Consumer Perception of Organic Food in Emerging Markets: Evidence from Saint Petersburg, Russia

Abstract

This study provides insights on urban Russian consumers' attitudes and perceptions toward organic food, as well as factors that facilitate or prevent them from purchasing these products. We adopted an exploratory mixed-method approach, using a combination of qualitative and quantitative investigations undertaken in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Our results suggest that organic food consumption is mainly motivated by personal well-being and less by social or environmental concerns. Most participants perceive organic food as higher quality products, based upon which they show an acceptance of a price premium for organic food. The group of organic food consumers in our study relies on organic agriculture as one possible strategy to cope with food safety problems. The presence of strict standards for organic food, the trustworthiness of foreign certifications and the perceived higher quality of foreign products (especially from Europe) are perceived together as a safety guarantee. Our results further indicate that the widespread confusion regarding product recognition represents an important obstacle for organic food consumption growth. Implementing a coherent legislative framework to allow product labeling is apparently crucial yet not sufficient for developing the organic sector in Russia; moreover, trust in food labeling and control systems as well as awareness about organic standards is also required. [EconLit citations: Q01; Q13; Q18]. C 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Acceptance and willingness to pay for health-enhancing bakery products – Empirical evidence for young urban Russian consumers

“…The result that Russian consumers are mainly concerned about the naturalness of products and health aspects has been confirmed in a recent study by Bruschi et al (2015). Bruschi et al (2015) provide insights on urban Russian consumers' attitudes and perceptions toward organic food, as well as factors that facilitate or prevent them from purchasing these products.…”

“…Bruschi et al (2015) provide insights on urban Russian consumers' attitudes and perceptions toward organic food, as well as factors that facilitate or prevent them from purchasing these products. Their results highlight that almost all participants had a positive opinion about organic food products and that the perceived benefits of organic food were primarily conferred to the naturalness and perceived purity of the products due to the absence of additives, preservatives, and genetically modified organisms.…”

Is Tajikistan a Potential Market for Genetically Modified Potatoes?

“…Moreover, more than half of respondents would be willing to purchase GM potatoes, yet with discounts. This finding is in line with existing literature implying that in general consumers are willing to pay for GM food product less than for non-GM one [19].…”

“…However, another reason might be low trust in governmental institutions in general and the perception that labeling will not help to make more informed decisions since labels cannot be trusted. This would be in line with results from consumer studies conducted in Russia showing that most Russian consumers do not trust any domestic labels due to a high level of corruption and thus substantial mislabeling [19].…”

“…The major reason for the negative WTP in Uzbekistan seems to be the perceived non-naturalness of these apples. Thus, this result of a strong preference for naturalness and a high aversion towards food that is perceived as non-natural is in line with the literature on consumer preferences in Russia [18] and [19]. These studies also highlight that naturalness or perceived naturalness is one of the most important product attributes in food choice among Russian consumers.…”