On the Mechanics of the Organic Label Effect: How Does Organic Labeling Change Consumer Evaluation of Food Products?

The literature on the effect of organic labels on consumers’ perception of food products has grown significantly over the last two decades. Since the number of empirical studies has also increased greatly, a literature review revealing the operational definitions of the organic label effect (OLE), which have evolved among researchers, has become necessary. Accordingly, in the current article, 82 studies are reviewed. It was found that studies cluster around two interpretations: they define the OLE either as a change in the evaluation of a given product or as a change in the evaluation of the difference between an organic and a conventional product resulted from organic labeling. We term the first approach the absolute OLE and the latter the relative OLE. Our analysis shows that, when applied separately, these two interpretations might lead to significantly different measurement results, but they can be merged into one concept. We argue that organic labeling affects not only the evaluation of products receiving the organic label but the evaluation of competing products without such a label as well. We reveal that the relative OLE is equivalent to the difference between the absolute effects of organic labeling on the labeled and on the unlabeled products.

How can an organic label help a private label?

Purpose This paper aim to investigate how organic labeling impacts perceived value for money (PVFM) as well as attitudinal and behavioral brand loyalty for private label brands (PLBs). This impact is tested for different product categories and retailers. Design/methodology/approach Two online experiments are conducted with different product categories (i.e. eggs and chocolate) and different retailers (i.e. Auchan and Carrefour). For each experiment, a multivariate analysis of covariance with brand type (i.e. PLBs and organic PLBs) as the independent variables, the PVFM and brand loyalty as the dependent variables as well as consumers’ characteristics, involvement with organic products and attitudes toward the retailer as the covariates is run. Findings On aggregate, organic PLBs prompt a higher PVFM as well as a higher attitudinal and behavioral loyalty than the PLBs. These results are consistent across the above-mentioned product categories and retailers. Research limitations/implications This study advances knowledge on organic labeling for the PLBs. Practical implications Retailers gain insights on the perceptions and behaviors toward organic PLBs versus standard PLBs. Originality/value This study tests how an organic label impacts the PVFM and brand loyalty for the PLBs.

How Product Type and Organic Label Structure Combine to Influence Consumers’ Evaluations of Organic Foods

This research finds that how a firm conveys a food’s organic nature through an organic label impacts consumers’ evaluation of that food. Consistent with previous research, adding organic labels to foods is detrimental to evaluations of vice (but not virtue) foods, but simple changes to the structure of the organic label attenuate the negative effect of such labels on evaluations of vice foods. Specifically, whereas product-level organic labels (e.g., “organic burrito”) result in lower evaluations of vice foods, ingredient-level organic labels (e.g., “burrito with all organic ingredients”) do not. No effect of organic label structure is found for virtue foods. The authors draw on theories of feature-based categorical typicality and fluency to suggest one psychological process by which organic label structure can impact consumers’ evaluations of vice foods.

Off-Flavours and Unpleasantness Are Cues for the Recognition and Valorization of Organic Wines by Experienced Tasters

The drivers of consumer acceptance concerning organic wines are not well understood. In particular, among wine professionals, there are anecdotal evidences claiming that consumers accept off-flavours that would not be tolerated if the wines were conventionally produced. Therefore, the aim of this study was to shed further light on this issue by tasting blind wines of both types of production using a tasting panel comprised by experienced individuals of several nationalities. The tasted wines were both conventional and organic and were with and without off-flavours. The same wines were evaluated in three tasting sessions where the given information was: (1) all wines were conventional, (2) all wines were organic, and (3) tasters were asked to guess the mode of production. A group of untrained tasters also rated the same organic wines in an informed session. The results showed that wines were significantly better scored and were given a higher willingness to pay value in the “organic” session. In addition, the experienced tasting panel produced a list of the most frequent sensory descriptors. When tasters were asked to guess the mode of production, wines that were supposed to be organic received a higher citation of off-flavours, such as “oxidized”, “reductive”, and “animal/undergrowth”. Moreover, an overall emotional response of unpleasantness was associated with the recognition of organic wines in the “guess” session. Untrained tasters rated the same organic wines with lower liking scores and were willing to pay less. In conclusion, off-flavours and their unpleasantness worked as a cue to identify wines supposed to be organic by experienced tasters. Their corresponding higher valorization could be explained by the psychological halo effect induced by the organic label. Contrarily, consumers did not show this halo effect, depreciating wines with unpleasant flavours irrespective of their mode of production.

Do Sustainability Labels Reinforce Health Claims - And Vice Versa?

Health has become a crucial advertising factor for food producers and retailers. Firms can now use health claims as effective tools to differentiate their products. However, several critical issues impact the efficiency of such health claims. In this study we investigate whether a co-labelling strategy might enhance the impact of health claims by combining the claim with a reinforcing element (“strong partner”), namely a sustainability label. The most common sustainability labels are the organic and the fair-trade label. Our findings show that combining a health claim with a sustainability label does indeed increase the credibility of the health claim, which then helps convey the product’s health message – although we find that this only applies to co-labelling with an organic label. At the same time, the organic label benefits from co-labelling with the health claim, and itself then becomes more credible.

Chinese consumer trust and preferences for organic labels from different regions

Purpose The organic food sold in China can bear organic labels from different countries/regions. The purpose of this paper is to assess the trust and preferences of consumers for tomatoes carrying these different labels. Design/methodology/approach The data came from real choice experiments conducted in Shandong Province, China. A mixed logit model was used to analyze consumer willingness to pay (WTP). Findings Results indicated that, among the four organic labels considered in this study, the highest WTP was expressed for organic label from the European Union, followed by Hong Kong’s organic label, Japanese organic label and, lastly, by the Chinese mainland organic label. Consumer trust has a positive effect on their WTPs for the four organic labels. Providing consumers with information on organic can significantly lift their WTPs, and reduce the gaps between WTPs for different organic labels. Originality/value This research is of academic value and of value to food suppliers. International food marketers are recommended to equip their products with proper organic labels and initiate additional consumer education.

Tasting organic: the influence of taste and quality perception on the willingness to pay for organic wine

Purpose The mechanism by which organic labelling affects consumers’ willingness to pay (WTP) for wine is not yet fully understood. Organic labelling not only transports information about environmental benefits, but may also influence consumers’ perceptions of quality and taste. The purpose of this paper is to separate the information effect from the perception effect of an organic label on WTP. Design/methodology/approach Taste and quality perceptions of 110 German consumers and their WTP for white and red wines were collected in a second-price auction in conjunction with a blind tasting. Each measure was recorded under two experimental conditions: with and without organic labelling. Serial mediation analysis is used to identify the information and perception effect of an organic label on WTP. A moderating effect of commitment to organic consumption is considered. Findings Wines marketed as organic are perceived as tastier and of higher quality and value. The organic labelling effect is stronger for committed organic consumers. Mediation analysis confirms perceived better taste as a key driver for WTP, especially for less committed organic consumers. The findings highlight perceptions of wine quality as the main mediator through which organic labelling affects WTP for red wine and for committed organic consumers. Originality/value This paper adds to the literature by decomposing the signalling mechanism of organic labelling and by emphasising the role of individual characteristics in determining its magnitude and pathways. Implications from a marketing and wine industry’s perspective are discussed.