Alternative Labeling Programs and Purchasing Behavior toward Organic Foods: The Case of the Participatory Guarantee Systems in Brazil

Giovanna Sacchi, Vincenzina Caputo and Rodolfo Nayga

Sustainability, 2015, vol. 7, issue 6, 1-20

Abstract: Regulatory standards and certification models are essential tools guaranteeing the authenticity of organic products. In particular, third-party certification is useful to consumers since it provides guarantees regarding production processes and food quality. In an attempt to cope with the costs and bureaucratic procedures related to the adoption of such certification, groups of small producers have begun to rely upon alternative quality assurance systems such as Participatory Guarantee Systems (PGS). This study contextualizes and analyzes the PGS scheme and describes the Brazilian Rede Ecovida de Agroecologia network. We then investigate the effect of various factors on Brazilian consumers’ purchasing behavior for organic products guaranteed by PGS. The results show that employed and older consumers who live in rural and suburban areas are more likely to buy organic PGS products.

Keywords: Alternative Food Networks; Participatory Guarantee Systems (PGS); consumer buying behavior for organic PGS products; Brazilian Rede Ecovida de Agroecologia (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2015
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (21)

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