Consumers’ risk perception of vegetables in Southeast Asia: Evidence from Laos, Cambodia, and Viet Nam

Abstract

Vegetable safety is a public concern in Laos, Cambodia, and Viet Nam— developing countries in Southeast Asia. Eliminating this concern requires insight into factors shaping it. Food risk perception might differ among countries due to the dissimilarities in culture, social, and economic con-ditions. However, an understanding on this difference is lacking in Southeast Asia. This paper is the first attempt to compare factors influencing risk perception of vegetables in Laos, Cambodia, and Viet Nam. Principle component analysis and ordered logit regression were employed on a sample of 1,199 consumers from the three countries. We found trust and perception of hazards influence risk perception across countries. Gender shaped risk perception in Laos and Viet Nam. The importance of vegetables and risk information determines risk perception in Viet Nam only, while hazard knowledge and homegrown vegetables are found to be predictors of risk perception solely in Cambodia. Since Laos, Cambodia, and Viet Nam are inhomogeneous in risk perception, policy measures to address food risk perception should be tailored to each country.