Food production, distribution and culture: public views, interests and concerns

A basic right of both a consumer and a citizen is the right to be heard, and their voiced concerns have to be taken into account when developing policies and obtaining trust for government actions. Therefore this study focuses on consumers’ interests, opinions and expectations which are identified and categorised according to subject area, degree of involvement and political agenda of a consumer. The paper draws on the responses of individual members of the public in the National Food Policy discussion initiated by the Scottish Government in 2008. Altogether 246 responses were subjected to quantitative analysis of texts, supported by text mining. A variety of interests and opinions underpinning the political agendas of individuals responding to the National Food Policy discussion document were identified and discussed in the paper in the context of political consumerism and influence citizens-consumers are likely to have on policy development and its subsequent implementation. In the broad perspective of the Scottish food supply chain, the three pillars of sustainability: economy, environment and society, are defining the nature of public concerns and expectations. Findings could be applied across many different policy areas including food production and distribution, heath education and promotion, support of small local businesses, environment protection, travel, waste management/recycling and others.Food Policy, Scotland, Text analysis, Consumer research, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety,

IMPROVING MARKET ORIENTATION IN THE SCOTTISH BEEF SUPPLY CHAIN THROUGH PERFORMANCE-RELATED COMMUNICATIONS: THE CASE OF THE MCINTOSH DONALD BEEF PRODUCER CLUB AND QBOXANALYSIS

The reform of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in 2003 and particularly the introduction of the Single Payment Scheme (SPS) is intended to make farmers more market orientated and competitive. In this context, the purpose of this paper is to discuss whether performance-related communication strategies present the possibility of improving farmers’ market orientation. This is studied through the case of McIntosh Donald, a beef processor located in the North East of Scotland and a major red meat supplier for Tesco, and Qboxanalysis, a performance-related communication system, introduced by the processor to its beef Producer Club members in March 2005. Results indicate that the enhanced communication strategy has the potential to increase farmers’ performance and market orientation, not only through the use of the Qboxanalysis system but also through the Producers’ Club activities. However, additional efforts are required to engage producers that are less proactiveFood Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Marketing,

How Local and Seasonal is the Consumption of Soft Fruit in Scotland?

The main implication of the food miles indicator is that in order to protect the environment consumers should purchase food locally and seasonal. However, something that it is missing in all discussions is the evidence about how bad or good - in terms of locality and seasonality- is the actual consumption of food. This is probably due to the fact that food consumption statistics are available as aggregated annual data. In this paper we analyse the purchases of food, in particular the purchases of soft fruits in Scotland, which not only have marked production seasonality but also are imported from the rest of the UK and from abroad. For the analysis we use the Kantar Worldpanel dataset for the period 2006 until 2009. The results indicate that Scottish soft fruit covers a relatively small segment of the market and therefore eat locally would imply reduce significantly the consumption of soft fruit, even during the Scottish produce season. As regards the consumption seasonality, the purchases of soft fruit, particularly strawberry, seem to be seasonal despite the possibility of getting out-of- season imported soft fruit.Scotland agriculture, soft fruits, agricultural marketing, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Q13,

PREMIA FOR DIFFERENTIATED PRODUCTS AT THE RETAIL LEVEL: CAN THE MARKET PUT A VALUE ON THE MOUNTAIN ATTRIBUTE?

The purpose of this paper is, by comparing products with a mountain provenance with those from non-mountain areas, to explore whether the market puts a premium on the „mountain attribute‟. First, we present a theoretical framework on attributes and cues that helps answering the question what is “mountain” representing in a products or in other term, is it an attribute or a cue. Second, based on a shelves survey collected as part of the EuroMARC, we analyse for several products (apples, sausages, water and cheese) and countries (Austria, France, Norway, Scotland and Slovenia) using a hedonic price regression approach whether a premium is paid for mountain food products in comparison with identified similar non-mountain food products. The results indicate that the answer is mixed and depends on the product and country. Thus, premia was found only in the case of cheese and for Austria, Norway and Slovenia.Mountain quality food products, attributes and cues, hedonic regression, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Marketing,

Promoting Mountain Quality Food Products (MQFPs) – Analysing possibilities beyond labelling policy

The new orientation of the Common Agriculture Policy encourages producers to respond to market forces. In addition, the public expect producers to contribute to a living countryside. Based on this context, the purpose of the paper is to discuss what other marketing alternatives exist for the promotion of mountain quality food products beyond labelling. This is done through the analyses of shelves and postal surveys to retailers, carried out as part of the EU project EuroMARC, which included information for Austria, France, Norway, Romania, Slovenia and UK (Scotland). The analysis concentrates on two product promotion aspects: display and store-promotion, and communication of product attributes. The results indicate that even without labelling policy there is scope to improve the promotion of mountain quality food products.Mountain food products, food promotion, local food, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety,

Agri-food supply chains and sustainability-related issues: evidence from across the Scottish agri-food economy

