Changing Grocery Shopping Behaviours Among Chinese Consumers At The Outset Of The COVID‐19 Outbreak

Abstract

This study focuses on the embryonic stages of the COVID‐19 pandemic in China, where most people affected opted to abide by the Chinese government’s national self‐quarantine campaign. This resulted in major disruptions to one of the most common market processes in retail: food retailing. The research adopts the theory of planned behaviour to provide early empirical insights into changes in consumer behaviour related to food purchases during the initial stages of the COVID‐19 outbreak in China. Data from the online survey carried out suggest that the outbreak triggered considerable levels of switching behaviours among customers, with farmers’ markets losing most of their customers, while local small independent retailers experienced the highest levels of resilience in terms of customer retention. This study suggests avenues for further scholarly research and policy making related to the impact this behaviour may be having around the world on society’s more vulnerable groups, particularly the elderly.

COVID-19 Place Confinement, Pro-Social, Pro-environmental Behaviors, and Residents’ Wellbeing: A New Conceptual Framework

“…Drawing on extant literature on pro-social behaviors and the recent COVID-19 multidisciplinary research (e.g., Beck and Hensher, 2020 ; Brooke and Jackson, 2020 ; Li et al, 2020 ; Rajkumar, 2020 ), the current study proposes some examples of pro-social behaviors in a COVID-19 context namely: discussion with family related to health and safety; collective home exercises to maintain health; visit to the supermarket respecting social distancing; collective decision on eating habits to support health; maintain a good online social network; regular meaningful conversations with the elderly. Household pro-environmental behaviors can include water-saving behaviors (using half-flush, having shorter showers, closing the tap when brushing teeth/shaving, closing the tap soon after washing hands); recycling; home composting, food waste avoidance (e.g., Curtis et al, 2013 ; Ramkissoon et al, 2015 ).…”

How safe is it to shop? Estimating the amount of space needed to safely social distance in various retail environments

“…Given these potential risks and fears, the retail sector has to navigate through this crisis and adjust to a “new normality” in which capacity will be limited in stores ( Aydinli et al, 2020 ), and more shoppers will continue shopping online even after the lockdown measures are lifted ( Nazir, 2020 ). In the UK, the combination of shifting consumer behaviours and ordered closures has had a detrimental impact to the point that 20,000 high street retail outlets have been forecast to close in the following months ( Li et al, 2020 ). This estimation can be easily surpassed, as people are increasingly uncertain about returning to their old shopping patterns.…”

Can the coronavirus disease be transmitted from food? A review of evidence, risks, policies and knowledge gaps

“…Consumer behaviors form an integrated part of any risk assessment on contaminated consumer goods. The COVID-19 emerging globally has a profound impact on consumer behavior regarding their food choices and shopping habits (Li et al 2020 ; Richards and Rickard 2020 ; Schmidt et al 2020 ). Recent surveys indicated a change of consumers’ attitude on frozen foods during COVID-19.…”

“…Whether such trends are representative of a wider change in consumer behavior regarding frozen food consumption during the current pandemic remains unclear. Meanwhile, statistical data on changes on consumers’ food purchasing habits (Li et al 2020 ; Schmidt et al 2020 ), how they store and handle foods at home, and whether they adopt certain precautionary measures when handling raw foods are also critical for assessing the risks of transmission via cold-storage foods and further establishing polices, guidelines, and mitigation strategies during the current pandemic.…”