Consumer behavior disruption in the pandemic era: A studyon food consumption patterns in Bengaluru North, Karnataka

Abstract

The study was conducted to assess the consumer’s behavior patterns pertaining to online food purchasingduring COVID-19 in Bengaluru North district of Karnataka. The primary data were collected from 60 consumers.The study revealed that, based on consumer behavior over e-platforms in the past 6 months, a large number(63.33%) of respondents chose food and grocery delivery apps for shopping. The food categories purchasedonline were fast food (53.30%). Of the sample respondents, 70.00 (prior pandemic) and 71.67% (post-pandemic)indicated convenience as the main reason to purchase food online. Around 60.00, 45.00, and 46.67% of therespondents purchased online one to five times per month pre-pandemic, during the pandemic, and post-pandemic, respectively. About 33.33% of the respondents were ready to pay 1–5% as a premium. Among therespondents, the majority (46.70%) of them were ready to pay only Rs. 10–20 as delivery charges, and 33.33%positively responded to trying monthly subscription services. The study also revealed that more than 50.00% ofthem were concerned about the quality of the food, whereas in the case of groceries/ready-to-eat food, only43.33% of the consumers were concerned about the quality. About 60.00% of consumers were not willing topurchase meat online.