfare (actual WTP). Information was provided to the consumers under the form of labels indicating the level of animal cleanliness and freedom of movement (5-point scale, from poor to very good). Consumers were influenced by information about low standards of animal welfare (low cleanliness and low freedom of movement) and moved their willingness to pay in the direction of their expectations. However, the discrepancy between expectancy and actual WTP was not totally assimilated, indicating that WTP was also expressed in relation to other aspects (e.g., the sensory properties of the products). Conversely, the information concerning high standards of animal welfare (high cleanliness and high freedom of movement) was able to affect expectancy but had an effect on actual WTP only when the most acceptable yogurt was offered to the consumers. In the case of discordant information on animal welfare, partly indicating high levels of welfare (freedom of movements) and low levels of welfare (cleanliness), expected WTP was always lower than blind WTP. However, when the least acceptable product was presented, they completely assimilated their actual WTP to the expectations. Conversely, with the most acceptable yogurt, no assimilation occurred and sensory properties prevailed in orienting consumer WTP. Within each product, consumers expressed a higher WTP for products with labels indicating high welfare standards as compared with yogurts with labels reporting intermediate and low welfare standard. These results show that information about animal welfare, if given to the consumers, can be a major determinant of consumer WTP for animal-based food products. However, information about high standards of animal welfare should be paired with products presenting a good eating quality.     

Big issues for a small technology: Consumer trade-offs in acceptance of nanotechnology in food

Nanotechnology offers many potential applications across the supply chain which could result in a more sustainable agriculture and food system. However, considerable challenges still exist in realising its potential, including consumer acceptance. This research examines consumer perspectives on two different nanotechnology applications (in packaging for chicken fillets and in cheese) using conjoint analysis. A face-to-face survey of 1046 Irish adults was undertaken. It finds that technology has a significant impact on consumer food choices (higher levels of acceptance with traditional technology rather than nanotechnology), that different applications of a technology can result in varying levels of acceptance (higher acceptance for nanotechnology in packaging of chicken fillets rather than in the cheese product) and that offering salient benefits (e.g. health or lower price) can off-set technology concerns in some but not all instances. Differences amongst consumer segments also exist with price having low utility for “health focused consumers” but having high utility for “conventional consumers”.Industrial relevanceThis research provides industry with an overview of consumer perceptions around two potential nano-inside and nano-outside product applications elicited through a nationally representative quantitative survey (n = 1046). The results from this work can contribute to the development of a research commercialisation strategy that will yield products and processes of value to consumers, and thus will have greater likelihood of acceptance. Moreover, this work points to the need to involve consumers at an early stage in the product development process and in considering potential commercialisation pathways, particularly with regard to food production where consumers may be especially sensitive or risk-averse. Appreciating the concerns and preferences of consumers and eliciting their overall level of acceptance with regard to particular technologies and product applications is crucial for their success.     

A new approach to product set selection and segmentation in preference mapping

A common problem in food product development is to identify the consumers’ drivers of liking and to understand in what way they relate to the acceptance data. Usually, one will also be interested in identifying segments of consumers. The main objective of this study was to investigate the use of fuzzy clustering within the area of preference mapping when different consumer groups test different sets of products. A case study on low-fat cheese was used to explore and illustrate the proposed approach. Two groups of 57 and 58 consumers, respectively, participated in the consumer test. Based on sensory profiling, different cheese products evenly distributed in the sensory space were selected for each group. Each consumer rated their acceptance based on a blind tasting of six cheeses. One of the segments was identified to have a linear preference pattern, while the other two had non-linear patterns.     

The effect of expectations generated by brand name on the acceptability of dried semolina pasta

Focus group interviews were performed to explore which characteristics drive consumer acceptance of pasta. A questionnaire was used to evaluate the consumer expectations of the product generated by the brand name. Consumer tests were performed in two different experimental conditions (blind and informed) to evaluate whether the knowledge of brand name affects consumer perception or not. Discrepancy between expected and blind preference ratings was found, suggesting that disconfirmation of expectations occurred for some brands. Hedonic ratings were different in blind and informed test, proving a significant effect of brand information on liking. Consumers generally moved their ratings towards expectation, revealing an assimilation effect.Experimental results showed also that the knowledge of brand name did not affect sensory attributes perception suggesting that, for dried pasta, the expectations generated by the brand name are essentially of the hedonic-based type.     

The impact of information on taste ranking and cultivation method on rice types that protect endangered birds in Japan: Non-hypothetical choice experiment with tasting

We investigate consumers’ reactions to information on rice types produced using a cultivation method that protects the crested ibis (Nipponia nippon), a symbol of the endangered birds of Japan. We employ a non-hypothetical choice experiment with real monetary incentives, in which participants taste three types of rice—Niigata rice, Sado rice, and Sado-Ibis certified rice (Ibis rice)—and choose one to take home. The participants make decisions twice in each choice set, once before and once after tasting. Three information treatments are used: information about taste ranking from chefs and consumers, cultivation method, and no-information. Comparing the expected and actual willingness to pay (WTP) for Ibis rice, only the cultivation method information increases the WTP, which triples. The WTP in the taste ranking information treatment becomes lower among the participants who refer to chefs, but there is no significant difference in preferences between the expected and actual stages among all participants. For Sado rice, the WTP increases when we provide no-information or information on the cultivation method. In both cases, the WTP changes from negative to positive relative to Niigata rice; however, this WTP is less than that for Ibis rice. These results imply that consumers are more sensitive to information of process and effort for a cultivation method that protects endangered species than to the information about taste ranking.