Good Practices in Educating and Informing the New Generation of Consumers on Organic Foodstuffs
Author:Lelia Voinea, Dorin Vicenţiu Popescu and Mihai Teodor Negrea
JEL:M10, O13, Z10
DOI:
Keywords:the new generation of consumers, ecologic foodstuff, good practices,
nutritional profile, consumer perception, education and consumer information
Abstract:
The positive image of organic products among consumers has grown gradually. Today, this
image is based on a number of researches and studies conducted by specialized government
bodies and private organizations and research institutes that show that these products offer, in
terms of their nutritional profile, a high intake of nutrients with positive impact on health.
Consumers also know that operators who produce and sell such products are subject to
rigorous regulations for obtaining the organic certificate and the right to use the organic logo
and are regularly monitored by inspection and certification bodies in this regard – facts that
increase the new generation of consumers’ confidence in the quality and safety of these
products. Having the aim of highlighting the decisive factors which contribute to the creation
of a positive image for the ecological foodstuff among consumers and in order to understand
the real motivations of the decisional process of buying these products, an exploring
marketing research was realized among the new generation of consumers. Another aim of the
investigation is the identification of some problems connected with a possible unbalanced
nutritional profile of some ecological products commercialized in Romania and whose
consumption may be inadequate for a diet and, implicitly, for some consumers’ health,
especially for those having certain food restrictions caused by nutritional diseases from which
they suffer. In this regard, we are going to analyse, from a scientific point of view, the
nutritional profile of some ecological foodstuff found on the market in Romania, using an
accredited and standardized method within the European Union- the SAIN-LIM method.
Thereby, the paper aims to highlight the antithesis between the formal positive consumer
perception and the nutritional profile of some organic products on the Romanian market.
Through this endeavour we intend to draw attention on the need of adopting a good practices
guideline in education and consumer information in order to acquire the skills for a more
correct buying decision. We believe that these good practices should be included among the
pursuits of the education system, government structures and specialized NGOs.