SENSORY QUALITY ATTRIBUTES AFFECTINGCONSUMERS’ APPLE PURCHASE PATTERNS: CASE OFTRA1 REGION

The core attributes of food products being among

the main components of people’ healthy and balanced nutrition are one of the

most important attributes for their purchase patterns/consumption preferences in

recent years. Especially, the food products’ consumption with protected

designation of origin and geographical indications, and traditional specialty

guaranteed has a great importance due to contribution to both human healthy and

the firms at the production and supply chain. The consumers, therefore, have

shaped their purchase patterns with their orientation towards healthier and more

reliable food products under influence of both information technology and

communication mix. The aim of the study was to determine the impact sensory

quality properties of apple in this food category by homogeneous consumer

masses. For these aims, the main material of this study consisted of the

primary data obtained from 600 households residing in TRA1 region in 2018. Principal Component Analysis and Cluster Analysis were used to determine the

sensory quality properties affecting the consumers’ apple consumption, and to

segment the target consumer masses according to their consumption frequencies

at their heavy, medium and light levels, respectively. The results of the study

indicated that the apples’ heavy and medium users focused freshness and taste

perception under the region of origin, but light users attributed great

importance to the physical images based on their package and colour.

The positioning of the fresh apples with the region of origin conserving its

taste and flavour for heavy and medium users, therefore; but with actual

product image based on physical image differentiated by the colours and

packages for light users at retail levels could provide a positive impact on

both total utility of the consumers’ consumption satisfaction and total income

of the farms at supply chain.