Davis, Kathy J.

Garrido, Laura R.

Otwell, W. Steven

Wirth, Ferdinand F.

English

Research Papers in Economics

Combining Taste Panels with Focus Groups to Elicit Consumer
Preferences Toward a New  Shrimp Product
Ferdinand F. Wirth, Laura R. Garrido, Kathy J. Davis, and W. Steven  Otwell
Demand  for seafood  in the  U.S.  far  exceeds  the
amount  produced by U.S.  commercial  fishermen
and aquaculture producers. This shortfall in domes-
tic supply varies widely by product but is most se-
vere for fish blocks,  tuna,  and shrimp.  Shrimp  is
very  popular  in  the  United  States;  by volume,
shrimp is second only to canned tuna as the  lead-
ing seafood  consumed  by the  American  public.
Because of shrimp's high price compared to tuna,
shrimp  is the most valuable seafood product  con-
sumed in the U.S., accounting for about 19 percent
of the total value of U.S. seafood consumption  in
1998  (USDA,  1999). Over 70 percent of the U.S.
shrimp  supply  is imported, primarily  from  South
America and Southeast Asia.
The U.S. shrimp-farming industry has been ex-
panding rapidly in Florida and other Southern states
in response to the excess market demand for shrimp.
In the past, expansion of commonly practiced brack-
ish-water marine-shrimp aquaculture in Florida and
other Southern states has been constrained by high
coastal-land prices, competing uses of coastal land,
and  concerns  over potential  environmental  dam-
age to  sensitive  coastal  ecosystems.  One  viable
candidate shrimp species for large-scale  culture in
Florida  appears to  be  the Pacific  white shrimp,
Litopenaeus  vannamei, because of its market popu-
larity,  fast growth,  adaptability  to diverse  salini-
ties, and its large size.  Recently, researchers  suc-
cessfully acclimated this species to hard freshwa-
ter;  much of the groundwater  in central and south
Florida and other Southern states contains the cor-
rect mineral balance to support this species. Farm-
ers with hard freshwater wells are now able to suc-
cessfully raise shrimp from post-larvae to commer-
cial market size in inland locations, paving the way
Ferdinand Wirth and Kathy Davis are,  respectively,  assistant
professor  and coordinator  of economic  analysis,  Food and
Resource  Economics  Department,  Institute  of Food  and
Agricultural  Sciences,  University  of Florida.  Laura Garrido
and  Steven  Otwell  are,  respectively,  seafood  specialist  and
professor,  Florida Sea Grant,  University of Florida.
for the development  of a marine-shrimp  industry
inland in freshwater.
Shrimp farmers wish to harvest and market their
shrimp as quickly as possible, generally as live or
fresh  head-on  shrimp.  One proposed  marketing
channel-especially  during  the  early  stages  of
shrimp culture industry development-is for U.S.
shrimp farmers to market their products directly to
consumers.  However,  potential  direct-consumer
food markets for live and fresh head-on farm-raised
shrimp are unknown. This study was conducted to
evaluate acceptability to consumers  of the appear-
ance, aroma, flavor, texture and overall likeability
of freshwater-farmed marine shrimp versus domes-
tically wild-harvested  and  imported  farm-raised
products,  and to provide shrimp farmers with the
consumer-preference  information  needed  to  de-
velop successful direct marketing strategies.
Materials and Methods
A taste panel consisting of 100 Florida consumers
used  paired-preference  testing  to compare  and
evaluate samples of Florida freshwater farm-raised
Pacific white shrimp versus two traditional shrimp
products:  brackish-water,  farm-raised Ecuadorian
white  shrimp, Litopenaeus vannamei, and  wild-
harvested  East  Coast white  shrimp,  Litopenaeus
setiferus, both purchased  frozen  from  local retail
stores.  Consumer preference  or  acceptance  was
measured for appearance, flavor, texture, moistness,
overall like, and perceived value. All ratings were
based  on  a 9-point hedonic  scale, where  1 = ex-
tremely  dislike and  9 = extremely  like.  The  sen-
sory ratings  for each attribute  were  subjected to
analysis of variance using SAS. The model included
the effects  of panelist and product, and Duncan's
multiple-range test was used to separate the means
when  a significant  (0.05  level)  F-value  was  ob-
tained.
Following  completion of the taste panels,  30
of the consumers then participated  in one of three
focus groups structured to explore Florida consumerJournal  of Food  Distribution  Research
attitudes and preferences concerning shrimp in gen-
eral  and  freshwater  farm-raised  Pacific  white
shrimp, Litopenaeus vannamei, in particular.  Fo-
cus groups  are widely used in market research to
assess consumer attitudes and preferences, and can
be  used  to develop  a thorough  understanding  of
