Consumer Preferences for Fresh Citrus: Impacts of Demographic and Behavioral Characteristics

摘要

In the last twenty years, trends within fresh fruit consumption have shifted from consumption of fresh citrus to non-citrus fresh fruit. Within citrus, consumers are switching from the traditionally dominant fruit, oranges, to tangerines. Using surveyresults from three cities in the U.S. on consumer preferences for fresh citrus products, we demonstrate that freshness, flavor and appearance are the most important attributes of fresh citrus. Heterogeneous preferences exist among consumers and both demographic and behavioral variables have significant impacts on preferences. Results indicate there are no dominant best predictors of consumer preferences. However, it appears there is potential to develop specific marketing strategies based on demographics.