Do You Really Want to Know? Exploring Desired Information Transparency for Local Food Products

Abstract

Food system communicators are challenged to inform the public about food consumption in a way that addresses consumer interests and values. Consumers are increasingly concerned about the environmental risks of food production and may be seeking local food as a more sustainable option than conventional food. Online food purchasing is expanding the options and information available to consumers. Identifying the value of environmental impact measures accompanying local food online provides insight into food marketing strategies for different audiences. The purpose of this research was to predict the importance of environmental impact measures for individuals purchasing local food online given their information seeking, subjective norms, and perceived connection between local food and climate change mitigation. Data were collected using a web-based survey of 906 respondents from Florida, Georgia, and Alabama. Findings revealed respondents tend to think local food contributes to climate change mitigation, and environmental impact measures should account for their information seeking, subjective norms, and perceived connection between local food and climate change mitigation. Transparency about local food environmental impacts may inform consumer decision making about food consumption. This study adds to the literature on perceived risk related to agri-food systems and calls for an exploration of information seeking with online grocery purchasing.