Tactical Consumers: The re-appropriation of organic food labels in everyday practices

Authors

  • Louisa Weiss

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.26481/marble.2012.v2.131

Abstract

It is a vast array of product choices that presents itself to consumers every day. Consumers therefore need to develop criteria on which they can base their decisions. Such criteria are in turn influenced by many circumstances, amongst these the information received and processed by the shoppers. One aspect of such information, addressed towards the consumer, is the labelling of organic food. Displayed on the package of products that are found in the shelves of supermarkets and organic food stores, these labels are meant to function as guides of organic and thus more ethical, righteous or environmentally friendly purchase in the jungle of choices of products provided. But how do consumers really perceive these labels? This question has increased in relevance in recent time, both for researchers interested in ethical and political consumption, but also for the consumers themselves. It is them who are making and are (indirectly) asked to make the relevant decisions in their everyday practices of shopping. Their individual reflections on labelled and unlabelled organic foodstuffs are therefore of special interest to the analysis of contemporary consumption. What do consumers do with the information given to them? Are labels trusted, used and paid attention to? More clearly, the question must be asked: how do consumers give meaning to the labels and appropriate them into their daily shopping decisions? Due to the fact that grocery shopping is the kind of purchase that consumers engage in most often – many people do it almost daily – I chose this particular shopping activity as a focus of my research. The labels referred to in the following are thus organic labels of foodstuff.

References

Ajzen, I. (1991). The Theory of Planned Behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes (50), p. 179-211.

Babutsidze, Z. (2007). How do consumers make choices? A summary of Evidence from Marketing and Psychology. UNU MERIT. Working Paper Series. retrieved at 04 April, 2011, from http://www.merit.unu.edu/publications/wppdf/2007/wp2007-005.pdf

Baudrillard, J. (1984). The Consumer Society: Myth and Structures. London: Sage. London.

Beck, U. (1986). Risikogesellschaft. Auf dem Weg in eine andere Moderne. Frankfurt a.M.: Suhrkamp.

Beck, U. (1991). Ecological Enlightenment. Essays on the politics of the risk society. Humanity Books: New York Bourdieu, P. (1984). Distinction. A Social Critique of the Judgment of Taste. Routledge: London.

Blumer, H. (1969). Symbolic Interactionism: Perspective and Method. Boston: Prentice-Hall.

Certeau, M. de (1984). The Practice of Everyday Life. University of California Press: Berkeley.

Certeau, M. de (1988). Die Kunst des Handelns. Merve Verlag: Berlin.

Dresner, S. (2002). The Principles of Sustainability. London: Earthscan Dryzak, J.S. (2005). The Politics of The Earth. Environmental Discourses. (Second Edition). Oxford University Press: Oxford.

Eat Smarter (March 2011). Bio Report. online portal http://eatsmarter.de/

Empacher, C. (2003): Was kommt auf den Teller? Lebensstile und nachhaltige Ernährung. Beitrag auf dem 6. aid-Forum am 27.5.2003 in Bonn: „Nachhaltig ackern und essen – Praxisfähige Modelle für Ernährung und Landwirtschaft“. Retrieved at 02 June, 2011, from http://orgprints.org/1701/1/empacher-c-2003-lebensstile.pdf

Gabriel Y. & Lang T. (2006). The Unmanageable Consumer. Second Edition. London: Sage.

Huber J. (2001). Allgemeine Unweltsoziologie. Westdeutscher Verlag: Wiesbaden Johnston J. (2007). The citizen-consumer hybrid: ideological tensions and the case of Whole Foods Market. Theor Soc 37, 229-270.

Koerber, K. von und Kretschmer J. (2001). Die Preise von Bio-Lebensmitteln als Hürde bei der Agrar- und Konsumwende. Ernährung im Focus, 1 (11/01), 277-282. Retrieved at 02 May, 2011, from http://www.was-wir-essen.de/download/EIF11_01_278282.pdf

Marsden, T., Flynn A. and Harrison M. (2000). Consuming Interests. The Social Provision of Foods. UCL Press: London.