This paper examines the influence of agri-food supply chains on the sustainability-related activities and decisions of Scottish farmers, as well as the treatment of sustainability issues by food processors and retailers themselves. It is based on 8 whole chain case studies covering some of Scotland‘s major agricultural products. The cases identify differing levels of understanding and activities related to sustainability, but widespread acknowledgement that sustainability involves the development of chains within which all parties can achieve acceptable profits. Indeed, collaborative supply chains, which seek improved economic performance, frequently assist environmental and social sustainability. The main drivers of sustainability are found to be the cost of key inputs, product markets where customers increasingly seek sustainability in products, the ethos and values of the businesses and people involved, and legislation and strategies of industry bodies. At the farm level, many farmers are seeking more sustainable production systems, particularly in economic and environmental terms, but there is a need for greater guidance and assistance. The paper presents a review of several key food supply sustainability issues, the methods and concepts used in compiling and analysing the cases, as well as the principal findings and implications for agri-food supply chain and policy development.Sustainability, Food, Supply chain, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Q13, Q18,

Agri-food supply chains and sustainability-related issues: evidence from across the Scottish agri-food economy

This paper examines the influence of agri-food supply chains on the sustainability-related activities and decisions of Scottish farmers, as well as the treatment of sustainability issues by food processors and retailers themselves. It is based on 8 whole chain case studies covering some of Scotland’s major agricultural products. The cases identify differing levels of understanding and activities related to sustainability, but widespread acknowledgement that sustainability involves the development of chains within which all parties can achieve acceptable profits. Indeed, collaborative supply chains, which seek improved economic performance, frequently assist environmental and social sustainability. The main drivers of sustainability are found to be the cost of key inputs, product markets where customers increasingly seek sustainability in products, the ethos and values of the businesses and people involved, and legislation and strategies of industry bodies. At the farm level, many farmers are seeking more sustainable production systems, particularly in economic and environmental terms, but there is a need for greater guidance and assistance. The paper presents a review of several key food supply sustainability issues, the methods and concepts used in compiling and analysing the cases, as well as the principal findings and implications for agri-food supply chain and policy development.Sustainability, Food, Supply chain, Agribusiness, Food Security and Poverty,

Cereal Prices, Bread Consumption and Health in Scotland

The recent rise in food prices has increased concern about the choice of a healthy food basket, especially in the context of the current formulation of a National Food Policy for Scotland. This concern has revived interest in food price and expenditure demand systems as they provide information about consumers’ food decisions. The paper focuses on the consumption of brown and white bread, as they are the most typical forms of cereals use in the UK. Moreover, nutritionists recommend the consumption of wholemeal or brown bread in contraposition to white bread as part of an appropriate diet due to its health benefits. The overall purpose of the paper is to measure the impact that the increase in the price of cereals during the period 2005 to 2008 would have had on the purchase of brown and white bread. This is undertaken in two stages: the first measures the effect of changes in milling wheat prices on brown and white bread prices, and the second measures the elasticities of the purchases of brown and white bread with respect to changes in their prices through the estimation of four demand systems. The results, excluding those from the static LA/AIDS that seem to high, indicate, ceteris paribus, that the increase by 72 per cent in the price of wheat produced a decrease in brown and white bread purchases in the range of 30 to 40 per cent; however, as regards the question what type of bread decreased more, the answer depends on the demand model used.Bread consumption models, Scotland, Food prices, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety,

Wheat Prices, Bread Consumption and Health in Scotland

The relative recent rise in food prices has increased concern about the choice of a healthy food basket, especially in the context of the formulation of a National Food Policy for Scotland. This concern has revived interest in food price and expenditure demand systems as they provide information about consumers’ food decisions. The paper focuses on the consumption of brown and white bread, as they are the most typical forms of cereals use in the UK. Moreover, nutritionists recommend the consumption of wholemeal or brown bread in contraposition to white bread as part of an appropriate diet due to its health benefits. The overall purpose of the paper is to measure the impact that the increase in the price of cereals during the period 2005 to 2008 would have had on the purchase of brown and white bread. This is undertaken in two stages: the first measures the effect of changes in milling wheat prices on brown and white bread prices, and the second measures the elasticities of the purchases of brown and white bread with respect to changes in their prices through the estimation of two conditional demand systems for bread.Bread consumption models, Scotland, Food prices, Consumer/Household Economics, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety,

An Analysis of the Consumption of Sausages in Scotland using Supermarket Data

This paper addresses consumers’ choices by looking into: current food choices made by different socio-economic groups; price barriers for diet improvement; and ways in which marketing may affect product choice. The study seeks: first, to analyze the differences in consumption of sausages of different nutritional composition among different socio-demographic and lifestage groups; and second, to measure whether it is possible to improve diet quality without affecting household expenditure. Sausages represent a relatively high proportion of red and processed meat purchases in Scotland, contributing significantly to the fat and sodium in the Scottish diet. The data used consisted of two-years of weekly information from a top-4, UK supermarket. The results suggest that it is possible to purchase similar quantities of a lower saturated fat or lower sodium sausage for the same price as a higher saturated fat or sodium sausage. However, it would cost more for some the groups to replace both a lower saturated fat and a lower sodium sausage in the household’s food basket.Scotland, saturated fats, sodium, consumer choices, sausages consumption, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety,