LEBANESE INTERNATIONAL

UNIVERSITY

A Study on the Influence of Packaging on

Buying Food Products
By

Aya Imad Haroun

A project submitted to the Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences of the

school of Arts and Sciences at the Lebanese International University in Partial
Fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of

Master of Science in Food Technology

Beirut, Lebanon

July 2023

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 LEBANESE INTERNATIONAL
UNIVERSITY

PROJECT RELEASE FORM

I, Aya Haroun

☒Authorize the Lebanese International University to supply copies of my

project to the libraries or individuals upon request
☐Do not authorize the Lebanese International University to supply copies of my
project to the libraries or individuals for a period of two years starting with the
date of project defense.

LEBANESE INTERNATIONAL
UNIVERSITY

2
 A Study on the Influence of Packaging on
Buying Food Products
By

Aya Imad Haroun

Approved by:

Dr. Wiam Ramadan, Advisor

Dr.-----, Member of the committee

Dr. XXXXXX, Member of the committee

Date of defense: Monday, September 27, 2021

Acknowledgement
I would like to acknowledge and give my warmest thanks to my adviser Dr. Wiam Ramadan
who made this work possible. His guidance and advice carried me through all the stages of this
project. Also I want to give thanks to Dr. Ali AlKhatib who helped me through my project. I

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would also like to thank my committee members for letting my defense be an enjoyable moment
and for their brilliant comments and suggestions.

As for my university professors who have guided me to reach this point, I would like to thank
them and show my high appreciation. Without their support and unselfish giving of knowledge
and time, I would have never had the chance to accomplish this work. I would like to thank Dr.
Wael Salloum, Associate Administrative Director at LIU for all his support and help throughout
my project.

I would also like to give a special thanks to my family as a whole for their continuous support
and understanding when undertaking my research and writing my project.

Abstract

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 Aya Imad Haroun for Master of Science in Food Technology

Title: A study on the influence of packaging on buying food products

Today, the competition in the market requires the competitors to understand the factors that
influence consumer behavior. Product packaging is one of the most important factors influencing
consumer buying decisions. The objective of this study is to determine the influence of
packaging on consumer’s buying behavior. The purpose of this study is to examine essential
factors affecting the success of a certain product. A questionnaire has been designed using
Google forms, distributed around Lebanon and filled up by 680 respondents. SPSS statistics
software was used to analyze the data collected. According to the results of the study, packaging
plays a vital role in the consumer’s buying decision. It is furthermore concluded that the
packaging elements like its color, design of the wrapper, and innovation are also important
factors when consumers make any buying decision.

Key words: Product packaging; Buying behavior; Questionnaire

Table of Content

Acknowledgement..........................................................................................................................4
Abstract..........................................................................................................................................5

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Table of Content............................................................................................................................6
List of tables...................................................................................................................................7
I Introduction.................................................................................................................................9
II Materials and Methods...........................................................................................................12
III Results.....................................................................................................................................13
IV Discussion................................................................................................................................21
V Conclusion and Recommendations........................................................................................24
VI Appendix...............................................................................................................................25
VII References..............................................................................................................................26

List of tables

Table 1: Respondents based on their demographic characteristics.........................................13

Table 2:   First thing customers look at when buying a packaged food product....................14

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Table 3: Frequencies of respondents with different questions among the questionnaire
according to age...........................................................................................................................15
Table 3 continued..........................................................................................................................16
Table 3 continued..........................................................................................................................17
Table 4: Significant results from chi-square test according to age..........................................19
Table 5:   Significant correlation between the design of packaging in attracting the
customer attention to a product and if packaging is the first criteria customer look at when
selecting an item...........................................................................................................................20
Table 6: Hypotheses testing.........................................................................................................23

List of figures
Figure 1 Maslow's hierarchy of needs...........................................................................................10

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I Introduction

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 Food products are used by consumers on a daily basis. Consumers are exposed in the
supermarket to hundreds of different brands which are diversified in price, quality, packaging
and size.

The primary purpose of packaging is to protect the food product from outside
contamination from by pollutants and bacteria. [1] Correct packaging increases shelf life of the
food product. Most people assume that preserving food at low temperature will protect food and
increase the shelf life. However, this fact is partially correct. The food inside the package will
still decompose if exposed to oxygen. That’s why a good quality package is important to prevent
food from getting in the air. Faulty packaging not only impacts the quality and integrity of the
product but also affects the health of the consumers. Nowadays, packaging is used in marketing
the product and boosting the sales.

There are different elements that affect product sales: quality, protect ability, price,
fulfilling the needs of the consumers, in addition to packaging.

[2] Many packaging elements are factors that influence the buying decision of consumers
such as: packaging color, design, material and innovation.

People decide whether to buy a product within 90 seconds of their initial interaction with it;
62 to 90% of this assessment is based on color alone. Colors play a vital role in product
packaging. They can also influence the customer’s perception by evoking various emotions.