McEachern M.G. and McClean P. (2002). Organic purchasing motivations and attitudes: are they ethical? International Journal of Consumer Studies. 26 (2), 85-92.

McEachern M.G. and Warnaby G. (2008). Exploring the relationship between consumer knowledge and purchase behavior of value based labels. International Journal of Consumer Studies 32, 414-426.

Michaelidou N. and Hassan, L.M. (2008). The role of health consciousness, food safety concern and ethical identity on attitudes and intentions towards organic food. International Journal of Consumer Studies. 32, 163-170.

Micheletti, M. (2003). Political Virtue and Shopping. Individuals, Consumerism and Collective Action. New York: Palgrave Macmillan: New York.

Miller, M.B. (1981). The Bon Marché: Bourgeois culture and the department store. London: Allen &Unwin.

Nilsson H., Tuncer B., Thidell A. (2004). The use of eco-labeling like initiatives on food products to promote quality assurance-is there enough credibility? Journal of Cleaner Production 12, 517-526.

Reijonen Satu (2011). Environmetally friendly consusmer: from determinism to emergence. International Journal of Consumer Studies. London: Blackwell.

Rohall D.E., Milkie M.A., Lucas J.W. (2011). Social Psychology. Sociological Persepectives. Second Edition. Boston: Prentice Hall.

Seale, C. (2004). Qualitative Interviewing. In Seale, C. (ed.) Researching Society and Culture, pp. 179-191. Second Edition. London: Sage.

Shaw D., Newholm T. and Dickinson R. (2006). Consumption as voting: an exploration of consumer empowerment. European Journal of Marketing. Vol. 40 No. 9/10, 2006, pp. 1049-1067.

Sismondo, S. (2004). An introduction to Science and Technology Studies. Oxford: Oxford: Blackwell.

Spaargaren G. (2000) Ecological Modernization Theory and Changing Discourse on Environment and Modernity. In Spaargaren G., Mol A.P.J. and Buttel F.H (eds.). (2000). Environment and Global Modernity. London: Sage.

Spaargaren G., Mol A.P.J., Buttel F.H. (2000). Introduction: Globalization, Modernity and the Environment. In Spaargaren G., Mol A.P.J. and Buttel F.H (eds.). (2000). Environment and Global Modernity. London: Sage.

Stolz, H. (2004) Warum deutsche Verbraucher Einzelmerkmale des Öko Landbaus starker bevorzugen als das Gesamtsystem Öko-Landbau. Marktforschung. 487-490. Retrieved from: http://orgprints.org/3381/1/3381.pdf, retrieved at 06 May, 2011.

Szmigin I., Carrigan M. and MeEachern M. (2009). The conscious consumer: taking a flexible approach to ethical behaviour. International Journal of Consumer Studies 33, 224-231.

Varul, M.Z. (2009). Ethical selving in cultural contexts: fair-trade consumption as an everyday ethical practice in the UK and Germany. International Journal of Consumer Studies 33, 183-189.

Zepeda, L. and Deal D. (2009). Organic and local food consumer behavior: Alphabet Theory. International Journal of Consumer Studies 33, 697-705.

Biobay (n.d.) Biosiegel und Gütezeichen. Retrieved at 20 April, 2011, from: http://www.biobay.de/biosiegel-guetezeichen/1/

Demeter. (n.d.) Historie. Retrieved at 15 June, 2011, from: http://www.demeter.de/ebenenangleichung/zielgruppe/schnittmengen/kennenlernen/ historie/?F=2&MP=2093-2118

Label Online (n.d.) Retrieved at 20 April, 2011, from http://www.label-online.de/label-datenbank?labelcat=27

Our Common Future, Chapter 1: A Threatened Future (n.d.). From: A/42/427. Our Common Future: Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development. Retrieved at 12 June, 2011, from http://www.un-documents.net/ocf-01.htm#II

Downloads

Published

2012-07-01