This article is online at http://www.ag.ohio-state.edu/~news/story.php?id=3002
01/19/2005
Writer:
Martha Filipic
filipic.3@osu.edu
(614) 292-9833
Source:
Jeff Sharp, Human and Community Resource Development
sharp.123@osu.edu
614-292-9410
Molly Bean Smith
bean.21@osu.edu
(614) 292-1354
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Ohioans' support for local and organic foods reaches into their wallet -- at least sometimes.
According to a recent survey, 59 percent of respondents said they would be willing to pay at least 10 percent more for locally grown foods, and 39 percent said they would do so for organically grown foods.
"We're seeing quite a lot of enthusiasm among consumers for locally grown foods, and more modest interest in organically grown foods," said Jeff Sharp, rural sociologist with the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center (OARDC) and Ohio State University Extension. "Historically, the marketing of organic and locally grown foods overlapped quite a bit. Now, foods labeled 'organic' are widely available but not necessarily locally grown. Yet a subset of people exists who are even more interested in locally grown foods. I think we're seeing growing diversity in the attributes consumers are looking for in the alternative food system."
Sharp will be presenting these results from the 2004 Ohio Survey on Jan. 20 at the Ohio Fruit and Vegetable Growers' Congress in Toledo. The Congress is being held Jan. 19-21 at the Toledo Seagate Convention Centre and Radisson Hotel.
Molly Bean Smith, a doctoral student who helped with the survey, said people still take other factors into higher consideration when purchasing a product. "Taste, availability, nutritional value and price all were 'very important' to most consumers when making food purchase decisions," Smith said.
But interest in local and organic foods also is strong, she said. In the survey, conducted last summer, 89 percent of respondents said they frequently or occasionally buy locally grown foods, and 40 percent said they frequently or occasionally buy organic foods. For locally grown foods, 50 percent said they would be willing to pay 10 percent more; 8 percent said they would pay 25 percent more, and 1 percent said they would pay 50 percent more. For organic foods, 32 percent said they would pay 10 percent more; 6 percent said they would pay 25 percent more; and 1 percent said they would pay 50 percent more.
In doing further analysis of respondents, Smith found that those more interested in locally produced foods were also more interested in the well-being of farmers; more supportive of farming and farmland preservation; and significantly more inclined to trust farmers than those more interested in organic foods. On the other hand, those more interested in organic foods tended to be more concerned about water quality, global warming and animal welfare issues.
"It will be interesting to see how producers, marketers and retailers react to this information," Smith said. "These days, you find that organic foods are increasingly labeled as such, but the fact that a food is produced locally is not always evident." Retailers may want to consider highlighting this information, she said, to help consumers recognize which foods are grown locally and to take advantage of some consumers' willingness to pay at least a small premium for locally grown foods.
The project was funded by Ohio State's Department of Human and Community Resource Development, OSU Extension, OARDC, and the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences. The 10-page survey was mailed to 3,500 residents throughout Ohio in summer of 2004. A total of 56 percent responded. Respondents' demographic characteristics matched well with Ohio's population as a whole, Sharp said, except that survey respondents tended to be slightly more educated, reported slightly higher home values, and included a smaller proportion of African-American respondents compared with the statewide population.
For more information on the Ohio Fruit and Vegetable Growers Congress, log on to http://www.ohiofruit.org, http://www.ohiovegetables.org or call Susan Gaughan at (614) 246-8292, or e-mail growohio@ofbf.org.
The conference is sponsored by Ohio State University Extension, the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center, the Ohio Vegetable and Potato Growers Association and the Ohio Fruit Growers Society, the Ohio Direct Agricultural Marketing Association and the Ohio Christmas Tree Association.
-30-