Segmenting olive oil consumers based on consumption and preferences toward extrinsic, intrinsic and sensorial attributes of olive oil

Abstract

The aim of this paper was to identify and describe segments of a study population that consumes olive oil. Therefore, a survey was conducted in 2019 on a sample of 705 German and 175 UK consumers. In both samples, three consumer segments were identified. These three segments differed significantly with regard to purchase and consumption patterns, as well as attitudes toward the extrinsic, intrinsic, sensorial, and health attributes of olive oil. Their main preferences related to health properties of olive oil, followed by hedonic attributes; therefore, these aspects should be marketed in German markets. For UK consumers, validation of extrinsic attributes, such as region, micro-location, and protected designation of geographical origin (PDO), should be used in marketing campaigns in light of economic sustainability on local family farms and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Since UK consumers rely heavily on vendors' recommendations, more effort should be made in the UK market to establish habits of consumption and an olive oil culture that would be sustainable in long-term time frames.