Browsing by Author "Mtwesi, Sinako"

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    Evaluating Stellenbosch University students’ perceptions, knowledge and the factors affecting willingness-to-pay for organic vegetables
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2024-03-04) Mtwesi, Sinako; van der Merwe, Melissa; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of AgriSciences. Dept. of Agricultural Economics.
    ENGLISH SUMMARY: The demand for organic foods is increasing significantly globally and in South Africa. Previous studies cite four reasons for this. Firstly, most consumers perceive organic food as a healthier alternative to conventional foods because of the belief that organic foods contain more nutrients. Secondly, consumers consider organic food safer, better in taste, and more enjoyable than conventional foods. Thirdly, consumers perceive organic foods as safe with no chemical residues. Lastly, consumers’ increasing knowledge about organic food products increased their organic food purchases. Very little studies have analysed the demand of students for organic products. Therefore, this study aims to determine students’ level of knowledge about organic foods, explore their perceptions about organic foods, and further assess the factors that affect their willingness to pay (WTP) for organic food, particularly carrots and spinach. Online surveys were sent out to all Stellenbosch University students. The total sample size was 339 after 103 surveys were eliminated due to incompleteness. Data was analysed using the R Statistical software version 4.0.2. Descriptive statistics were analysed by way of an ANOVA analysis. Multiple regression model and a double-bound dichotomous choice format of contingent valuation method used to evaluate the factors affecting willingness-to-pay for organic foods. The results show that 64% of the students defined organic food correctly, while 36% defined organic foods incorrectly. Students perceive organic food as expensive, environmentally friendly, and safe to consume. When purchasing organic foods, students reported to be motivated by health considerations, quality, and environmental impact. The majority of the students (55.5%) reported to purchase organic vegetables, with 56.4% reporting to purchasing organic vegetables occasionally. The most purchased vegetable category was leafy vegetables (53.7%). Woolworths (40.4%) was the most preferred supermarket, followed by Checkers (20.7%), other supermarkets such as Greengrocers (20.7%) and Pick n Pay (10.1%). On the contrary, 44.5% of the students reported that they do not purchase organic vegetables. The main deterrents to organic vegetable purchases were high price (30.9%), satisfaction with conventional vegetables (20.5%), and unavailability of organic vegetables (18.9%). Regarding WTP for organic vegetables, 62% of the surveyed students were willing to pay more for both organic spinach and carrots, while only 38% of the students surveyed were unwilling to pay more. The study found that 24% of the students, representing the highest majority, were willing to spend between R2 and R4 more for organic spinach over the assumed retail price of R15 per bunch of spinach. For organic carrots, 25% of students, which was the highest majority, were unwilling to pay more than R12.50 per kg for organic carrots. The multiple regression results revealed that the nutrient contents of food and WTP for nutrient-rich foods had a positive and significant effect on WTP for organic spinach and carrots. Education level also had a positive and significant effect on WTP for organic carrots. The age variable was found to have a negative and statistically significant effect on WTP for organic carrots. The income variable was found to have a negative and significant effect on WTP for organic spinach.