ICoMST 2006

Future trends and consumer lifestyleswith respect to meat consumption

Klaus G. GrunertMAPP – Centre for Research onCustomer Relations in the Food SectorAarhus School of Business, Denmark

ICoMST 2006Dias 2

Trends in the way we eat

Storytelling sells food productsMeal patterns crumbling

Organic trend has topped

Convenience! Convenience!

Vegetarianism – the end of meatproduction?

Food on the go

No more kitchens in future homes?

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What is a lifestyle trend?

Human values

Perceptions Behavior

Quality Consumption CookingShopping

Food motives

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Four trends

1. The increasing role of extrinsic cues in quality perception of meat.

2. The distinction of fast and efficient shopping in supermarkets on the one hand and the buying of information-intensive specialized products in specific retail outlets on the other.

3. The increasing role of processed products, living up to both the demand for convenience and the trends towards meat avoidance in some consumer groups.

4. The channelling of concerns about meat production mainly into the citizen and less into the consumer role of people.

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Cues in quality perception

Extrinsicqualitycues

Expected quality:•Taste•Health•Convenience•Process

Intrinsic qualitycues

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What are extrinsic cues?

BrandsLabelsOrigin informationQuality marksAll other information provided to communicate theproduct’s value to the consumer

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Increasing role of extrinsic cues: Drivers

Discussion about food and healthMeat scandals and awareness of food safety issues’Stories’ to add value beyond basic productfunctions

Interest in additional productinformation

Based on Grunert, Skytte, Esbjerg, Poulsen & Hviid, 2002

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Increasing role of extrinsic cues: Inhibitors

Credibility issue: manufacturers have lowestconsumer credibility, followed by supermarkets, butchers, and consumer organizationsChannel organization: who should be theinformation provider?

Primaryproduction/ farmers

Slaughtering, cutting, boning, packaging

Meat marketsMeat productmanufacturers

Wholesalers

Retailers Consumers

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Effect of label information on quality perception

No info

Conventional

Free-range

Organic

Conventional pork: breed DLY (male: Duroc, female: Landrace X Yorkshire), feed: conventional, raised indoors

Organic pork: breed DLY (male: Duroc, female: Landrace X Yorkshire), feed: organic concentrate plus red clover silage ad lib, raised indoors with access to outdoor area on organic farm

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Effects of extrinsic cues can be dramatic

4,60

4,80

5,00

5,20

5,40

5,60

5,80

Conventionalpork

None Free-rangepork

Organic pork

Label information

Mea

n ov

eral

lac

cept

abilit

y ra

ting Conventional

Organic

Actual meat type:

Based on Scholderer & Bredahl, in press

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Four trends

1. The increasing role of extrinsic cues in quality perception of meat.

Fuelled by health and safety concernFuelled by demand for product ’stories’Consumers want themRequires credibility issue solvedRequires dominant actor in channelCan have dramatic effects when physicaldifferences are small

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But….what about the shopping?

Average time for decision in supermarkets is 12 secondsMany people even buy without knowing pricesHow can consumers even notice new productswith new extrinsic cues?

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Time for making a decision

15

17

19

21

23

25

27

1 2 3 4 5 6

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# of ‚clicks‘ per cue and session

0

0,5

1

1,5

2

2,5

3

3,5

welfare residues origin price

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Probability of having seen a cue

00,10,20,30,40,50,60,70,80,9

1

welfare residues origin price

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However…..

Involvement with product category and interest in specific extrinsic cues (e.g., regional origin) leadsto higher propensity to use specialty shops

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Four trends

2. The distinction of fast and efficient shopping in supermarkets on the one hand and the buying of information-intensive specialized products in specific retail outlets on the other. − Most meat shopping still in supermarkets− Even there new extrinsic cues will be noticed− Involvement with product category and interest in

specific extrinsic cues (e.g., regional origin) leadsto higher propensity to use specialty shops

− Diversification of retail concepts

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What is convenience?

A TYPOLOGY OF CONVENIENCE IN MEAL PREPARATION

Consumption stage What is being saved?

Time Physical energy Mental energy

Planning Habitual purchasing, weekly meal plans, intelligent fridge

Products arranged by recipe in shop, space management, intelligent fridge

Purchasing One-stop shopping, home delivery

Help in packaging and checking out, good parking facilities, home delivery

Known store layout, automated reordering

Preparation Ready-made meals, eating out, microwave ovens

Blenders and other kitchen appliances

Clear instructions

Eating One course meals, stand-up food outlets

Pre-cut food, meat without bones

Familiar food, finger food

Disposal One-way containers Dish washer

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Convenience: Drivers

Driven by demographic changes− Women in labour force− Family size− Scarcity of time relative to income

Perceived, not actual resourcesAttitudinal changes

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Convenience: Inhibitors

Convenience means different things to differentconsumers – development of convenienceproducts needs to be segment specific

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Purchase of convenience productsin different segments

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

frozenpizza

prepareddinners

preparedsalads

cannedfoods

hedonisticconservativeuninvolvedenthusiasticmoderateadventurous

Based on Ryan, Cowan, McCarthy & O’Sullivan, 2002

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Meat scepticism among young, female consumers

From Kubberød, Ueland, Tronstad & Risvik, 2002

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Convenience and meat avoidance

Meat avoidance: a tendency among some young, mostly female consumersMeat-based products that don’t look like meatBoth convenience and meat avoidance point towards products with a higher degree of processing

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Four trends

3. The increasing role of processed products, living up to both the demand for convenience and the trends towards meat avoidance in some consumer groups. − Higher degrees of processing require more

adaptation to different consumer segments− Convenience in terms of the whole meal

preparation chain

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What they say and what they do

Positive attitudes to organic products….Positive attitudes to animal welfare….Negative attitudes to in-door pig production….

Why are the market shares of organic, freerange, welfare products not higher?

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Attitudes and behaviour

Strong attitude•Considerableknowledge on attitude object•Based on ownexperience

Behaviour

Weak attitude•Little knowledge onattitude object•Not based on ownexperience

Behaviour

Situationalfactors

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Consumers vs. citizens

Weak attitude•Little knowledge onattitude object•Not based on ownexperience

Citizen behaviour

Situationalfactors

Weak attitude•Little knowledge onattitude object•Not based on ownexperience

Consumerbehaviour

Situationalfactors

ICoMST 2006Dias 31

Four trends

1. The increasing role of extrinsic cues in quality perception of meat.

2. The distinction of fast and efficient shopping in supermarkets on the one hand and the buying of information-intensive specialized products in specific retail outlets on the other.

3. The increasing role of processed products, living up to both the demand for convenience and the trends towards meat avoidance in some consumer groups.

4. The channelling of concerns about meat production mainly into the citizen and less into the consumer role of people.