Was heißt hier „regional“? Verbrauchererwartungen an Öko-Lebensmittel aus tierischer Erzeugung

Summary

Organic consumers have a high preference for local origin and it can be assumed that they prefer whole local supply chains. However, it is unknown if consumers include the whole supply chain in their definition of local origin. In the study organic consumers’ perception of local supply chains and feed origin in organic farming was analysed. A qualitative approach was chosen and three focus group discussions with in total 31 organic consumers were conducted in three cities in Germany. The discussions were analysed with the content analysis of Mayring.
The results showed that organic consumers consider particularly the origin of the animals and the place of food processing as important in the definition of local origin. Feed origin did not play a role so far. However, the results let reason that consumers have little knowledge about organic food production and feeding. The participants were astonished about the import rate of organic feed to Germany and reacted disappointed, because they expected feed in organic farming to be local. Local feed origin was seen as part of organic farming principles. This imbalance between expectations and reality open up different marketing strategies.