An Australian Choice Study: Food for Thought

Abstract

Organic food is claimed to be one of the fastest growing food categories worldwide, with annual sale growth rates of 20-30%. While the uptake of organic foods is higher in G7 countries, organic consumption rates in Australia are significantly lower than other comparable Western markets, despite general positive attitudes towards organics, and significant organic production areas. Impediments to organic food uptake have been identified previously from both a supply- and demand-side perspective. Impediments include availability, pricing and certification. The aims of this research are twofold. First, this research seeks to understand what Australian consumers currently understand about organic certification schemes and labelling. Second, it incorporates a large-scale national survey that examines preferences for organic alternatives. This research applies a choice-based method, best-worst (BW) scaling, in three organic food categories to understand the trade-offs that respondents are willing to make.