The development of the UK market on organic food Chapter Three. The consumer needs
Abstract
In some earlier work (See CabinetOffice, Food: an analysis of the issues .The strategy Unit) it has been argued that the trends shaping food consumption and production in the UK and their implications for society, the economy and the environment.
This essay puts an extend view: the development of UK market on organic food, it is viewed as a significant link between organic food production and consumers, the research questions in this essay are:
• What are key advantage of organic food compared with other kinds of food?
• What are consumer needs about organic food?
Chapter One. Introduction
The European organic food markets have evolved to fast growing niche markets, fuelled by consumer’s concern about food quality and mistrust in the conventional food industry as well as personal health issues .
From CabinetOffice, figure 1.1 shows the organic food market is keep increasing during 1999 and 2005.
Figure 1.1 the sales of ethical food and organic food
Source :CabinetOffice, Food: an analysis of the issues .
Some other research results from Cabinet Office are:
Ethical consumerism is growing and consumers are now more aware of issues around food production (often highlighted by media attention). Food choices are key to individual expression of political and altruistic choices.
People buy ethically sourced products to meet health, sustainability and quality needs. Everyday food purchases are now more likely to chosen on ethical grounds, and people are more likely to make ethical choices about food rather than clothing or other household goods.
According to Soil Association organic market report 2006, It is estimated that retail sales of organic products in the UK were worth approximately ￡1.6 Billion, an increase of 30% on 2005. Retail sales made through producer-owned outlets, such as box schemes, mail order, shops and farmers’ markets, increased by approximately 11% to ￡125 million.
Approximately 66% of the organic primary produce sold in multiple retailers was worked in the UK in 2005. In chapter three the researcher will discuss more information about retail on organic food issue.
Figure 1.1 shows the retail sales of organic products by outlet type in UK.
Figure 1.1 Retail Sales of organic products by outlet type
Figure 2.1 the advantage of organic food
Source : CabinetOffice, Food: an analysis of the issues .
At the same time, many people think organic food is expensive and that they would buy more if it was cheaper . The figure 2.2 shows the survey on this issue.
Figure 2.2 (source : CabinetOffice, Food: an analysis of the issues . )
In ‘Marketing trends for Organic Food in the 21st Century’, George Baourakis discussed that, in general, the overall image of organic products seems to be positive from the consumer point of view, since they are considered to be healthier, better tasting, more environmentally beneficial and their quality is as good as that of traditionally grown products.
From CabinetOffice, research suggests consumers of organic food have more complex belief structures than other shoppers. Figure 3.1 shows the different consumer demand about consumers of organic food.
Figure 3.1 Consumer demand
Source : CabinetOffice, Food: an analysis of the issues
Based from figure 3.1, the researcher try to analyze the consumer needs of organic food on three groups:
Traditional – consumers who are concerned with flavor and authenticity.
Safety – consumers with “careful ” nutritional values and food safety.
Youthful – young generation who interested in their health and fitness.
Traditional:
From Verhoef PC’s thesis, he analyze the impact of economic and marketing variables ( quality, price, and distribution), emotions ( fear, empathy, and guilt), social norms, and environment-related variables ( environmental concern, green behaviour, and perceived consumer eff
