Implementation of social and environmental standards: Continuity in use based on benefits and costs. A case study: the flower label program in Ecuador

135 p.In 1996 a German initiative created the Flower Label Program, with the main intention of improving the image of the floricultural sector in this country, and improving the social and environmental conditions in the developing countries in which flowers are produced. The scheme to be implemented by cut flower producers was seen by them to be an opportunity to reach a privileged position in this market, as the continued protests led by social and environmental organizations in Germany could create restrictions for the trade of non labelled flower in this market. Therefore flower growers saw in the label the possibility of improving access to the German market and gaining better prices while they accomplished what they consider to be part of their philosophy with respect to social and environmental concerns. However, after the label was implemented, the benefits obtained by flower growers were less than expected, creating the possibility that companies already working with the scheme could stop its use. This situation prompted the current study, which attempts to determine the principal factors influencing decisions regarding continued use of the label by flower producers. In order to accomplish this goal, the current qualitative study uses a conceptual framework based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), in order to analyze the influence of different factors such as perceived benefits, perceived costs, external pressure and external variables in the final decision. Thus, the results revealed that the most important factor influencing continuity in the label’s use is the construct perceived costs which shows a direct influence in the final decision as well as an indirect effect through perceived benefits. Similarly, intangible economic benefits coming from enterprise image improvements were found to be crucial factors determining the label’s continuity in use, as well as the construct firm’s philosophy which influences indirectly the final decision by attenuating cost perceptions. Additionally, the construct enterprise ideas was also found to be an important determinant of the final decision, both directly and indirectly through the construct enterprise image

Competitive diagnostic of cacao sector in Ecuador: an application of porter s diamond model of competitiveness

92 p.During the 1800, Ecuador was the greatest fine and flavour cocoa exporter. This product known as the golden bean was world wide recognized for its floral scent and excellent taste. After this a disease crisis almost finished the cocoa in Ecuador, the witches broom and monilia attacked almost all the plantations making the farmers abandon them to dedicate to other crops. Nowadays Ecuador is no longer the greatest producer of cocoa in the world, but for the variety Fine and Flavour cocoa. Before 1993 Ecuador was recognized by the International Cocoa Council, ICCO, as a 100% fine and flavour cocoa exporter. Know 2007, Ecuador has reduced its percentage to a 75% Fine and flavour cocoa exporter, the other 25 % is considered has ordinary cocoa. Even though, Ecuadorian cocoa still be demanded in the international market. Having this scenario, the present investigation divided in six chapters will analysed the competitiveness of the cocoa sector in Ecuador using Michael Porter Diamond Model of Competitiveness. The present work will lead the reader to a global outlook of the cocoa world, the world production and demand, as well how is organized; passing through an analysis of the sector in Ecuador, to continue to the discussion part between efficiency and competitiveness, for later on explain Michael Porter’s model, to finally apply it to find out if the cocoa sector in Ecuador is competitive or not, look at the weaknesses that the sector might have in order to improve them to gain more market share in the international market

Consumers preferences and buying behavior towards traditional food products in Chile: a conjoint analysis

118 p.A study was carried out in Chile in order to evaluate consumers’ preferences for traditional food products employing conjoint analysis. A total of 234 questionnaires were filled by respondents from two Chilean cities, Santiago and Talca. A homemade marmalade and three product attributes with its respective levels were chosen (price, quality label and package appearance). Nine profiles were generated applying orthogonal design with SPPS conjoint analysis 9.0. Respondents were asked to rank pictorial cards according their preferences. The results suggest that the attribute quality label is the most important cue, influencing consumer’s choice behavior for a traditional food product. Even more, a quality label certified by SAG achieved the highest utility. In addition, respondents were willing to pay more for a labeled product than for a product without a quality label. However, promotional and communication campaigns are needed to inform consumers about the importance and characteristics of a quality signal. This could allow achieving the potential advantages of a labeling program. Further research is required to corroborate the results shown in this study, as well as to identify the variables affecting the consumption pattern of traditional food products, and the willingness to pay for them

Brand orientation in the wine sector: a case study in Germani

66 p.This research describes the brand orientation of German wine growers. It can be split into three groups or clusters: the first with a Positive orientation to the brand, a second group with a "Perceptible orientation" to the brand and a third group "Nonoriented" to the brand. Three factors were found: an ambitious factor "Development of the brand", and second factor "Protection of the brand" and a third factor "Marketing training activities". The data used come from a survey of wine producers with 20.75 % of return.Multivariate analysis was used with factor analysis and cluster analysis as techniqu

