Bioproducts: Consumers' perception and buying behavior
Abstract
Recently the Bioproducts have gained much importance in daily life and also in the economy of world including the United States economy. The declining reserves of natural gas and growing environmental concerns resulted in the evolution of alternative fuel, energy and other bioproducts. Increasing awareness of the various environmental problems has led a shift in the way consumers go about their life. There has been a change in consumer attitudes towards a green lifestyle and less dependence on fossil fuel. People are actively trying to reduce their impact on the environment. However, this is not widespread and is still evolving. Though many consumers display interest in bioproducts, the purchase of such items is lower than would be expected. A gap remains between the number of consumers who are aware of bioproducts and consumers who actually purchase such products. The study introduces and discusses bioproducts and its benefits, examines trends in bioproducts production, consumption and the impact of bioproducts on consumers' buying behavior. Of particular interest, attempts were made to determine the consumer perceptions, attitudes and willingness to pay high premiums for the bioproducts. The primary data for the purpose of this study were collected from graduate and undergraduate students, faculty and staff in three departments (Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Biological Sciences, and Chemistry) in the College of Agriculture, Human and Natural Sciences. A structured questionnaire was developed to elicit information on general elements and psychographic aspects of the respondents towards bioproducts. The responses varied between the departments and also among three groups, undergraduate, graduate students and faculty, where faculty were highly knowledgeable about bioproducts. The responses for males and females however, were not significantly different for all groups. In general, respondents from agricultural department compared to biology and chemistry students and faculty members were well aware of bioproducts. In addition, socio-demographic characteristics such as gender, age, level of education, family status, income and familiarity of respondents with bioproducts were found to be important factors that affect the consumers' WTP for bioproducts and higher food prices. The results from this study suggest that the knowledge of bioproducts and environmental concern influence the purchasing attitude and actual behavior of consumer.
Subject Area
Agricultural economics
Recommended Citation
Swetha Bangari Golkonda,
"Bioproducts: Consumers' perception and buying behavior"
(2013).
ETD Collection for Tennessee State University.
Paper AAI1548023.
https://digitalscholarship.tnstate.edu/dissertations/AAI1548023