Project
Consumer journey biodiversity
Perception of food products does not start at the moment that the food is tasted, but is typically affected by knowledge about the food product and by previous experiences with these food products. Before the food product is consumed, consumers have purchased it whether or not based on background knowledge on e.g. origin or way of production of the food, may have seen the packaging, label and read the information, and may have prepared the food. Consequently, prior to tasting, consumers will already have expectations regarding the food’s taste and flavour. These expectations affect the decision of consumers whether the food is consumed, and – after a positive taste experience – whether the food will be repurchased.
Expectations are based on a combination of conscious and sub-conscious processes, and are therefore not fully captured by traditional consumer’ tests such as questionnaires, because consumers’ are not (always) aware of them. So-called implicit measures such as heart rate and skin conductance do capture positive as well as negative sub-conscious effects of these expectations and provide richer insights into consumer’ reactions than traditional measures alone. This importance of prior events for consumer acceptance is generally acknowledged, especially by marketeers who call it ‘customer’s journey’. Recently, it is demonstrated that a multi-phase consumer journey can be recreated in a laboratory.
Aim of this consumer food experience study is to get insights in successful consumer communication strategies of biodiversity positive foods. These insights are needed because biodiverse foods may trigger competing reactions in consumers, some of which they are not even aware of, but which may still determine whether biodiverse foods will be purchased and consumed. In this study, sub-conscious as well as conscious reactions towards biodiverse foods will be monitored with a combination of resp. implicit physiological (heart rate, skin conductance and facial expressions) and explicit (questions) measures.
For acceptance of biodiversity positive food products it is important to realise that consumer food choice behaviour is largely driven by perceived self-interest. However, sustainability of a food product primarily concerns the origin of a food product and how it is made and less about what the product is actually delivering to the consumer. So the change towards more environmental friendly food choices is a challenge. Especially because the ecological impact of such a choice cannot be verified by the consumer from personal product experience. As a result, sustainability motivations are more likely to be a secondary rather than primary benefit of food products and may therefore not be the first reason for product food choice for many consumers.
The choice for sustainable food products is a trade-off between personal and societal benefit and between direct and delayed need satisfaction. To overcome this barrier to sustainable food choice, for example enhancing product-specific knowledge might help, which requires information transparency, e.g. achieved through on-pack labeling or information e.g. at the point of purchase and consumption. Probably, sustainable products that have concrete consumer benefits that make them more attractive compared to non-sustainable alternatives may have the most potential to generate increased consumer demand for sustainable products. This consumer journey study will help to identify barriers of consumers towards biodiverse foods, and will identify possible solutions to remove or reduce these barriers.