Conventional or Organic? Motives and Trends in Polish Vegetable Consumption

Katarzyna Mazur-Włodarczyk and Agnieszka Gruszecka-Kosowska
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Katarzyna Mazur-Włodarczyk: Faculty of Economics and Management, Department of Enterprise Management, E-Business and Electronic Economy, Opole University of Technology, E-Business and Electronic Economy, 7 Luboszycka St, 45-036 Opole, Poland
Agnieszka Gruszecka-Kosowska: Department of Environmental Protection, Faculty of Geology, Geophysics, and Environmental Protection, AGH University of Science and Technology, al. A. Mickiewicza 30, 30-059 Krakow, Poland

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 8, 1-20

Abstract: Vegetables constitute a major component of human food security. They are the main sources of essential nutrients including antioxidants, natural dyes, minerals, and vitamins. Eating habit issues related to the consumption of vegetables are gaining importance within the context of a healthy lifestyle, longevity, and physical fitness. Additionally, food quality is of primary importance, and so-called eco-food (defined as food as natural as possible, without fertilizers, pesticides, or preservatives) seems to be the most popular world-trend in healthy nutrition. Keeping these ideas in focus, research on vegetable consumption in Poland in the context of conventional or organic production was performed using online questionnaire surveys. The results revealed that the rate of vegetable consumption depended primarily on economic status, except for the potato, which was a staple cutting across all economic strata. Among the 108 analyzed respondents, 74% bought vegetables from certified organic farms. However, 59% bought organic vegetables “rarely” or “sometimes”, and only 15% “often”. Next, respondents chose to buy vegetables from fresh food markets (45%) and in local shops (41%). About 20% of the respondents acquired vegetables from their own farms. Among the reasons for choosing vegetables from certified organic farms, respondents mentioned in decreasing order: “desire for proper nutrition” (30%), “thinking that organic vegetables are healthier” (28%), and “organic vegetables are generally better” (7%).

Keywords: vegetable intake; eating habits; consumer trust; sustainable consumption; harmonization; food labeling (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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