Journal
FOOD QUALITY AND PREFERENCE
Volume 53, Issue -, Pages 90-96Publisher
ELSEVIER SCI LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.foodqual.2016.05.011
Keywords
Packaging; Organics; Choice; Produce; Fruit; Vegetables; Unpacked
Categories
Funding
- Frugi Venta Committee for Organic trade: Eosta
- Green Organics
- Kroon
- Naturelle
- Udea
- Ministry of Economic Affairs for the project Een duurzaam schapresultaat [BO-20-014-007]
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In many supermarkets throughout Europe, it has become common practice in the fruit and vegetable department to offer options in plastic packaging. Recent trends, however, move towards the removal of packaging. The current study examines whether offering fruit and vegetables without primary packaging increases the likelihood that consumers choose these products. This is especially relevant for organic fruit and vegetables, given that plastic may be perceived as contrary to the sustainable nature of these products. A first experiment, using a student sample and an immersive 3D virtual supermarket environment, shows that choice for organic fruit and vegetables indeed increases when organics are offered without packaging. A second experiment with the virtual supermarket generalizes these findings to a sample of supermarket patrons, additionally showing that unpacked fruit and vegetables are preferred over packed options overall, both for organic and non-organic products. We conclude that removing the primary packaging of organic fruit and vegetables appears to be a promising intervention in attempts to increase organic sales. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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