Abstract
Objective: To identify and compare the most relevant attributes for consumers when deciding to buy olive oil in Brazil and Portugal.Method: In the first study, 10 olive oil consumers were interviewed to understand and identify the attributes that influence the decision process. In the second study, a survey was conducted with 338 consumers to compare the importance of the attributes.Findings: Taste, type of olive oil, acidity and price were among the five most important attributes for both nationalities, along with brand (only for Brazilians) and country of origin (only for Portuguese). Among the most important attributes, price was the least important and was used as a tie-breaker between similar products.Originality: Despite the economic importance of this market (€856 million in 2019), little is known about the attributes that are most relevant to consumers. This research provides current information on these attributes.
Highlights
During the last few years, olive oil consumption has increased in several countries, mainly driven by the Mediterranean Diet, a dietary concept that provides important health benefits and has olive oil as one of its main components (Estruch, Lamuela-Raventós, & Ros, 2020; Gavahian, Khaneghah, lorenzo, Munekata, Garcia-Mantrana, Collado & Barba, 2019; Roselli, Carlucci, & De Gennaro, 2016)
Previous research has shown that acidity, price, origin, and brand are the most important attributes for Brazilians (Ambrosini, Specht, Blume, & Lipp, 2017) and that Portuguese consumers place more importance on acidity, brand, price, color, and region of origin when choosing an olive oil (Rocha, Pereira, & Carqueja, 2007). These studies, have some limitations: 1) 85% of the sample in the first study resided in Rio Grande do Sul, which creates doubt as to whether the results would be the same if the participants were from other states, since the diversity in consumption habits among Brazilian states is high (Feil, Cyrne, Sindelar, Barden, & Dalmoro, 2020; Hamza, Dalmarco, & Pereira, 2018); 2) the second study was conducted more than 10 years ago, so there is room for many changes in consumer behavior from to ; 3) Both studies did not compare the opinion of Brazilians and Portuguese to know which attributes are more important in each country
All interviewees agreed that the main reason for buying olive oil is its taste and the fact that it is a healthier fat, "which is good for your health" (Wilma, Brazilian)
Summary
During the last few years, olive oil consumption has increased in several countries, mainly driven by the Mediterranean Diet, a dietary concept that provides important health benefits and has olive oil as one of its main components (Estruch, Lamuela-Raventós, & Ros, 2020; Gavahian, Khaneghah, lorenzo, Munekata, Garcia-Mantrana, Collado & Barba, 2019; Roselli, Carlucci, & De Gennaro, 2016). Previous research has shown that acidity, price, origin, and brand are the most important attributes for Brazilians (Ambrosini, Specht, Blume, & Lipp, 2017) and that Portuguese consumers place more importance on acidity, brand, price, color, and region of origin when choosing an olive oil (Rocha, Pereira, & Carqueja, 2007) These studies, have some limitations: 1) 85% of the sample in the first study resided in Rio Grande do Sul, which creates doubt as to whether the results would be the same if the participants were from other states, since the diversity in consumption habits among Brazilian states is high (Feil, Cyrne, Sindelar, Barden, & Dalmoro, 2020; Hamza, Dalmarco, & Pereira, 2018); 2) the second study was conducted more than 10 years ago, so there is room for many changes in consumer behavior from to ; 3) Both studies did not compare the opinion of Brazilians and Portuguese to know which attributes are more important in each country.
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