Reliability of the organic certification from the producer’s perspective in Colombia

90 p. Georg-August-University of Göttingen, GermanyThe organic market has been one of the fastest growing segments in the world since 1990. Meanwhile, organic certification has become an important instrument in the market of credence goods (e.g. organic produce), which are characterized by information asymmetry between producers and consumers. Therefore, its reliability can not be taken for granted, since some typical features of the organic sector create favorable conditions for opportunistic behavior. In this context, the objective of the present research is to identify the variables influencing the reliability of organic certification from the producer perspective in Colombia and the relation of this with its credibility, good reputation and satisfaction. In order to identify the mentioned variables, a survey was conducted among 71 certified organic producers in Colombia. Then, factor and regression analysis were carried out with the purpose of extracting the independent, dependent and target variables and the relationship between them. These results were contrasted with the model proposed and tested in previous studies in Brazil and Costa Rica, to finally, be able to make some comparisons between the three countries. The model to assess the reliability of organic certification in Colombia consists of nine independent variables (“family control”, “buyer control”, “CB’s good reputation”, “auditor strictness”, “organic motivation”, “CB strictness”, “association control”, “risk propensity” and “market access necessity”); two dependent variables (“perceived reliability” and “reliability at the farmer level”); and three target variables (“credibility”, “satisfaction” and “good reputation”). The independent variables with the strongest influence on the dependent ones are “CB’s good reputation” on “perceived reliability” and “association control” on “reliability at the farmer level”. In turn, “perceived reliability” is the dependent variable with the highest influence on the target ones, specifically on “credibility of organic certification”. On the other hand, when comparing the models to assess the reliability of organic certification in Brazil, Costa Rica and Colombia, it was possible to conclude that that the “auditor expertise and strictness” is a key aspect influencing the “reliability of organic certification” from its three perspectives (perceived reliability, reliability of the certification process and at the farmer level). Concerning the dependent variables, it is clear that the “overall or perceived reliability” is the most important one when evaluating relations with the independent variables

The acceptance of GM food with health benefits by consumers in Germany: a structural equation model

152 p. Georg-August-University of Göttingen, GermanyA study was carried out in Germany in order to assess the consumers’ acceptance of GM foods with health benefits. Employing a Structural Equation Model (SEM), it was determined what factors influence over the acceptance of GM food, and how do these factors interact among them. The sample consisted in 183 students from the University of Göttingen, who were approached using a “mall interception” methodology in the University’s principal lunch room. Respondents were asked to state their willingness to consume three different hypothetical GM products (GM yoghurt drinks, GM bread, and GM eggs) that contained Omega-3 fatty acids, which were described as helping reduce the risk of having a coronary heart disease, and costing the same as their traditional counterpart. Results show that the inclusion of a health benefit increases the acceptability of GM foods, when its source does not involve animals like in the case of the GM eggs. In addition, the SEM model shows that there are two factors that have a direct influence over the acceptance of GM food with health benefits, which are the respondents’ attitude towards biotechnology, and their price consciousness. There were other factors that also have an effect over the acceptability of GM foods in an indirect way, through their influence over the attitude towards biotechnology. These indirect factors were the respondents’ health consciousness, their attitude towards organic, and their attitude towards functional foods. These findings should be validated using a sample that is representative of the general consumers in Germany

Evaluation of motivation and satisfaction of guatemalan firms under the implementation of quality systems: the case of Cleaner Production, ISO 14000 and ISO 9000

