Kommunikation von Naturschutzmaßnahmen in der ökologischen Direktvermarktung

Summary

The preservation of living ecosystems and the protection of nature and environment as a basis for existence are important challenges of our time, which are highlighted in
the principles of the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM 2015). Since nature conservation measures within organic farming are often
related to more costs, expenses or even yield losses, there are approaches to get the conservation efforts rewarded by the customers. The object of this research is the
description of the communication of nature conservation measures on three organic farms with direct selling in Northern and Eastern Germany. Therefore, three guided
interviews with the farm managers were conducted and analyzed. Afterwards, personally-written customer surveys using standardized questionnaires were carried
out in the farm shops. The intensity of nature communication to consumers ranged from very low on farm1 to very high on farm3. It became clear that for many customers
the engagement of the farms for nature conservation is an important factor to buy there. The combination of nature conservation and direct selling can lead to positive
interactions, e.g. by emphasizing the authenticity of organic farming. Under certain conditions nature conservation can be used as a unique selling proposition and by that enhancing customer loyalty and willingness to pay.