Consumer supply-chain demands and challenges at farmers’ markets

2018 ◽  
Vol 120 (12) ◽  
pp. 2734-2747 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin Garner ◽  
Cesar Ayala

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine consumer demands for local foods at a farmers’ market. This includes examining both what products consumers want more of at the market and also what factors influence consumers’ attendance for a weekday farmers’ market. Design/methodology/approach This study was based on open-ended comments from a market survey of 270 participants in a farmers’ market in the USA. Findings This study revealed that consumers want more products at the farmers’ market that require significant resources and time to grow, such as meat and fruit. Consumers reported that they would be more likely to attend a weekday market if it had better hours of operation and better selection. Consumer comments also revealed that consumers often perceive the market to run out of products and not have the full supply that they want to purchase. Research limitations/implications This research represents qualitative insights at one farmers’ market in the USA. While there are observations that may transfer to other markets, caution should be used when generalizing these findings. Practical implications This research is informative for farmers in providing them a list of consumer demands and also highlights the ways farmers need to make their market convenient to consumer work and life patterns. Originality/value This work adds value to the literature by expanding our understanding of specific foods customers see as limited in the farmers’ market, and it also provides much needed information regarding consumer behavior and weekday market attendance, which is not discussed as often in the literature.

Author(s):  
Benjamin Garner ◽  
Cesar Ayala

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine farmers’ market consumer behavior through a regional food and culinary tourism lens to see the ways these festive and atmospheric markets can be used to develop a regional brand or identity surrounding food production. Design/methodology/approach This study was based on a survey of 270 participants in a farmers’ market in the USA. A combination of descriptive and statistical analyses was used to analyze consumer habits and spending. Findings The findings in this study suggest that while most of the customers live in a town where the market is located, a significant number of customers come from other locations, with some traveling significant distances, to participate in this market, particularly for the Saturday market. Many of the customers come to purchase organic and local foods. Research limitations/implications This work is limited, in that it is a case study at one farmers’ market in the USA, and the work is exploratory in nature. Practical implications This work has implications for market managers seeking to increase their consumer base. Markets that want to increase their reach would do well to promote their events to a wider geographic area. The results presented here showed that consumers are willing to drive upward of 40 miles to attend a high-quality market. Originality/value This work expands our conceptualization of farmers’ markets by suggesting that these markets have the potential to form the backbone of a region is food identity through the creation of a food destination.


2014 ◽  
Vol 116 (11) ◽  
pp. 1808-1820 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Lang ◽  
John Stanton ◽  
Yingdao Qu

Purpose – Although locally sourced and produced foods are a growing trend in food marketing, they are not yet clearly understood nor consistently defined. There is no lack of definitions currently offered, however, based on expanding, evolving, and sometimes conflicting, dimensions. The purpose of this paper is to investigate various emerging definitional elements of local foods to determine which elements may be as important to food shoppers today as the prevailing food miles definition. Design/methodology/approach – A shopper survey is fielded and repeated measures ANOVA conducted to measure the relative importance of various definitional elements, assess where shoppers expect to acquire local foods, the price premium they are willing to pay, and differences that may exist across customer groups. Findings – The study finds that consumers do consider other definitional elements as important as distance in their definition of local foods and they expect to find them in secondary outlets beyond farmers markets and the produce department. Consumers are willing to pay a price premium and there are differences across light, medium, and heavy users. Practical implications – This study provides researchers with an expanded and clearer definition of local foods for future research and practitioners with guidance on what shoppers expect and value today and how to better source, merchandise, and promote local foods. Originality/value – By combining definitional elements from across industry, government, and academia and analyzing them together, this study offers a more comprehensive definition of local foods and consumer expectations.


2020 ◽  
Vol 122 (7) ◽  
pp. 2089-2103
Author(s):  
Rosario Michel-Villarreal ◽  
Eliseo Luis Vilalta-Perdomo ◽  
Martin Hingley

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to explore food producers' motivations and challenges whilst participating in short food supply chains (SFSCs). This paper compares findings with previous literature and investigates the topic in the context of producers' motivations.Design/methodology/approachThe paper includes a literature review concerning producers' motivations to engage in SFSCs. A case study was designed to investigate motivations underlying producers' engagement in SFSCs, as well as the challenges that they face. Semi-structured interviews were conducted in a farmers' market located in Mexico. Thematic analysis is used to identify the principal issues for producers'. Propositions based on findings are presented.FindingsFindings suggest that small, large, part-time and full-time producers are willing to engage with farmers' markets for diverse primary economic and non-economic motivations. Individual and collective challenges were also identified.Originality/valueThis research helps to explain producers' motivations and challenges within SFSCs in an under-researched context, namely a focus on producers' and in the Global South.