213 p. Georg-August-University of Göttingen, GermanyThe implementation of ISO standards in Guatemalan agribusiness is a recent phenomenon, the number of companies which are adopting this quality assurance system is rapidly growing. Besides the very popular ISO standard, several firms have adopted a concept driven by the United Nation, the so-called “Cleaner Production” (CP). This phenomenon is mainly due to two reasons: a) the companies have felt the necessity to implement the quality systems in order to be competitive; b) though there are discussions about the importance of the quality systems due to the overwhelming bureaucracy that its implementation involves, they have proved to be an important tool to improve the efficiency of the enterprises. However the employees’ attitude may have a great influence in the effectiveness of these systems. The study was carried out in Guatemala, in order to assess the Motivation and Satisfaction of employees in Agribusiness firms. It aimed at gaining insight into the subjective evaluation of the implementation of ISO 9.000, ISO14.000 and CP. A survey was conducted by means of a written questionnaire and the respondents were asked to state their attitude towards the quality system implemented within their firm. The sample consisted of more than 500 workers, managers and supervisors from 19 firms within the food, manufacture and service sectors of Guatemala. The firms were classified into small, medium, medium-big and big scale. The data was analyzed using the Principal Component Analysis (PCA), from which different factors were obtained and consequently used to carry out a regression analysis. With this approach it was possible to determine which factors have the largest influence on the Motivation and Satisfaction of employees. Additionally, ANOVA was performed in order to compare the differences in attitude. The results show that the majority of the respondents are satisfied and motivated regarding the implementation of the respective quality system within their company. The promotional opportunities and working condition components are the most relevant factors to raise Motivation and Satisfaction in the case of the worker’s model. Of further relevance is that the use of a coercive management style will have a negative impact. The useful and involvement and Process Efficiency factors are the most relevant in increasing the Motivation and Satisfaction in the manager’s and supervisor’s model. In the case where Investment Efficiency can not be achieved, a negative impact could be observed in their Motivation and Satisfaction level. In addition, the level of Motivation and Satisfaction differs between the three quality systems considered in this study. Surprisingly, Satisfaction and Motivation among implementers of CP is lower than among the ISO adopters. Furthermore, the employees of small-size companies have less Satisfaction and Motivation with CP than employees from big ones. This indicates the need for strategic actions of all stakeholders involved in CP, which is articularly suitable for small-scale firms because they do not afford an expensive ISO certificate. Additionally,the lack of Motivation and Satisfaction could affect the effective adoption of the quality system

Consumer preferences towards amazonian coffee produced by small farmers in Quito, Ecuador - a conjoint analysis

159 p.The general objective of the present study is to analyze consumer preferences for coffee purchasing and consumption in Quito, Ecuador, in order to determine if there is a potential market for ground coffee produced by small farmers in the Amazonian zone. A survey was carried out with the target population of upper and upper-middle class persons living in the metropolitan area of Quito during the last quarter of 2003. This population were selected as coffee consumption tends to increase as income rises. The sample unit was the housewife, the owner of the house, or a person aged more than 17 years (in personadministrated survey). The sample was selected randomly at shopping centers (mall intercepts using a socio-economic segmentation by neighborhood), and therefore it cannot be considered a probabilistic sample. A total of 330 completed questionnaires were considered valid and used in the analysis. The main procedure used was conjoint analysis, where the attributes selected were brand, packaging, origin denomination, and price. For the purposes of the study, the brand “Amazónico” was created to test the potential of Amazonian coffee. Results reveal a potential market for ground coffee with origin denomination from Amazonia and produced by small farmers of the area in Quito, Ecuador. However, it is necessary to consider that there are other factors such as the brand and packaging that are valued by the consumer as well. The selected segment according to sociodemographic characteristics is the high earning group, within which two sub-segments (segmentation by behavior) can be found: People who consume grain or ground coffee and people who don’t consume grain and/or ground coffee (consume other types such as decaffeinated and instant), but they are interested in consuming it. Both groups value above all the factor brand (Montecristi, Amazónico, and then Minerva, respectively); secondly, they value the type of packaging (sack), thirdly falls price, which is the only factor over which both groups differ in their appreciation (the CGGC group prefer the higher price and the NCGGCi group prefer the cheapest price). Origin denomination is the factor placed at lowest end of importance; however, it is still valued by both groups. This study offers quantitative and qualitative information that could enable the German Technical Cooperation Agency (GTZ), and other interested parties, to determine the existence of business opportunities or the viability of projects which would benefit Amazonian producers. Key words: Consumer preference, coffee consumption, internal market, conjoint analysis, potential market, origin denomination, Amazonian coffee producers

Kaki und Honigpomelo – Exoten in Deutschland? Eine empirische analyse zum vrbraucherverhalten auf basis des food related lifestyle

177 p. Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, Fakultät für Agrarwissenschafte

E-commerce adoption in the fair trade sector in the European Union 15

87 p