consumers'  behavior, preferences and perceptions,
and decision-making  processes  for food products
and services.  Focus  groups  are also a useful tool
for clarifying a potential research problem area and
more fully developing the full context and nature
of a perceived  problem  or research topic  (Sterns
and Ricks,  1999).
There  were  five objectives  for the consumer
focus  groups:  identify shrimp  characteristics  im-
portant  to  consumers,  investigate  consumers'
shrimp-purchasing  behavior,  explore  consumers'
attitudes  about farm-raised versus wild-harvested
shrimp, compare perceptions of  Florida farm-raised
Pacific  white  shrimp raised  in freshwater  to  im-
ported shrimp and wild shrimp, and determine con-
sumers' willingness to pay for farm-raised shrimp.
The focus  groups ranged in size  from 8 to 12
participants,  with a total of 30 participating  con-
sumers.  Before  each focus  group the participants
were asked to provide some basic demographic in-
formation. Following completion of the pre-group
questionnaire,  participants  were  led by  a focus-
group moderator  through a series  of open-ended
questions designed to elicit the participants' shrimp
preferences,  attitudes, and purchase behavior. The
responses of the three groups have been aggregated
through content analysis for this summary, although
it should be noted that the questions asked in each
group  were  not precisely  the same.  Each  focus
group lasted approximately  90 minutes, and at the
conclusion of each focus group, participants were
given $25.00 each for their participation.
Results and Discussion
Consumer-Acceptance  Evaluations
In  the paired-difference  taste test between  the
Florida  freshwater-raised  versus  imported
Equadorian  brackish-water  farm-raised  Pacific
white shrimp,  64 of the 100 panelists preferred lo-
cal freshwater farm-raised white shrimp while 36
indicated preference for the imported shrimp.  The
difference  between  Ecuadorian  whites  and  the
Florida freshwater  shrimp was found to be  large
by 24 panelists; 41 found the difference to be mod-
erate,  and 35  indicated  a slight difference.  In the
evaluation  against the wild-harvested  East  Coast
shrimp, 60 panelists preferred the Florida freshwa-
ter-raised while  40  found the East  Coast  whites
better. The difference between the freshwater farm-
raised white  shrimp and the wild harvested white
shrimp was found to be large by 25 panelists, mod-
erate by 41  panelists, and slight by 34 panelists.
In the consumer-acceptance  tests the Florida
freshwater-raised  shrimp scored the highest in all
areas tested (Table 1). They were found to have the
best aroma, appearance, flavor, moistness and tex-
Table 1. Consumer Perceptions toward Litopenaeus Shrimp Species  from Three Sources: Mean Rat-
ings (1 - 9 hedonic scale)  and Duncan Grouping.
Freshwater
Farm-raised
Mean  Duncan
Score  Grouping
5.96
7.25
6.64
6.84
6.85
6.87
4.87
A
A
A
A
A
A
A
Brackish-Water
Farmed Equadorian
Mean  Duncan
Score  Grouping
5.74
6.16
6.24
7.1
6.38
6.51
4.47
A
B
A
A
B
A
AB
Wild-Harvested
East Coast
Mean  Duncan
Mean  Score
5.31
5.87
5.66
6.46
6.30
6.05
4.12
B
B
B
B
B
B
B
Attribute
Grouping
Aroma
Appearance
Flavor
Moistness
Texture
Likeability
Value
- ----
152  March 2002Combining Taste Panels with Focus Groups to Elicit Consumer Preferences  .
ture for all samples tasted. Consumers also scored
freshwater shrimp the highest for "likeability" and
indicated that the  shrimp had a fair market price
compared to the wild-harvested shrimp.
Consumer Focus Groups
Participants in the three focus groups first discussed
their shrimp-purchase  behavior during the preced-
ing month. Of the 30 participants, 21  (70 percent)
had purchased  shrimp in a restaurant,  18 (60 per-
cent) in a supermarket,  6 (20 percent) in a seafood
store, and  1  participant reported purchasing shrimp
from a boat. Most described their shrimp purchases
as planned,  often  for  special  occasions.  Shrimp
purchases tend to be motivated by price, size, fresh-
ness,  appearance,  convenience,  and  nutritional
value  (B-vitamins,  low  fat, oils).  Occasional  im-
pulse purchases are motivated by an attractive pre-
sentation, fresh appearance, and good price.
The  focus-group  participants  then  discussed
their shrimp-purchase selection criteria. Shrimp are
judged by their price, size, color, and by the clean-
liness of the store.  When  asked  how they judge
shrimp quality, participants suggested that quality
is judged on the basis of  price, appearance, and size.
It is important to note that lightness of color is con-
sidered an indicator of freshness in raw shrimp. This
is significant because raw farm-raised  shrimp are
relatively dark compared to wild-harvested shrimp.
Some  participants  also  noted that a high-quality
