Consumer Uncertainty in Online Food Purchase Behavior: An Analysis of the Online Food Safety Problem

Zhehui Xiao,Jinlong Zhang,Chinling Chen,Dekui Li

doi:10.19026/ajfst.10.2254

Abstract

This study develop a theoretical framework describing the uncertainty-based decision making process when a consumer purchasing food online in China. Drawn on the information asymmetry theory and based on a survey of 710 randomly selected online food buyers in China, the results show that website seller uncertainty and food uncertainty are critical barriers in consumers' online food purchase decision making. Furthermore, the majority of the antecedents mitigate consumers' perceived uncertainty. These findings show that the food vendor and website managers can mitigate uncertainty by providing a secure and user-friendly food shopping environment in China.

Highlights

As online retailing has grown rapidly worldwide and become globally competitive over the past decade, online markets still face a barrier in physical experience products that cannot be described via the Internet interface, such as online food retailing
After facing serious food safety incidents, including mad cow disease in Korea, the foot-and-mouth epidemic in China and the Belgian dioxin scandal, consumers worldwide have increasingly concerned with the quality and safety of the food they eat
The literature has focused on two major sources of information asymmetry that food buyers face in the online markets: about the website seller and about the product (Chang and Chen, 2009), resulting two sources of buyers' information asymmetry: website seller uncertainty and food uncertainty

Summary

INTRODUCTION

As online retailing has grown rapidly worldwide and become globally competitive over the past decade, online markets still face a barrier in physical experience products that cannot be described via the Internet interface, such as online food retailing. Website quality captures the information conveyed by signals that is trustworthy to potential buyers Applying these views to online food shopping contexts, it is believed that website quality can mitigate consumer's perceived uncertainty in website seller, because food website with high quality can send signals that aim to reduce online food consumer's perceived risk. The food safety assurance is defined that the Hypothesis 6: A buyer's perceived uncertainty in the presence of an Internet food quality information website seller is negative related to a buyer's intention provided by a third-party certifying such as consumer to purchase food online. A wide variety of Hypothesis 7: A buyer's perceived uncertainty in the safety assurances have been introduced to help reduce food is positively related to a buyer's intention to consumer risk in online food shopping context. An example of food safety assurance is ISO 22000, a non-profit comprehensive assurance

MATERIALS AND METHODS

AND DISCUSSION

CONCLUSION