Consumer Market Research on Milk in the Rural Greek Population

Abstract

The purpose of the present paper is to analyse the consumption of different kinds of milk by the rural population of Greece, using the methods of multivariate analysis. First, using principal components analysis and the qualitative characteristics of milk, consumption patterns (profiles) for milk are formed. Secondly, the influence of socio-economic factors on these consumption pattems are estimated using variance analysis. Results revealed that the attitude of rural residents towards milk consumption is dominated by three critical issues: rationality, the practicality and rise of purchase, and new trend. An important finding is the existence of a high correlation between the degree of confidence in the product and the length of time that the product has been on the market. Moreover, while condensed milk exhibits a strong and positive profile in the milk market, its market share is expected to continue to drop in favour of pasteurised milk. Finally, some further implications of the study are drawn, concer...