Generational Differences toward Organic Food Behavior: Insights from Five Generational Cohorts

Abstract

One of the pathways to sustainable food consumption behaviour is the purchase and consumption of organic food products. This paper offers insights into the behaviour exercised by five generational cohorts toward organic products, i.e., Generation Z, Generation Y, Generation X, Baby Boomers, and the Silent Generation. A qualitative and quantitative research methodology is implemented, with the field research providing 1562 valid questionnaires over a nine-month period. Generational differences are explored in terms of purchasing behaviour, attitudes, and the effect of the economic crisis on the purchasing of organic food. Results unveil that all generational cohorts demonstrate a favourable attitude toward organic food, and they identify the economic crisis as an effect of low purchase behaviour. Additionally, findings reveal that in all cases, generational cohort differences do exist. Government policy through marketing communications can be adapted to determine the advantages of organic food compared to conventional ones, persuade consumers about the benefits, and, thus, reinforce favourable attitudes in association with economic crisis conditions.

Sustainable Food Consumption: Investigating Organic Meat Purchase Intention by Vietnamese Consumers

“…In keeping with recommendations by other researchers [94], the findings of this study can help the Vietnamese government to develop more effective consumer education and information programs. These might include national school education programs regarding the sustainability benefits of organic food consumption to help shape favorable sustainable attitudes and behavior in children.…”

“…Effective marketing communication for organic food is also critical in the promotion of more sustainable behavior [94,95] since advertising and communications play such significant roles in determining food product consumption [96]. Also as acknowledged by other studies [97,98] effective integrated multi-media public awareness campaigns offer strong potential for promoting organic food consumption, particularly when used in conjunction with appropriate packaging information and trustworthy certification.…”

South African Consumer Adoption of Plant-Based and Cultivated Meat: A Segmentation Study

“…Understanding the attributes of generations is important to consumer adoption in South Africa, with its relatively young population (United Nations Department of Economic Social Affairs, 2019). Generational differences have been found within adoption of emerging technologies such as the sharing economy (Hollowell et al, 2019); and also toward food, including for example, organic food purchasing (Kamenidou et al, 2020), morality beliefs toward meat consumption (Pribis et al, 2010), and cultivated meat specifically (Szejda et al, 2021). Because generational cohorts can share similar attitudes and purchasing behavior, segmentation by generation is an important strategy for both effective marketing (Dabija and Bǎbu, t, 2019) and understanding long-term adoption potential.…”

Knowledge Assessment of COVID-19 Symptoms: Gender Differences and Communication Routes for the Generation Z Cohort

“…Generational cohorts refer to individuals born within a specific time frame, specific area, and have lived the same life-changing events when they are 17–23 years of age. It is believed that common experiences and events formulate shared values and the establishment of similar behaviors that define each cohort [ 22 , 30 , 31 , 32 ]. The generation Z members are digitally savvy, and because of their relationship with technology, “Gen Z’ers” are also known as the “Digital natives,” “Homo Zappiens,” the “Google generation,” the “Net Generation,” or the “Dot-com kids” [ 33 , 34 , 35 ].…”