A case study of consumer preferences towards different brands of palm oil in Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia

Abstract

The palm oil industry has played a vital role in the economic development of Malaysia and the economic expansion in developing countries primarily drove the growth in palm oil consumption. However, consumer preference towards palm oil products is changing due to the population increase, rapid urbanisation, rising income levels, development of communication tools, and negative campaign towards palm oil. Hence, this study was conducted to identify consumers’ preferences towards palm oil to understand this predicament further. In this study, the data were obtained from 107 respondents through convenient sampling from different supermarkets in Shah Alam, Selangor. Moreover, factors such as socioeconomic, marketing, and non-marketing factors were investigated, which employed descriptive analysis, factor analysis, and multiple regression analysis. The results showed that majority of the respondents were Malay females, married, and were in the age range between 31 and 40 years old. Most of these respondents completed secondary schools and were now working in public and private sectors with a monthly income between RM2001 and RM3000. It was found that most of the respondents purchased the bottled “Saji” brand palm oil at least once a month, and advertising was the primary source of brand information for the respondents. Furthermore, the multiple regression analysis of marketing factors revealed that product and price were the most significant factors that influenced consumer preferences towards palm oil. Meanwhile, non-marketing factors indicated that the quality of products, as well as advertising or campaign, were the significant determinants which affected consumer preferences towards palm oil. On that basis, this article proposed a few recommendations to enhance consumer preferences towards palm oil in the future.

Exploring consumer attitudes and behaviour towards sustainable health-related food choices

“…As expected, Malaysian consumers had a positive attitude towards the consumption of palm oil. These findings align with Ibrahim et al (2020), who indicated that despite the negative publicity about palm oil, consumers with a positive attitude towards food items containing palm oil will continue to purchase the product. In contrast, the findings of Verneau et al (2019) conclude that consumers with a negative attitude towards palm oil products will not purchase products containing palm oil.…”

“…In Malaysia, we believe that most consumers have a more positive attitude towards the purchase of food products containing palm oil (Ibrahim et al, 2020). Consumers were becoming more knowledgeable about the selection, use and consumption of vegetable oils.…”

“…Nevertheless, consumers' purchasing decisions for food products are varied and influenced by multiple variables. Past studies report that palm oil consumption is influenced by environmental and social concerns, health benefits and other marketing and non-marketing factors such as product, price, quality, availability and awareness (Aguiar et al ., 2017; Ali et al ., 2018; Borrello et al ., 2019; Guadalupe et al ., 2019; Grunert et al ., 2014; Hinkes and Christoph-Schulz, 2020; Ibrahim et al ., 2020; Verneau et al ., 2019). Gaining a greater understanding of consumers' awareness and their motivation to purchase palm oil products will provide valuable insights that will greatly facilitate market segmentation.…”

A Survey on Consumer Awareness on Proper Usage of Edible Oils in North-Western and Western Provinces in Sri Lanka

“…In order to fulfil the objectives of this study, a sample size of 295 was selected using the simple random sampling technique. Convenience sampling technique was further used to facilitate collection of the required data more practically and conveniently (Ibrahim et al 2020). Descriptive and inferential statistics were used for the research.…”

“…Coconut oil consumers have reported high blood pressure as the most prevalent disease, followed by diabetes and high cholesterol. Ibrahim et al (2020) suggested that there was no definite association found between palm oil consumption and risk of cardiovascular diseases. Previous studies reported that consuming any oil in excess amounts may lead to health implications (Ambujakshi, 2016;Lockyer and Stanner, 2016).…”