Το ενδιαφέρον και η προθυμία πληρωμής για βιώσιμο κακάο : μια μελέτη των Ελλήνων καταναλωτών

Γκίκα Μαντζώρου, Αρχοντία Αργυρούλα

Consumers' interest and willingness to pay for sustainable cocoa : a study of Greek consumers

Master Thesis

Author

Γκίκα Μαντζώρου, Αρχοντία Αργυρούλα

Date

2023-10

Abstract

Cocoa is a commodity with a rich history, that is consumed all over the world, in different forms, either as a beverage, or a dessert, but also in the form of the well-known bar of chocolate. The cultivation and production of cocoa often begins at small family farms and consists of multiple stages, in order for the final product to reach the consumer. However, its cultivation and production are characterized by economic, socio-economic and environmental challenges, which organizations, companies, and countries are seeking to address and eliminate. Through their purchasing choices, consumers play an essential role in addressing these challenges and shifting towards sustainable cocoa, particularly younger generations such as Generation Z, as they are gaining more and more purchasing power. In pursuit of the objectives of this thesis, a survey was conducted with 154 Greek consumers. This survey covered five characteristics that a product containing cocoa may possess, namely its environmental impact, social impact, being an organic product, having environmentally friendly packaging and bearing certification marks/logos such as the Fairtrade, Rainforest Alliance and EU Organic marks. Initially, the research focused on exploring how interested in these characteristics were the consumers, as well as on exploring their willingness to pay for “better” products (e.x. products with lower environmental impact), by age group. Tests of mean differences through ANOVA tests were carried out. The characteristic that appears to be of most interest and to influence consumers’ willingness to pay the most, regarding every age group, is that of social impact. Multiple regression analyses were performed employing the ordinary least squares (OLS) estimation method to examine the relationship between demographics, interest in each characteristic, and knowledge regarding the industry challenges with willingness to pay. These analyses revealed that consumer interest in each of the five characteristics significantly and positively influenced willingness to pay and, while the association between age with willingness to pay was not statistically significant in every case, it was always negative, indicating that younger generations are more willing to pay for products that possess the characteristics that were examined. This research highlights the key role that consumers, particularly the younger ones, play in promoting sustainability in the cocoa industry and provides information on the factors that shape their purchasing decisions.

Postgraduate Studies Programme

Βιοοικονομία, Κυκλική Οικονομία και Βιώσιμη Ανάπτυξη

Department

Σχολή Οικονομικών, Επιχειρηματικών και Διεθνών Σπουδών. Τμήμα Οικονομικής Επιστήμης

Number of pages

Language

Greek

URI

https://dione.lib.unipi.gr/xmlui/handle/unipi/16119
http://dx.doi.org/10.26267/unipi_dione/3541

Collections

Τμήμα Οικονομικής Επιστήμης

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Except where otherwise noted, this item's license is described as
Αναφορά Δημιουργού-Μη Εμπορική Χρήση-Όχι Παράγωγα Έργα 3.0 Ελλάδα