Consumers’ knowledge and preferences for organic vegetables in Tanzania

Abstract

In the last few years, organic food consumption has increased globally. This increase is due to widely reported incidents of some dangerous diseases related associated with consumption of food products produced with high levels of industrial pesticides and fertilizer. Consumers’ consciousness on health and food safety has been reported globally and has stimulated the growth of the organic market in the world. Tanzania is one of the countries in which consumers are conscious of what they consume, although the domestic market for organic products is still very low. Consumers’ food knowledge and preferences contributes to the growth of domestic market of selected products, yet this is unknown in Tanzania. Therefore, the aim of this paper was to examine consumers’ level of knowledge and their preferences with regard to organic vegetables in Tanzania. Data were collected in Dar es Salaam from 250 respondents. Descriptive statistics using SPSS software was used to determine the level of awareness/knowledge among consumers and their preferences. Results indicated that majority of consumers (82.4%) were aware of organic products in particular organic vegetables. The critical issue observed was how to get pure organic products in the local market since it is difficult to differentiate organic from conventional products in the absence of labeling. Fifty six percent (56%) of the respondents did not know how to differentiate organic from conventional vegetables. About 54% and 46% of respondents prefer quality cabbages and tomatoes, respectively, when making purchase decisions in the market. These results will provide key information for the organic food industry to promote the growth of domestic organic food markets along the value chain in Tanzania.