Study on Consumer Recognition of, Satisfaction with, and Repurchase Willingness for Forest Products Certified by the CAS Certification System

Abstract

The logo of Certified Agriculture Standards (CAS) represents the certification for premium Taiwanese domestic agricultural product. Since 2005, the CAS certification system has involved the certification of forest products, which mainly include bamboo charcoal, bamboo vinegar, and related products. This study used a questionnaire to analyze the domestic consumer recognition of, customer satisfaction with, and customer willingness to repurchase CAS-certified forest products. The major purpose of this study was to offer results as references for strategies to promote marketing by the manufacturers of bamboo charcoal and bamboo vinegar, and the CAS Development Association in the future. The main results showed that the consumer recognition of CAS labels reached 82.9%, although only 42.6% of consumers knew that forest products were involved in the CAS certification system, only 28.1% of consumers had purchased CAS-certificated forest products, and only 1/3 of total consumers had purchased bamboo charcoal-related products (including non-certified products). Obviously, past activities to promote these products were insufficient. Hence, to promote the benefits for both producers and consumers through implementation of an excellence certification system, activities to popularize the CAS certification system related to forest products must be strengthened in scope and depth. Additionally, the results of χ^2-test of demographic characteristics showed that there was a significant difference in ages of people who recognized the CAS label. A higher proportion of the elderly group over 60 yr of age was familiar with the CAS label than other age groups. Therefore, the elderly group with a high interest in certified products should not be ignored when activities to popularize the CAS certification system are carried out in the future.