Beyond Price and Quality

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Beyond Price and Quality Understanding Credence
Attributes of Food Products in Victorias
priority markets
February 2005
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Project Description
A market driven approach to evaluating
theimportance of credence attributes in priority
markets for the Victorian agri-food sector.
Key Objective
To analyse market preferences for green, ethical,
clean, kind, safe food and communicate
information to government policy makers,
regulators and industry.
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Project Scope

• Food Safety
• Clean Food
• Green Food
• Animal Welfare
• Ethical Food

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Approach

• Desktop research consultation to identify
  issues
• Identification of priority markets
• 280 structured interviews
• 21 international markets incl. Australia
• Report and dissemination of results

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Respondents by MARKET
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Respondents by SECTOR
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Importance of 5 attributes (ranked as being of
High or Very High Importance)
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Key messages

• Price and Quality remain key drivers
• Food Safety most important of the 5 factors
• Clean Food also important
• Ethical issues of moderate importance
• Animal Welfare and Green issues ranked lower
• Higher importance where factors impact directly
• Interest groups and media can raise importance
• Definitions vary, esp. for clean and green
• Disconnect between what consumers say and do
• Positive image of Australia
• Positive reaction to this research

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Animal Welfare

• General concern for welfare of animals,
  however..

• Low priority to consumers when purchasing food

• Higher importance when related to quality/health

• Most visible in egg poultry industries

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Importance of Animal Welfare to food consumers in
Victorias priority markets
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Importance of Animal Welfare to organisations
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General public concern for the welfare of animals
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Importance of animal housing conditions to
consumers
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Importance of animal transport handling to
consumers
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Importance of live animal shipping to consumers