2015 ◽  
Vol 53 (2) ◽  
pp. 262-286 ◽  
Author(s):  
Linda C. Lee

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to use empirical data on new principals to clarify the connection between different succession situations and the challenges their successor principals face. Design/methodology/approach – The study draws on two waves of interview data from a random sample of 16 new elementary school principals in a major urban school district in the USA. Findings – New principals face distinct practice challenges depending on the nature of their successions. The less planned the succession, the less information and knowledge the new principal tends to possess. The more discontinuous the new administration’s trajectory is with the previous administration, the greater the staff resistance that the successor principal tends to face. Research limitations/implications – Few studies systematically examine how succession situations differ in schools that are in need of transformation vs those in need of stability. This study addresses this gap by illuminating the varied processes of succession and highlighting specific mechanisms that link these processes to different organizational trajectories. Practical implications – For district officials, this study suggests that principals in unplanned successions need greater support in quickly gathering information about their new schools while principals in discontinuous successions need greater expertise in how to balance trust-building and accountability in their attempts to promote transformational change. Originality/value – This study’s primary value is its detailed articulation of how certain characteristics of succession situations are associated with specific types of challenges. Only studies at this level of specificity can be effective guides to practitioners and policymakers who are charged with preparing, selecting, and supporting new principals and their schools.


2016 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 149-160 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lorna Montgomery ◽  
Janet Anand ◽  
Kathryn Mackay ◽  
Brian Taylor ◽  
Katherine C. Pearson ◽  
...  

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the similarities and differences of legal responses to older adults who may be at risk of harm or abuse in the UK, Ireland, Australia and the USA. Design/methodology/approach – The authors draw upon a review of elder abuse and adult protection undertaken on behalf of the commissioner for older people in Northern Ireland. This paper focusses on the desk top mapping of the different legal approaches and draws upon wider literature to frame the discussion of the relative strengths and weaknesses of the different legal responses. Findings – Arguments exist both for and against each legal approach. Differences in defining the scope and powers of adult protection legislation in the UK and internationally are highlighted. Research limitations/implications – This review was undertaken in late 2013; while the authors have updated the mapping to take account of subsequent changes, some statutory guidance is not yet available. While the expertise of a group of experienced professionals in the field of adult safeguarding was utilized, it was not feasible to employ a formal survey or consensus model. Practical implications – Some countries have already introduced APL and others are considering doing so. The potential advantages and challenges of introducing APL are highlighted. Social implications – The introduction of legislation may give professionals increased powers to prevent and reduce abuse of adults, but this would also change the dynamic of relationships within families and between families and professionals. Originality/value – This paper provides an accessible discussion of APL across the UK and internationally which to date has been lacking from the literature.


2016 ◽  
Vol 28 (10) ◽  
pp. 2310-2330 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seongseop (Sam) Kim ◽  
Ja Young Choe ◽  
Aejoo Lee

Purpose This paper aims to gain insight into the preferences of US customers regarding Korean food, and to categorize these customers according to the reasons for their preferences. Design/methodology/approach The study was conducted with a sample of customers in Korean restaurants in the USA. Findings Cluster 1 was a group whose members were attracted to Korean culture; Cluster 2 was a group whose members were passionate about Korean food; Cluster 3 was a group seeking healthy and exotic food; and Cluster 4 was a low-interest group. Each cluster had a different socio-demographic profile, favored a different Korean menu, identified different success factors for Korean restaurants, described different expectations and experiences of Korean restaurants and had different preferences regarding Korean food services. Practical implications Active promotion of Korean food and Korean culture may be appropriate for Cluster 1, while developing a healthy and exotic menu may attract Cluster 3. Maintaining Cluster 2 is deemed important, while a strategic approach is necessary to appeal to Cluster 4. Originality/value This study will contribute theoretically and practically to understanding food globalization, ethnic restaurants and segmentation by preference reasons.


