Consumer Perception of Beef, Pork, Lamb, Chicken, and Fish
This study explores consumer perceptions and average consumption of various types of meat (beef, pork, lamb, chicken, and fish).
[Abstract excerpted from original source.]
Objectives: One of the greatest challenges to developing successful marketing strategies in the food sector is gaining a better understanding of the diversity of consumer needs (Onwezen et al., 2012). It is important to understand consumer perceptions of beef, pork, lamb, chicken, and fish regarding average consumption levels, price, nutrition, animal handling, and animal welfare to help the industry educate and market to consumers, as well as understand perceived misconceptions. Moral and ethical beliefs, consisting of concerns for animal welfare, are reported as main reasons to avoid meat (Hoek et al., 2004). Consumers view high animal welfare standards at the production stage as an indicator that the resulting food is safe, healthy, and of high quality (Verbeke et al., 2010). To gain a better understanding of consumer perceptions, an online survey was emailed to consumers utilizing Qualtrics Q University Survey software (Qualtrics Labs, Inc., Provo, UT, United States).
Materials and methods: Surveys (n = 1602) were completed. Data was analyzed utilizing PROC MIXED procedure of SAS (v9.3, SAS Institute, Cary, NC). Results indicated two consumer groups: Meat Eaters and Non-Meat Eaters. Statistical analysis was also conducted using the Multinomial Logit (MNL) Model with STATA Statistics/Data Analysis (v12, StataCorp, College Station, TX). This model was designed to explain choice of Protein Consumers, Fish Only, and Vegetarian consumers. A 0.100 ≤ P > | z | was used to determine significance. Three groups were identified: Protein Eaters, Fish Only, and Vegetable Protein Only.