Effective Segmentation of Organic Food Consumers in Vietnam Using Food-Related Lifestyles

Abstract

The consumer purchase of environmentally friendly products like organic food is essential to environmental sustainability. This study applies the unique food-related lifestyles (FRL) approach to segment organic food consumers in Vietnam, a country in which there is increasing concern about food safety and quality. The FRL model was intentionally selected because it enables better understanding of how consumers employ food and its culinary aspects to achieve certain values in their lives. Data were obtained from 203 organic food consumers, and a two-step cluster analysis established three identifiable market segments which we named “Conservatives”, “Trendsetters”, and “Unengaged”. The Conservatives were interested in the health aspects of food and preferred natural products. The Trendsetters were interested in healthy food, liked to cook, and held a positive attitude toward organic food and local food products. The Unengaged consumers were not concerned about food-related issues, and they reported the least consumption of organic food. The findings of this study have important academic and practical implications for marketers, policymakers, organizations dealing with food, and socio-environmental organizations that aim to promote organic food consumption. Importantly, marketing efforts should focus on enhancing consumers’ knowledge about organic food and their love of cooking, as well as ensuring adequate availability of organic food.

Greenwash and Green Purchase Intention: The Mediating Role of Green Skepticism

“…To extend the extant literature, this study focuses on the food industry in Vietnam, which has become one of the fastest-growing countries in Asia. Vietnam is a potential market for organic and green food [35,36]. The latest data from the World Bank [37] reveal that Vietnam's population is 95.5 million and the gross domestic income is $223.78 billion.…”

“…Furthermore, Vietnamese people spend approximately half of their income on food and beverage products [38]. Vietnam food quality and safety has drawn increasing attention from consumers, corporations, and stakeholders [35,36]. However, many food companies seem to modify their business strategies in response to green demands from customers.…”

“…Moreover, the fact of environmental protection meets difficulties because of restricted greenwashing regulation and uncertain implementation of this regulation. Remarkably, there is a lack of national regulations on organic and green labels for food products [35]. Thus, many food companies misuse greenwashing to appear to be environmentally friendly.…”

Antecedents of Purchase Intention toward Organic Food in an Asian Emerging Market: A Study of Urban Vietnamese Consumers

“…Similar to many other emerging economies, in Vietnam, the organic food market is still at the early stage of development. Due to significant growth in both demand and supply sides, the topics pertaining to organic food consumption have attracted increasing research attention [3,15,16].…”

Analysis of the Sieve Unit Inclination Angle in the Cleaning Process of Oat Grain in a Rotary Cleaning Device

“…Organic farming, which uses natural resources prudently, is essential for our food production and for our quality of life-today, tomorrow, and for future generations [1,2]. Organic farming is one of the most developed and accepted production systems from the aspect of environmental sustainability [3][4][5]. Realization of the sustainable agriculture concept requires the implementation of technological progress to reasonably intensify production and at the same time limit the degradation of soil production potential.…”