Consumption Pattern of Organic Foods among Urban Consumers of Punjab State, India

The present study was carried out to asses the consumption pattern of organic foods among urban consumers of Punjab. A total of 120 selected respondents belonging to middle (MIG) and high income group (HIG) from two cities of Punjab namely Ludhiana and Patiala were selected. Data were collected using questionnaire and were subjected to appropriate statistical analysis using various descriptive tools and tests such as mean, frequency, percentages and z-test. The results of the study showed that the age of the respondents varied from 35 to 45 years and 50% of the selected respondents were found to be graduates in both cities. Majority of the respondents in MIG of both cities were familiar with organic foods. A good number of the respondents i.e. 35% reported that they purchased organic foods because they were healthier and more nutritious while 27.5% reported that organic foods were safer than conventional foods.No significant difference (p≤0.05) was observed between the number of respondents belonging to MIG and HIG who were using organic foods within last three years. More subjects in the HIG (63.3%) practised kitchen gardening compared to their MIG (43.3%) counterpart. The most preferred organic foods were vegetables (73.3%), fruits (59.1%), cereals (37.5%) and pulses (37.5%). Supermarkets were found to be the main source for purchase of organic foods among all the respondents. A good number of the respondents (36.7%) agreed that organic foods were very good. There was a significant difference (p≤0.05) in the middle and high income group regarding monthly expenditure on organic fruits and vegetables, the values being 8.75 and 14.7% respectively.The purchase of organic food had a positive but non-significant relation with age. However, a significant positive correlation (p≤0.05) was observed with education and income, indicating that with the increase in education and income frequency of purchase of organic foods also increases.