Abstract
This study aimed to examine: (1) how the Internet has changed consumers food-buying behavior and identify its associated factors; (2) consumers’ concern about food safety information of online food products. A cross-sectional study was performed from October to December 2015 in Hanoi—a Vietnamese epicenter of food service. One thousand seven hundred and thirty six (1736) customers were randomly chosen from food establishments of 176 communes. Data were collected through face-to-face interviews using structured questionnaires. The majority of participants reported using the Internet to search for food products (81.3%). The most crucial factors influencing food purchases through the Internet were convenience (69.1%) and price (59.3%). Only one-third of participants selected products based on accurate evidence about food safety certification or food origin. The majority of participants were concerned about the expiration date (51.6%), while brand (9.8%) and food licensing information (11.3%) were often neglected. People who were:(1) female, (2) highly influenced by online relationships, and (3) having difficulty in doing usual activities were more likely to look for online food products. These findings produce practical advice to consumers when purchasing their desired food products on the Internet, to online food retailers and to the Government of Vietnam to implement appropriate legislation regarding trading online food products.
Highlights
The recent development of the Internet has boosted the extension of online food services by enabling people to search, compare prices and conveniently access these services [1,2,3]
Our study provided more insightful understanding regarding how consumers are concerned about food safety information of online food products
A total of 1298 participants used the Internet, 61.1% were female and the number of females seeking online food services was significantly higher than number of male that did (84.9% and 75.6% respectively)
Summary
The recent development of the Internet has boosted the extension of online food services by enabling people to search, compare prices and conveniently access these services [1,2,3]. As of 2016, approximately 95% of the United States population searched for online food service information at least once [4], and while in 2015 more than one-third of Asia-Pacific participants, especially in developing countries, answered that they looked for and ordered products via the Internet [5]. Such business raises food safety and hygiene considerations, in low and middle—income countries where food systems are heterogeneous and fragmented, with a predominance of small informal food retailers [6]. The government of China has published the amendments to the Implementing Regulations of the Food Safety Law enforcing online food businesses to monitor food and carry out food examinations to ensure that the online food products are legally sourced, safely stored and transferred [10]
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