Conjoint analysis to evaluate consumer preference on certified agricultural products in the Central Taiwan

¹ Department of Forestry, National Chung Hsing University, 145 Xingda Rd., Taichung 40227, Taiwan
² International Master Program of Agriculture, National Chung Hsing University, 145 Xingda Rd., Taichung 40227, Taiwan

^* Corresponding author: takagi827@nchu.edu.tw

Abstract

Certified labels to verify the safety of agricultural products have gained the consumers’ concerns in Taiwan. Therefore, conjoint analysis was conducted to investigate the effect of labels on consumer preferences by comparing three different logos and price levels. In addition, Pearson’s correlation was used to determine how demographic factors affected food choice. The data collected from 83 respondents from two markets in Taichung City were carried out between December 16 and December 17, 2017. The study results showed that consumers chose agricultural products based on safety (55.28%), as indicated by the product labeling compared to price (44.72%). Of the three logos available, consumers preferred the first choice on the Traceable Agricultural Products (TAP) logo, followed by Certified Agricultural Standards (CAS) organic, CAS, and no logo. In terms of price, consumers preferred the middle price levels of NTD 50 and NTD 70 as simulated by 1 kg cabbage. Socioeconomic factors such as gender, education level, and the number of family dependents have no significant effect on the consumer choice of logos. However, health status, age, and income have a significant correlation with consumer preferences, which the poor health status, older, and wealthier costumers were more likely to purchase food with logo.