Attitudinal Determinants of Beef Consumption in Venezuela: A Retrospective Survey

Abstract

Consumer surveys were conducted in the Western, Central, and Eastern regions of Venezuela to determine buying expectations, motivations, needs, perceptions, and preferences of beef consumers, and their acceptance of domestic (and foreign) beef, as affected by different intrinsic and extrinsic factors. Data (n = 693) were gathered by face-to-face interviews on the way out of fresh markets, butcher stores, supermarkets, and, in some cases, at home by using a 45-question structured questionnaire. Responses were subjected to factorial analysis of correspondence (FA) and hierarchical cluster analysis. From the FA, the first two factors explain 74% of the common variance. Factor 1 comprises intrinsic attributes such as color, smell, tenderness, flavor, juiciness, and freshness; while Factor 2 contains extrinsic attributes, mostly related to the origin. The FA profiling data showed that it is possible to concentrate on the traits that consumers usually use as a criterion to perceive beef quality, and to purchase beef. Using cluster analysis, four groups of consumers were mainly distinguished by region, intrinsic attributes, and credence attributes related to production system, aging, traceability, and hygiene. Results from this study will be helpful in designing strategies for recovering and enhancing the future, domestic beef demand.

Consumer Preferences and Acceptance of Meat Products

“…The authors found that flavor was the largest contributor to satisfaction in comparison to tenderness or juiciness, accounting for 59% of the overall rating. The results also indicate that age, income, and gender influenced satisfaction [11].…”

“…Arenas de Moreno [11] conducted surveys in three regions of Venezuela to determine buying expectations, motivations, needs, perceptions, and preferences of beef consumers, and their acceptance of domestic and foreign beef. Their results show that two factors explain 74% of the common variance in beef consumption.…”

“…The first factor focuses on intrinsic factors, such as color, smell, tenderness, flavor, juiciness, and freshness, while the second factor involves more extrinsic factors, primarily product origin. The authors hope to use these results to design and implement strategies to recover and enhance the domestic beef demand in Venezuela [11].…”

¿Cómo los consumidores valoran atributos de calidad de carne bovina y su disposición a pago?

“…Las características intrínsecas valoradas por los consumidores en el presente estudio, están en concordancia con los atributos intrínsecos de la carne informados por consumidores italianos [30], americanos [31] y mexicanos [11]. Entre estos atributos, el color de la carne y la pérdida de agua han sido informados como las primeras características que usa el consumidor para valorar la frescura del producto [1] y la terneza o suavidad, como uno de los factores más determinantes en la elección de la carne [32].…”

“…Sin embargo, está bien documentado el efecto positivo de los cambios bioquímicos y estructurales de la maduración en la palatabilidad (terneza, jugosidad y sabor) de la carne [33]. Por lo cual, los resultados del presente estudio permiten plantear la pobre educación en calidad de carne del consumidor colombiano, similar al caso del consumidor venezolano descrito por Arenas-De Moreno et al [32], quienes indican que el concepto de maduración tiene mayor apropiación entre los consumidores de la región central de Venezuela (mayor preferencia y educación en calidad de carne) comparado con el consumidor de la región occidental.…”