2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 71-94
Author(s):  
Gerasimos Rompotis

PurposeA well-documented pattern in the literature concerns the outperformance of small-cap stocks relative to their larger-cap counterparts. This paper aims to address the “small-cap versus large-cap” issue using for the first time data from the exchange traded funds (ETFs) industry.Design/methodology/approachSeveral raw return and risk-adjusted return metrics are estimated over the period 2012-2016.FindingsResults are partially supportive of the “size effect”. In particular, small-cap ETFs outperform large-cap ETFs in overall raw return terms even though they fail the risk test. However, outperformance is not consistent on an annual basis. When risk-adjusted returns are taken into consideration, small-cap ETFs are inferior to their large-cap counterparts.Research limitations/implicationsThis research only covers the ETF market in the USA. However, given the tremendous growth of ETF markets worldwide, a similar examination of the “small vs large capitalization” issue could be conducted with data from other developed ETF markets in Europe and Asia. In such a case, useful comparisons could be made, so that we could conclude whether the findings of the current study are unique and US-specific or whether they could be generalized across the several international ETF markets.Practical implicationsA possible generalization of the findings would entail that profitable investment strategies could be based on the different performance and risk characteristics of small- and large-cap ETFs.Originality/valueThis is the first study to examine the performance of ETFs investing in large-cap stock indicesvis-à-visthe performance of ETFs tracking indices comprised of small-cap stocks.


2022 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin Garner

Purpose Farmers’ markets have grown rapidly in recent years and at the same time consumers increasingly desire to eat healthfully and sustainably. This research aims to analyze the way consumers process information regarding local food claims such as sustainability and organics when shopping for local foods at farmers’ markets. Design/methodology/approach This research uses ethnographic methods that included interviews with 36 participants, more than 100 hours of participant observation and prolonged engagement over a two and half-year period. Findings The findings indicate that there are two dominant types of consumers at the farmers’ market, hedonistic and utilitarian consumers. Hedonistic consumers rely on heuristic cues such as aesthetics, their relationship with the farmer and other peripheral sources of information when making purchase decisions. Utilitarian consumers, by contrast, carefully analyze marketing messages using central route cues and tend to be more conscious of their purchase choices. Practical implications This study will help farmers more effectively position their marketing messages and help consumers be aware how they process information in this space. Originality/value Unlike previous studies of consumer behavior at farmers’ markets that primarily use survey methods, this study uses observational and ethnographic methods to capture in situ interactions in this complex buying context. Further, while much work has been done on broad concepts of local food and organic preferences, this study provides a more in-depth look at consumer information processing in the farmers’ market space that reflects a mixture of organic and non-organic food.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kerry Shephard ◽  
Qudsia Kalsoom ◽  
Ritika Gupta ◽  
Lorenz Probst ◽  
Paul Gannon ◽  
...  

Purpose Higher education is uncertain which sustainability-related education targets should be sought and monitored. Accepting that something needs to be measurable to be systematically improved, the authors explored how measures relate to potential targets. This paper aims to focus on dispositions to think critically (active open-minded thinking and fair-minded thinking in appraising reasoning) as measures and explored how they related to sustainability concern as an indicative educational target. Design/methodology/approach This research included the development and testing of research instruments (scales) that explored dispositions to critical thinking and sustainability concern. Authors researched these instruments within their own correspondence groups and tested them with university students and staff in Pakistan, the USA, Austria, India and New Zealand. The authors also asked a range of contextualising questions. Findings Respondents’ disposition to aspects of active, open-minded thinking and fair-minded thinking do predict their concern about facets of sustainability but their strength of religious belief was an important factor in these relationships and in their measurement. Practical implications This research demonstrates the complexity of monitoring dispositions to think critically and sustainability concern in educational systems, particularly in circumstances where the roles of religious beliefs are of interest; and suggests ways to address this complexity. Originality/value This research integrates and expands discourses on ESD and on critical thinking in diverse disciplines and cultures. It investigates measurement approaches and targets that could help higher education institutions to educate for sustainable development and to monitor their progress, in ways that are compatible with their culture and values.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Goldman ◽  
Brandon Brown ◽  
Eric C. Schwarz

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to find evidence of the benefits and constraints of collaborative consumption experiences by investigating the perceptions of hosts and visitors that attended professional regular season basketball and baseball games in the USA.Design/methodology/approachData were collected through four focus groups with 37 total participants and were analyzed through qualitative content analysis.FindingsThe results show that participants in a collaborative consumption experience perceive four types of value: social interaction and belonging, new fandom, travel bucket list experiences and local and sport knowledge. In addition, the results provide evidence of five consumption constraints related to collaborative consumption: expenses, average experiences, seat location, interpersonal disconnects and personal risk.Research limitations/implicationsThe selection of only two sites for the study limited the data triangulation that was possible. This study should be replicated across a wider range of teams and countries to confirm the main findings of the study.Practical implicationsPractitioners can use this initial study to better understand the benefits hosts and visitors perceive in the experience, and therefore the kind of experience design that would encourage increased purchases and loyalty.Originality/valueThis paper provides qualitative insights into the benefits and detriments of a collaborative consumption sport experience, based on participants' involvement in an innovative peer-to-peer platform.


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