Informational Asymmetry in the Brazilian Orange Juice Market

Abstract

Certification, labeling, standardization, traceability, and origin seals take part of a context where the information plays a key role for the guarantee of food safety. However, the available information about food quality attributes is frequently imperfect to consumers, producers, and industry. In the agri-food chain, the consumer is the actor with the lowest degree of information. The main qualitative-quantitative variables of the juice characteristics from different production systems were confronted with an analysis of the consumer perception, in order to clarify the main questions related to the quality of different types of orange juice. The research (185 questionnaires) carried out with consumers of orange juice in the campus “Luiz de Queiroz,” University of São Paulo, Piracicaba, São Paulo state, Brazil, showed that the majority of consumers consider that the information on the labels is not clear. Moreover, about 70% of the interviewed participants did not know the difference between orange juice and nectar. The main reason for consumption of orange juice was the flavor and the main reason for buying a specific brand was the price. The results suggest that the orange juice industries practice an opportunistic attitude, taking advantage of the fact that the consumer is unaware of the legal definition of nectar, different types of orange juices, and information on the labels of different orange juices and nectars.