Sustainable Food Consumption: Demand for Local Produce in Singapore

Abstract

The rapid pace of climate change has exacerbated Singapore’s ever-present vulnerability to food shortages. While most of Singapore’s current food supply is imported, the country is working towards becoming self-sufficient in at least 30% of its food demand by 2030. Though a high proportion of Singaporeans have pro-environmental views and believe that buying locally grown food is more eco-friendly, the demand for local produce remains low. To better understand the cause of this attitude–behaviour gap, this study investigated the factors influencing the purchasing decisions of local consumers, as well as their willingness to pay a premium for locally produced vegetables, eggs, and seafood in Singapore. The estimation results suggested that what primarily hinders the local produce demand of consumers with positive perceptions towards sustainability is not their income or product price. Instead, product-specific factors, such as freshness and quality of the produce, and easiness to identify the product at store were found to be positively associated with local produce purchase. Ensuring these factors can potentially lead to higher demand for local produce in Singapore. Attitudes and behaviours related to sustainability played a larger role in the willingness to pay (WTP) than purchase decision making. Thus, to enhance the WTP for local produce, educating the public regarding the sustainability aspect of local produce may prove to be effective.