shrimp product  should  have  no  brown  spots.  A
medium-sized shrimp was preferred by most of the
participants.
The focus-group participants engaged in a com-
parison of cooked  and raw Pacific  white  shrimp
from three sources:  freshwater-farm  raised, Ecua-
dorian brackish-water farm-raised,  and East Coast
wild-harvested. The deep bright-orange color of the
cooked Florida freshwater farm-raised Pacific white
shrimp was striking to the focus-group participants.
The color was attractive and had better eye-appeal
than the other types. The participants indicated that
the freshwater  farm-raised  Pacific  white  shrimp
would  look good  in  a display  case  because  they
looked cleaner and fresher.  The  shrimp from the
other two sources  looked pale in comparison.  The
bright-orange color of the cooked freshwater farm-
raised Pacific white shrimp represents a distinctive
product-differentiating  feature  that may confer  a
competitive  advantage  to  the  Florida  freshwater
farm-raised Pacific white shrimp.
The dark color, which was a positive product
attribute for the cooked  Florida freshwater  farm-
raised Pacific white shrimp, was a negative attribute
for  the raw shrimp.  The  raw Florida freshwater
farm-raised Pacific white shrimp were a dark blue-
green color, much darker than the raw shrimp from
the other two sources. The focus-group participants
considered the raw Florida freshwater farm-raised
to be too dark.  The dark  color would discourage
purchase  since participants equated darker shrimp
with older shrimp. The participants  indicated that
they look for a lighter  color.  These findings sug-
gest that  in-store  displays  of Florida  freshwater
farm-raised Pacific white shrimp should highlight
cooked shrimp rather than raw shrimp,  at least in
the early stages of industry development when con-
sumers are unfamiliar with the product.
Finally, participants were asked several ques-
tions designed to elicit their willingness to pay for
whole fresh Florida freshwater farm-raised shrimp.
The questions were phrased as a series of price sce-
narios, with participants indicating whether or not
they  would pay certain  amounts for shrimp  with
different product features.  Fifty percent (50  per-
cent) would  pay  $1 more  per  pound  for  Florida
farm-raised  shrimp  tails versus  wild or imported
tails. Participants clearly preferred fresh (never fro-
zen)  shrimp and were willing to pay a price pre-
mium for shrimp that have never been frozen. Par-
ticipants  expressed  varying  degrees  of resistance
to the purchase of head-on shrimp.  Almost all of
the participants  indicated that they would not like
to buy whole  shrimp because they would be pay-
ing for waste and would have more work and prepa-
ration time. However, the majority indicated a will-
ingness to purchase head-on shrimp if  the price per-
pound was $2 per pound less than for tails.
Conclusions and Recommendations
The consumer-acceptance  evaluations  and focus-
group results  suggest that there  is excellent con-
sumer-market  potential  for cooked,  never-frozen
Florida freshwater farm-raised Pacific white shrimp
tails at a premium  price.  Shrimp farmers will  re-
ceive the most favorable market acceptance if they
process their product into tail form before selling
the shrimp to consumers. However, many consum-
Wirth, F. et al. 153Journal  of Food  Distribution  Research
ers familiar with the product should also be willing
to purchase whole shrimp at a slightly discounted
price.  Each  shrimp  farmer  will have  to compare
his own costs versus returns for both whole shrimp
and shrimp tails before choosing the product form
which yields the highest profit margin.
Marketing and promotion of the Florida fresh-
water farm-raised Pacific white shrimp should em-
phasize  the bright-orange  cooked  color  and the
sweet flavor of the shrimp. Marketing in supermar-
kets should consist of displays of pre-cooked tails
rather  than raw  product.  Restaurant  menu  items
should also emphasize the color and flavor and in-
clude  shrimp  cocktails  and  salads.  These  shrimp
should  probably  not  be highlighted  in restaurant
recipes with spicy sauces, such as shrimp etouffee
and shrimp Creole,  that would mask the shrimp's
flavor.
References
Sterns,  James  and  Donald  Ricks.  1999.  "Focus
Groups as a Useful Approach to Agribusiness
Research."  Staff paper  99-32, Department  of
Agricultural Economics, Michigan  State Uni-
versity, East Lansing, Michigan.
United States Department of Agriculture (USDA),
Economic  Research  Service.  1999. Aquacul-
ture Outlook. Washington, D.C., October 4.
154  March 2002

COMBINING TASTE PANELS WITH FOCUS GROUPS TO ELICIT CONSUMER PREFERENCES TOWARD A NEW SHRIMP PRODUCT

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