Trust factors for organic foods: consumer buying behavior

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to assess the relationship between trust factors and buying behavior among consumers in the organic food market in Taiwan. Design/methodology/approach The researchers developed a questionnaire using latent variables including the trust factors, utilitarian attitudes, hedonic attitudes, buying behavior and demographic information of consumers of organic foods. Confirmatory factor analysis and the structural equation modeling were conducted using LISREL 8.80 for Windows. Findings The empirical results indicated that health content, locally produced products, organic food labels and price premiums positively and significantly affected utilitarian and hedonic attitudes. Both utilitarian attitudes and hedonic attitudes positively and significantly affected respondents’ buying behavior. A series of theoretical implications were identified. Practical implications The researchers concluded that providing consumers with practical information related to organic food, establishing local production facilities, developing content, standardizing labeling procedures and promoting a new organic certification system for small-scale producers will encourage more consumers to purchase organic food. Originality/value This study first examines the food trust buying behavior of organic foods and related consumption behavior theory questions. It mainly takes the stimulus–organism–response model as the foundation of its approach. Simultaneously, it also conforms to utilitarian behavior theory, and the process by which consumers become better aware of organic foods’ quality.