The aim of the study was to examine the possible factors that might contribute to consumer acceptance of food innovations. Particular attention was paid to 3 main factors: (a) relationship between socio‐demographic determinants and level of consumer innovation, (b) evaluation of consumer innovation acceptance, particularly toward animal‐derived food products, and (c) consumer preferences for health‐promoting food innovation over time. Studies were conducted using quantitative research methods in 2004 and 2011. An organic method of production, least important in 2004, was top rated in 2011, and ease of preparation dropped to the bottom of the list in 2011, whereas food origin, low fat, and sugar content were ranked in the first group of the considered factors in 2011. Since 2004, consumers have become used to products with various innovations. The new generation of Poles is relatively more open to new food products, due to the wide range of food products available on the free market. Furthermore, the group of well‐educated consumers with a higher level of income has increased in size, and this includes people interested in knowledge of a product's nutritional value and its health impact. Our study extends existing research in the area of understanding consumer expectations toward food innovations. The results not only contribute to the field of consumer behavior but also have practical potential for food market applications, especially for companies operating on or planning to enter the Polish food market, and which could be used for developing communication strategies.
PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to reveal factors underlying Polish consumers' food choices and particularly their perception of food quality attributes in relation to selected food products and points of sale and to reflect on the implication of shifting consumers' expectation towards food for the national food industry.Design/methodology/approachThe paper provides a review of previous research results relevant for the problem analyzed – emphasizing the results from the authors' own research conducted in the years 2000‐2007 with the use of quantitative approach on representative in terms of gender, level of education, place of residence samples of Polish consumers.FindingsPolish consumers are more and more concerned with various food quality attributes and particularly sensory properties, healthiness and safety. They differentiate between quality of foodstuffs offered in various points of sale and have favorable opinions about specialized shops and tend to perceive the quality of food bought in super and hypermarkets as inferior. Perception of food quality is dependent on the product being assessed, and foodstuffs addressed to particular groups such has infants and people facing health problems were perceived as having high quality, while food with additives, highly processed and genetically modified was assessed as having low quality.Research limitations/implicationsThe results have implications for the Polish food sector in terms of highlighting the aspects related to food quality that influence Polish consumers' food choices.Originality/valueThe paper provides a review of previous research results on Polish consumers relevant for the problem analyzed and give insights into Polish consumers' food choices and their perception of various quality cues. It is of value for the companies operating on the Polish food market and could be used for developing communication strategies and identification of future research areas.
The deployment of renewable energy at the local level can contribute significantly to mitigating climate change, improving energy security and increasing social, economic and environmental benefits. In many countries local authorities play an important role in the local development, but renewable energy deployment is not an obligatory task for them. Hence there are two research questions: (1) Do local governments think investments in renewable energy (RE) are urgent and affordable within the local budgets? (2) How do they react to the public aid co-financing investments in renewable energy? To provide the answer we performed qualitative analysis and non-parametric tests of data from a survey of 252 local authorities, analysis of 292 strategies of local development and datasets of 1170 renewable energy projects co-financed by EU funds under operational programs 2007–2013 and 2014–2020 in Poland. Findings showed that local authorities’ attitudes were rather careful, caused by financial constraints of local budgets and the scope of obligatory tasks, which made renewable energy investments not the most urgent. Public aid was a factor significantly affecting local authorities’ behavior. It triggered local authorities’ renewable energy initiatives, increasing the number and scope of renewable energy investments as well cooperation with other municipalities and local communities. Despite this general trend, there were also considerable regional differences in local authorities’ renewable energy behavior.
PurposeThe purpose of the research was to investigate how young consumers perceive food safety and if they trust that official food control agencies or other actors of food supply chains ensure a proper level of safety of food in Poland. The purpose of the paper was also to find out if young consumers are currently concerned that a proper level of food safety is not ensured.Design/methodology/approachThe analysis was based on a data set from 650 questionnaires collected in an online survey carried out in October 2020 and addressed to the group of young consumers, students of Warsaw University of Life Sciences, Poland. The analysis was carried out using standard methods of qualitative data analysis (QDA), descriptive statistics, Spearman’s correlation coefficient and Pearson’s chi-square test.FindingsLess than a half of Polish young consumers consider food to be safe and many other do not have an opinion about this matter. Young consumers do not perceive official agencies in charge of food control as the most responsible for food safety, and they either do not trust these institutions or have no opinion about it. Young consumers declare that food producers and food processing businesses are the most responsible for food safety while retailers and consumers are the least responsible ones. The majority of young consumers are not concerned about ensuring proper food safety.Originality/valueUp-to-date young consumers' perception of the role and trust in official food control agencies and food safety in Poland have not been investigated, which makes this study a novelty. The findings can be valuable to official agencies in charge of food control and consumer education, to improve their functioning. They can also be important as a basis for further studies, as young consumers’ attitudes and trust in official food control agencies can change.
The aim of the paper is to create a typology of consumers based on the consumption of food products and non-alcoholic beverages for two countries. The research was conducted among non-randomized respondents representing 900 Polish and 300 Slovakian households. The Polish part of the study was carried out in the Silesian and Mazovian provinces. The Slovakian part of the study was carried out in the whole country. To identify four groups of consumers, the paper used the clustering of objects method, especially the Two-Step method: Ward (hierarchical) cluster analysis and non-hierarchical k-means cluster analysis. The authors represent the difference in the results achieved between types of consumers. Poles and Slovakians similarly perceive the financial status of their households and the attention paid to food price when buying it. However, there is a significant difference in food consumption. When eating, Slovaks are influenced more by vegetarian and vegan fashion trends and emotional experience than price. On the contrary, Poles are more interested in the health aspect of the food consumed and its quantity when emphasizing the price, which results from being less financially satisfied. The results of the research provide information about changes in consumer attitudes in the researched area and their thinking about their consumption, respectively lifestyle, and illustrate some trends in consumer behavior for the current and post-COVID-19 era.
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