Consumers attitudes toward animal welfare friendly produce: An island of Ireland study

Abstract

Public concern has arisen between increased productivity in animal production systems and farm animal welfare (FAW). Consumers demand ethical production systems and tend to purchase products that reflect their animal welfare concerns. They are becoming increasingly judicious, with growing expectations around animal produce. Nonetheless, positive attitudes concerning FAW do not always correspond to purchasing behavior, where higher concern is not related to higher purchasing frequency. The study seeks to determine if individuals behave differently in their dual roles as citizens and consumers, expressing preferences for FAW but ultimately failing to act on such preferences when making purchasing decisions. Theoretically, the research uses elements of the COM-B model to investigate the importance of capability, opportunity, and motivation for consumers. The study is conducted on an island of Ireland basis and investigates the perceptions and purchasing frequency of Irish and Northern Irish consumer’s (n = 972). Firstly, attitudes towards purchasing animal welfare products are elicited using Categorical Principal Component Analysis (CATPCA). Cluster analysis subsequently defines three distinct typologies based upon the final cluster centers attained from CATPCA. The largest cluster is characterized as being Indifferent (n = 672) and differentiated by relatively low concern for animal welfare. Despite this, their purchasing frequency of animal welfare products is monthly. The other two clusters, The Engaged and The Struggling, are similar in size and share the same concern for animal welfare but are polarized in their motivation, capability, and opportunity to purchase animal welfare friendly products. The Struggling typology act as citizens rather than consumers; while they are highly concerned for welfare they have significantly lower purchasing frequency even compared to The Indifferent. Finally, Non-Linear Canonical Correlation Analysis (NLCCA) is used to reveal and visually demonstrate the structure of the whole dataset. The analysis demonstrates that concern for animal welfare is not associated with purchase frequency of animal welfare friendly produce when contextual factors are not conducive to doing so. The findings are relevant to a broad audience including industry, policymakers, and academics.

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