Consumer preferences of student population as a determinant of successful milk quality management

Abstract

The final result of milk quality management is a superior product with high quality levels of all intrinsic and extrinsic components. To achieve this, most activities in the management process should be directed towards the quality components that are recognized by the average consumer of milk. To determine these factors, an indicative research was carried out on a sample of 1,157 respondents among the young population. Regarding the intrinsic components, the results indicate that young consumers mostly appreciate the taste and milk fat content in the range 2.8-3.2 %, whereas regarding the extrinsic components they value price and the origin of products, that is, the origin of milk. The last component has not been fully used in promotional efforts of producers in their advertising of milk, especially in a sub segment of urban young consumers. A stronger emphasis of this would help producers to differentiate themselves, and achieve competitive advantage on domestic and international markets.