vegetables

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Insights into Australia’s vegetable consumers

New research has found that Australian vegetable consumers can be divided into four groups, with their categorisation pivoting on whether they value taste over nutrition and whether they prefer exploring new options over sticking to their old favourites.

Are you a conscious improver, eager explorer, wholesome habits or flavour follower consumer?

Australia’s vegetable consumers can be divided into these four groups according to whether they value taste over nutrition and prefer exploring new options over sticking to their old favourites, new research suggests.

Health is the core driver behind the average Australian’s vegetable purchases, but the variety of vegetables they buy is determined by how much they prioritise each of those four key drivers. According to a news release by horticultural body Ausveg, the report, produced by market research agency Colmar Brunton, shows Australian vegetable buyers can be divided into the four roughly equal groups based on their personalities and the benefits they’re looking to get out of their vegetable consumption:

  • Conscious Improvers: consumers who love new things and nutritional benefits.
  • Flavour Followers: those who aim to buy what they already know they like.
  • Wholesome Habits: those who look for nutrition but prefer their staple vegetable choices. (These consumers value recommendations from family and friends, and place less importance on recommendations from media sources.)
  • Eager Explorers: buyers who value taste and explore new vegetables. (Nearly 60% of them get inspiration from cookbooks, and around a third of the same group say they take recommendations from media like MasterChef and Better Homes and Gardens.)

Kurt Hermann. Ausveg assistant manager for industry development, said taking the categories into account can provide better insight into what value Australian consumers looking for from their vegetables and where they get their inspiration.

“This data creates the opportunity for growers and other industry members to develop strategies that will connect with each segment and highlight the aspects of vegetables that they really care about.”

The report is part of a consumer and market research project funded by Horticulture Innovation Australia using the National Vegetable Levy and funds from the Australian Government. Ausveg represents more than 9,000 Australian vegetable and potato growers.

source: Ausveg

 

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North Americans to Eat More Fruit and Vegetables

changes in fruit consumpt

Fresh produce consumption to rise in Pacific Rim

Canadians will be eating 5.7% more fruit and vegetables and Americans 4.9% more by 2025, according to the USDA Economic Research Service (ERS).

And per capita fruit and vegetable consumption will similarly rise in Vietnam, by 5.3%, Chile 4.8%, Malaysia 4.5%, Japan 4.4%, Australia 3.8%, New Zealand 3.3%, Peru 3.3%, Mexico 2.5% and Singapore 1.5%, it predicts.

 

The figures are in the ERS’s baseline scenario for percent changes in per capita consumption quantities for 2014-2025 and appear in its recent report “Agriculture in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)”.

Fruit and vegetable consumption increases as incomes do

The report says the figures reflect that income growth is associated with higher intakes of fresh fruits and vegetables in low, middle and high income countries. “This is due to factors including improvements in the quality and diversity of fresh produce and the effects of higher income on the demand for fresh fruits and vegetables.”

 

The report assesses the potential impacts of the proposed TPP trade and investment agreement under negotiation by 12 countries in the Pacific Rim, including the US. Population growth will be the main engine driving the 10.4% real growth in the region’s demand for food over 2014-25 under the baseline scenario, it says.

Increased trade in fruit and vegetables

The ERS expects the value of intra-TPP agricultural trade to rise 16.8% by 2025, compared to a 9.3% gain across all commodities.

 

 

Read the report:

http://www.ers.usda.gov/publications/err-economic-research-report/err176.aspx