This paper considers the ethical purchasing of what is described as conscious consumers. Conscious consumers remain a 'work in progress', and present a complex mix of behaviours; while seeking ethical alternatives, other social and economic forces impact on their behaviour (e.g. family, convenience, price) such that positive ethical choices are not always made. Examining ethical consumption in this way reveals the 'competing priorities, paradoxical outcomes, and the nature of compromises reached in real decision processes'. We identify two areas of theory relevant to the conceptualization of such consumers, flexibility and dissonance theory. A qualitative study of participants identified as conscious consumers was undertaken. As anticipated, the participants revealed a range of often contradictory behaviours regarding their ethical purchases. The relevance of flexibility and dissonance theory to their behaviour is discussed.

Despite the increased documentation of consumers’ purchases of organic food products, the motivations for such purchases are relatively under‐researched. An individual’s choice of food products can be linked clearly to ethical stances, but ethical choices can also vary from individual to individual, from industry to industry and among countries. Consequently, this paper investigates the degree to which ethical beliefs influence Scottish consumer perceptions, beliefs, attitudes and purchasing decisions, with regard to organic dairy products. Consumer purchasing motivations are revealed as being self‐interest‐centred (i.e. better tasting, safer), rather than altruistic. Therefore, to achieve future market development, organic dairy producers cannot rely upon the minority of hardcore green consumers to sustain growth, but must aim to modify perceptions and attitudes of larger consumer segments by implementing educational marketing campaigns that reinforce the ethical, environmental and societal benefits of organic production.

Ethical attitudes in relation to meat purchases were studied among urban and rural consumers in Scotland. All subjects perceived at least some ethical issues in relation to animal production systems, in particular, systems keeping animals in close confinement. Welfare‐friendly production systems were viewed as adding value to a food, but this value was not necessarily realizable to producers if purchases occurred only when foods were on special offer. Statements made by individuals were often contradictory, revealing ambivalence, unresolved value conflicts and a general lack of involvement in the nature of meat production. A number of barriers to the establishment of stable attitudes and behaviours in relation to the ethical treatment of food animals were also identified. A key finding of the study is that individuals can hold two views on animal welfare. On the one hand, they may think as citizens influencing societal standards, and on the other, as consumers at the point of purchase. As citizens, they support the notion of animals being entitled to a good life; as meat consumers, they avoid the cognitive connection with the live animal. This paper explores both the citizen–consumer relationship and purchase strategies used by consumers to resolve value conflicts. Lessons for public and commercial policy are highlighted in the context of the Curry Report (2002) which advocates more effective market segmentation where markets are finely attuned to their customers, with the development of a number of assurance schemes discussed in the article.

PurposeThis paper aims to chart the wide range of food scares reported throughout the EU over the period 1986‐2006 and explores their impact on EU policy.Design/methodology/approachThere is much extant research that solely investigates the occurrences of specific food scares, however; little emphasis is given to the responses of policy makers. This research aims to narrow this gap in the literature by reviewing the major food scares, which have occurred throughout the EU and the subsequent policy responses.FindingsA number of food scares have dominated media reports over the last two decades, but this study reveals the increasing emergence of rare serotypes of foodborne pathogens, as well as a rising trend of EU‐wide contaminant and animal disease‐related food scares. Simultaneously, there is evidence of evolution from a product‐focused food policy to a risk‐based policy, which has developed into a tentative EU consumer‐based food policy. Inevitably, in a market of 25 member‐states the concept of food quality varies between countries and therein justifies the need for responsive policy development, which embraces the single market philosophy.Research limitations/implicationsA typology of EU food scares is advanced and discussed in detail, with comments being made on their impact. In addition, the paper highlights the complexity of a EU consumer, which has led to a need for research into the maximisation of the satisfaction of purchasers by reinsuring their individual “right to choose”.Originality/valueThis paper provides a unique insight into a wide range of European food scares (e.g. microbiological, contaminants, animal disease‐related) and EU policy makers' responses to such food scares.

Social cues, such as eye gaze and pointing fingers, can increase the prioritisation of specific locations for cognitive processing. A previous study using a manual reaching task showed that, although both gaze and pointing cues altered target prioritisation (reaction times [RTs]), only pointing cues affected action execution (trajectory deviations). These differential effects of gaze and pointing cues on action execution could be because the gaze cue was conveyed through a disembodied head; hence, the model lacked the potential for a body part (i.e., hands) to interact with the target. In the present study, the image of a male gaze model, whose gaze direction coincided with two potential target locations, was centrally presented. The model either had his arms and hands extended underneath the potential target locations, indicating the potential to act on the targets (Experiment 1), or had his arms crossed in front of his chest, indicating the absence of potential to act (Experiment 2). Participants reached to a target that followed a nonpredictive gaze cue at one of three stimulus onset asynchronies. RTs and reach trajectories of the movements to cued and uncued targets were analysed. RTs showed a facilitation effect for both experiments, whereas trajectory analysis revealed facilitatory and inhibitory effects, but only in Experiment 1 when the model could potentially act on the targets. The results of this study suggested that when the gaze model had the potential to interact with the cued target location, the model's gaze affected not only target prioritisation but also movement execution.