Profile of organic food consumers in Bulgaria

Abstract

Introduction : The growing interest in organic products raises the question of who buys organic foods. The existing literature reveals the role of some sociodemographic factors (age, income). Aim: The aim of this article is to study the demographic and socioeconomic characteristics of organic food consumers. Materials and Methods : From November 2020–April 2021, 150 consumers from Dobrich district were interviewed about their awareness and attitude to buy organic foods. The results of the study were statistically processed using Jamovi, version 2.2.5. The criterion χ 2 (Pearson's Chi-square) was used, with significance levels α = 0.05 and α = 0.1. Results : The largest relative share of regular consumers is that of individuals buying organic foods once a week. The analysis of the data shows that the relative share of women in the sample predominates. A statistically significant difference was found in nine of the tested hypotheses about the differences between men and women. The data show that more often women are the ones who buy food products, incl. organic foods. Conclusion : The profile of the consumers of organic foods is related to gender. The growing trend towards the consumption of organic food in the world, including in Bulgaria, is due to the potential health benefits, to which mostly women have an attitude.