Does Food Safety Build Customer Trust? The Mediating Role of Perceived Risk in Food Delivery Service in Bangkok during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

This research investigated the role of perceived food safety on customer trust and its mechanism via perceived risk in the food delivery service business during the COVID-19 pandemic. Survey data were collected from 600 food delivery customers in the Bangkok area. However, only 505 sets of questionnaires were completed and returned to the researcher with a response rate of 84.16%. The data were proceeded using WarpPLS 7.0 program to perform partial least squares Structural Equation Modeling (SEM), which was proven suitable for this research. The results showed that perceived food safety could directly promote customer trust (β=0.528; p<0.001). On the other hand, it can also indirectly foster customer trust by decreasing perceived risk (β=-0.123; p=0.003), which will eventually promote customer trust (β=-0.179; p<0.001). In other words, perceived risk partially mediates the association between perceived food safety and customer repurchase intentions (t=2.273; p=0.022). Therefore, customers' trust can be built by providing food safety standards to foster their confidence and perceive minimal risk levels. The findings provided additional empirical evidence of marketing knowledge that the social exchange theory can explain. The results can be applied as a guideline for food delivery service businesses to escalate their service and standards to build customer trust and gain competitive advantages, particularly during pandemics when customers are more health-conscious than ever.

Impact of Food Hygiene on Purchase Intentions and its Mechanism in Bangkok Street Food under the Influence of COVID-19

“…Trust is defined as individuals' strong belief or expectation that others are reliable and can fulfill their obligations; it plays a crucial role in maintaining relationships in society 2,10,40 . Customer trust refers to customers' positive attitudes towards businesses and their products and services so that they will convey the quality they expect 3,41 . This research refers to customers' trust in particular street food vendors that their foods and services will not harm them, particularly foodborne illness and COVID-19.…”

“…Influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic, the restaurant business worldwide has struggled for years; restaurants were obligated to close or limit their businesses according to their governments to control and slow down the spreading of COVID-19, and the situation has just recently started to recover [1][2][3][4] . However, COVID-19 still affects people's lives, restaurants, and other businesses.…”

“…In 2021, the street food industry had 180 million Baht in market value and was anticipated to approach 186 million Baht in the later year, despite the impacts of the pandemic, and expected to grow continuously by 3% from 2020 to 2024 9 . The statistical data indicates that Thailand's street food industry is relatively competitive since it is attractive to new players, with low barriers and start-up costs 3,10,11 .…”

“…One concern often mentioned and discussed in the street food business is food hygiene, particularly in underdeveloped and developing countries 13,14 . Influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic, people have increasingly become sensitive and actively alert about their health and well-being 3,15 . This study proposed that food hygiene be tested to determine whether it can promote customer purchase intentions in the street food business in Bangkok.…”

The Determinants of Trust in Food Safety from the Perspective of Generation Z Students

“…In such relationships, trust is the belief of one side that the other side will not exploit their weaknesses (Kydd, 2000). When this condition is met, customer trust can lead to preferred outcomes, such as customer loyalty, repurchase intentions, and customer satisfaction (Ratasuk & Gajesanand, 2023). Mróz (2013) stresses that consumers of the 21 st century have transformed into "trysumers" ("trying consumer" -a consumer who tries, seeks), i.e.…”