The Organic Food Market: Opportunities and Challenges - Organic Food and Agriculture: New Trends and Developments in the Social Sciences - page 71

differences between what consumers want and what they offer them. Distributors were
profiled as follow: (i) by channel size and type, (ii) by organic food products variety, and (iii)
by channel position (retailer, wholesaler, etc.). All interviews were analyzed using content
analysis (cf. Kassarjian, 1977).
6.3 Consumer survey measurements and scaling
To test the abovementioned 2 nd and 3 rd objectives, a structured questionnaire was designed
to gather data that measure the variables used in this research. Prior to administering the
survey, a pre-test was done and minor modifications were made. The questionnaire is
structured into three sections. The first section deals with consumers' general opinion about
organic food, consumption and shopping habits, and last, reasons for buying organic
(measured on a 5 point Likert scale). The second section of the survey deals with trust
dimensions (measured on a 5 point Likert scale). Finally, the third section is structured to
design a socio-demographic profile of our respondents. Most of the questions in the survey
were adapted from Sirieix et al. (2004), and Fotopoulos and Krystallis (2002). A total of 350
questionnaires were collected, and 324 questionnaires were usable. Data was cleaned and
missing values were replaced using the mean. All variables were tested to check their
internal consistency. Reliability tests were coupled to a series of factor analyses to determine
the structure of the data. Factor analysis also helps to test if the items are measuring the
right constructs. Results showed that Cronbach alphas were in the range of 0.727 to 0.850,
which is good for an exploratory study (Hair et al., 2006). All variables except “trust” have a
unidimensional structure with factors loading ranging from 0.583 to 0.893. Three
dimensions were found for “Trust”: (i) brand and store trust: trust in the brand and the store
where the purchase is made, (ii) prior experiences: all information related to prior
experiences with the product and involved in building trust with regards to trusted labels,
brands, and points of purchase, and (iii) organic labels trust: unknown factors such as lack
of credibility of the organic labels, meaning of “organic”, and lack of trust in the quality
stated in the organic labels. Hence, the trust scale has been split into three dimensions.
7. Supply side analysis: Qualitative study
In order to get a representative image of what the organic food distribution system looks
like, several and various players in the organic food distribution channels have been
interviewed. This includes: producers, farmers, store managers, distributors, wholesalers,
and certification bodies representatives. This gives also a wider perspective on the structure
of the organic food industry, the new trends in the organic food market, and the challenges
faced by all channel members. Table 1 shows all themes generated from the interviews.
7.1 OF Industry and market
The first theme is related to the structure of the organic food industry. The guide probes the
interviewee to describe the current situation of his/her distribution organization system, the
organic food market and its negative/positive aspects. With this regards all channel
members as well as producers see a big potential for this industry. From their perspective,
consumers seem to be attracted by the healthy aspect and nutritional value provided by
organic foods, while corporations and distributors are attracted by the profitability of this
growing market. Further, consumers are becoming more educated about organic foods and