Consumers’ Behavior in the Field of Organic Agriculture and Food Products during the COVID-19 Pandemic in the Czech Republic: Focus on a Comparison of Hyper-, Super- and Farmers’ Markets and Direct Purchases from Producers

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to assess Czech food consumers’ behavior when buying organic products during the COVID-19 pandemic, with an emphasis on the place of purchase of organic agriculture and food products—especially those purchases with the shortest logistics value chain, i.e., purchase at farmers’ markets, or directly from the producer—and a comparison with the current most common places of purchase of organic products in the Czech Republic, supermarkets and hypermarkets. Categorical data analysis methods were used to create a profile of the consumer according to the most frequent purchase locations. To create mathematical–statistical models and interpretations, the methods of logistic regression, correspondence analysis and contingency table analysis were chosen. According to the results of the survey, respondents under 25 years of age are the least likely to make purchases at farmers’ markets or directly from the producer. Consumers aged 26–35 and with a university degree are the most likely to buy organic agriculture and food products at this location, followed closely by older respondents in the categories 36–45 and 46+ and with a secondary education. It is important for manufacturers to have an overview of where, in what quantities, and for what reasons consumers buy their products, especially for reasons of production optimization and planning, ecological concerns, rural development, and the impact on local areas and the value chain.

A Case Study of Consumer’s Attitudes towards Agro-Food Markets in Danube Microregion in COVID-19 Pandemic

“…Correlation analysis showed that age is statistically significantly and positively related to the variable SUM_agroatt_3_infofood (r = 0.10 ** p < 0.05), indicating that the older the respondents, the more likely they are to show an attitude towards agriculture and food that characterizes a deeper awareness of food problems, which is accompanied by a desire for deeper information about the political and economic aspects of food production. Similar findings were shown by Zamková et al [64]. The authors declared that, generally, younger respondents (under 25 year) are not too interested in topics related to food procurement, while interest increases with age and education level.…”

National Labelling System of Organic Agriculture and Food Products—How Familiar Are Czech Consumers with the National Organic Agri-Food Brand?

“…The issue of gender preferences in the purchase of organic food is addressed in, e.g., [11,48,[52][53][54][55][56]. The issue of preferences for buying organic food according to education has been addressed by, e.g., [48,[52][53][54][57][58][59].…”

“…The issue of gender preferences in the purchase of organic food is addressed in, e.g., [11,48,[52][53][54][55][56]. The issue of preferences for buying organic food according to education has been addressed by, e.g., [48,[52][53][54][57][58][59]. The issue of preferences for buying organic food according to income has been addressed by, e.g., [48,53,54,[58][59][60][61].…”

Sensory Evaluation through RATA and Sorting Task of Commercial and Traditional Panettones Sold in Peru

“…Satisfying the specific needs of the consumer promotes innovation, using bioactive compounds [4], with low fat content [5], flour or flakes of Andean grains [6], even tubers such as orange-fleshed sweet potatoes [2]. The purchase of traditional products, as well as organic ones, is closely tied to consumer behavior linked to the place and quantity of purchase, motivated by optimization reasons, production planning, ecological interests, rural development and value chain considerations [7]. These factors are closely related to their quality, price, appearance, brand, availability and place of origin [8].…”