Determinants of Cross-Border Food Purchases on the European Union Market: Research Results from the Lithuanian–Polish Border

Abstract

Cross-border trade is one of the possible ways to promote sustainable development by facilitating the exchange of knowledge, technology, and resources and fostering transnational cooperation and innovation towards more environmentally and socially responsible practices. Considering this, the aim of this study was to identify the determinants of food purchases in the EU market in the complex context of factors influencing cross-border purchasing behavior. The novelty of this research lies in its focus on analyzing the determinants of food purchases by inhabitants of border regions in the EU market, specifically within the context of cross-border shopping behavior, using face-to-face self-report interviews conducted in 2022 among Lithuanian consumers purchasing food from the Polish border market. Employing multivariate analysis and scoring methods, a model of the market behavior of inhabitants of the border regions inside the European Union was built and statistically verified. The identification of key determinants, i.e., economic factors (p = 0.013), marketing factors (p = 0.003), risk related to economic factors (p = 0.036), material status (p = 0.009), professional activity (p = 0.044), and age of respondents (p = 0.020), offers valuable insights to scholars investigating consumer cross-border shopping behavior and empowers trade organizers and managers in making informed corporate strategy decisions.