A study on Chinese consumer preferences for food traceability information using best-worst scaling

Abstract

Food safety is a global public health issue, which often arises from asymmetric information between consumers and suppliers. With the development of information technology in human life, building a food traceability information sharing platform is viewed as one of the best ways to overcome the trust crisis and resolve the problem of information asymmetry in China. However, among the myriad information available from the food supply chain, there is a lack of knowledge on consumer preference. Based on the best-worst scaling approach, this paper investigated consumer preferences for vegetable, pork, and dairy product traceability information. Specifically, this paper measured the relative importance that consumers place on the traceable information. The results indicate that consumers have varying priorities for information in different cases. “Pesticide/veterinary use,” “picking/slaughtering date,” and “fertilizer/feed use” are the most preferred traceable information for Chinese consumers in the case of vegetables, while “picking/slaughtering date” and “history of illness and taking protective measures” are the most preferred information in the case of pork. In the case of dairy products, consumers prefer “processing information,” “environmental information of the origin,” and “traceable tag certification information” most. The results of this study call for the direct involvement of the Chinese government in the food safety information sharing system as following. First, given consumers’ diverse preferences, different types of traceable information should be recorded into the information sharing platform depending on food types. Second, the government could promote the step-by-step construction of such a platform based on the priority of consumers’ preferences. Third, new technology should be applied to guarantee the reliability of traceable information. Finally, local preferences in terms of the way consumers receive and understand information should be taken into consideration.

Consumer Preference Heterogeneity Evaluation in Fruit and Vegetable Purchasing Decisions Using the Best–Worst Approach

“…This method is also called “maximum difference scaling”, because the chosen attributes should maximize the difference in utility made by a respondent on a preference scale. Finally, the BWS rating scales create an orderly ranking of items, explaining the level of relative importance appointed by each respondent for the single attribute using the average BW raw score (A-RS) or standard score [30,71,72]. This is calculated by dividing the BW score (best minus worst) [32] by the number of observations and the frequency that each attribute appeared in the four questionnaire versions.…”

Introduction of highly effective proactive food safety management programs into food distribution channels: For safe food labeling and safe advertisements

“…Producer and traceability information (Table , checklist clauses 2 and 3) and advertisement are safety devices for reverse tracing when microbial/chemical hazards occur to prevent further harm, deduce causes, and take rapid actions (Adams, ; Liu et al, ; Mao, Wang, Hao, & Li, ; Meyerding, ; Russo & Tufi, ; Tibola, da Silva, Dossa, & Patricio, ; Tinacci et al, ). Eco‐friendliness, agricultural quality control, and geographical information and certifications (Table , checklist clauses 3 and 6) secure the economic value of food and relate to consumers’ preferences (Liu et al, ; MAFRA & MOF, ; Park, Kim, You, You, Kim, et al, ). Various advertisements and marketing strategies may exist, but excessive wording or unscientifically proven facts (Table , checklist clause 7) threaten consumers’ health and rights (Hawkes, ; Smithers, Lynch, & Merlin, ).…”

“…Violations of the geographical indication of food products or ingredients (27.37%), false advertisements (e.g., inappropriate functionality of products; 25.26%), and national certification information (16.84%) were the highest (Table 2, Figure 3a). Geographical indication, advertisement, and identification of certification were directly related to the foods' economic value (Liu et al, 2018). Meanwhile, although onsite audits were conducted on three occasions, there was no particular pattern or regularity for nonconformities ( Figure 3a).…”

“…Meanwhile, the primary purpose of postmanagement (e.g., crackdowns and on‐site evaluations) in food safety is identifying causes of accidents (e.g., food poisoning outbreaks, foodborne infectious diseases, contamination, and improper labeling) and preventing their spread by banning food items not conforming with regulatory requirements (nonconforming food items). An effective postmanagement strategy, combined with a traceability system, can identify fundamental causes of accidents and points where accidents occurred (Adams, ; Liu, Li, Steele, & Fang, ; MAFRA, ; Meyerding, ; Tinacci et al, ). Ideally, these policies should be implemented complexly and the results subsequently incorporated in processes to prevent recurrence of accidents.…”

“…spread by banning food items not conforming with regulatory requirements (nonconforming food items). An effective postmanagement strategy, combined with a traceability system, can identify fundamental causes of accidents and points where accidents occurred (Adams, 2006;Liu, Li, Steele, & Fang, 2018;MAFRA, 2016;Meyerding, 2016;Tinacci et al, 2018). Ideally, these policies should be implemented complexly and the results subsequently incorporated in processes to prevent recurrence of accidents.…”