There are six core factors that influence the consumer’s buying decision which are:
advertisement, economic factors, psychological factors, and social factors, cultural and personal
factors. Advertisement plays a greater role in influencing the consumer to purchase a certain
product. Competitors use advertising to increase their sales.

Consumer buying behavior is also influenced by economic factors. After the economic
crisis that happened in Lebanon, people started searching for cheaper products to buy. They are
not looking for quality products nor taking into consideration the quality of the package the food
product is inside. A positive economic environment makes consumers more willing to indulge in
purchases irrespective of their financial situation.

Motivation also drives consumers to buy certain products. Consumers are motivated to buy
certain items based on a desire to satisfy a certain need. The most commonly used descriptor of
motivation for any human behavior is the hierarchy of needs developed by an influential
psychologist named Abraham Maslow; where each level of needs describes a different need that
people strive to fill.

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Figure 1: Maslow's hierarchy of needs

Every business needs constant changes to fulfill the customer needs and expectations. Thus
packaging plays an important role in marketing communication and it is one of the most
important factors influencing the consumer buying behavior.

Selecting the right and appropriate material of packaging in addition to being attractive
became now a challenge for manufacturers, even with the huge variety of choices available these
days. Properties of packaging material such as safety, flexibility, strength and permeability
determine whether the packaging is suitable for a certain product or not. Lately, food packaging
has gained a widespread importance in food safety.

Moreover, environmental-friendly packaging has become an important issue that customers

are relying on in selecting items to buy. Environment-friendly packaging refers to packages that
do not inflict minimum or no harm to nature. In recent years, awareness about environment
benefits started increasing, through moving from disposable packaging to recyclable and
reusable packaging.

[3] Research has revealed that packaging is an important factor as it influences consumer
buying decisions. Several studies have been conducted on the impact of product packaging on
consumer buying behavior in different sectors and locations. [4] Some researchers focus on all
elements of packaging and their impact on consumer buying behavior, while others concentrate
on separate elements of packaging and their impact on consumer buying behavior. They posit
that printed information, material, color and graphics remain significant predictors of consumer
purchase decision for beauty care cosmetics in Awka. According to Ndulue, package color,
material, shape and size, and printed information on packaged products were found to have

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significant effect on consumer buying behavior of beverage products in Anambra. [5] Moreover,
Ahmad and Kanwal concluded in 2021 that color, design, material, printed information on
package and innovation have positive and significant impact on consumer buying behavior for
packaged foods in Pakistan. In 2016, Obinna and Horsfall, argue that, the combinations of brand
name, material, label, trade mark has a significant influence on consumer purchase of table water
in Port Harcourt, also, it is their opinion that the color blend of blue and green be adopted for
table water firms. [6] Kesavan et al. in 2020, argue that aesthetic appeal of product information,
material, color, shape and size positively influence the buying behavior of consumers in
Madurai. [7] Shashikiran and Behl in 2018, assert that package color, package creativity and
material quality have highest and positive correlation with consumers’ purchase intention of soft
drinks in Bangalore. [8] Oaya, Newman and Ezie in 2017, are able to show that there is a direct
significant relationship between product differentiation, labeling and consumer awareness of a
product in Nasarawa state. [9] In 2015, Farooq, Habib and Aslam also suggest that all four
elements of the package; design, graphics, color and material have significant positive
association with purchase intention.

The objectives of this study are to identify the packaging impact on consumer’s buying
decision in Lebanon; find out the impact of the packaging elements on consumer’s purchasing
behavior, to measure the role of each packaging element on the consumer, and to identify the
elements of packaging which should be highlighted to attract consumers.

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II Materials and Methods
Data was collected by using Google form. A Google form survey was constructed and
translated to an Arabic version in order to have wider analysis. The form was divided into 3
parts. There were 22 questions in the survey which addressed different populations.

The first part was demographic and constituted 5 questions. It was related to the structure
of the population where the questions targeted the gender, age, area of residence, and educational
background. Then after, there were 2 general questions about packaging. Those included the first
thing the customers look at when buying packaged food products and also their priority towards
packaging. After this section, a multiple choice grid form was given where the respondent has to
evaluate his answer according to different given statements.

The forms were sent by using social media like WhatsApp groups and Facebook. In
addition, the form was sent to LIU students through Gmail. The snowball method was used as
each group has shared the form with another group and so on. After obtaining the 680 responses,
the responses were saved as Microsoft Excel sheets and analyzed. For analysis, the responses
were exported to SPSS_Statistics_22_win64 where cross tables were performed and results were
obtained. This platform was chosen for the robust set of features it delivers as it permits efficient
data conditioning and provides quick and reliable analysis for the needed data. It is also
important to note that SPSS is a comprehensive platform with a high data security protocol.

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 III Results
After sharing the form during 47 days on various social media platforms, a total of 680
responses were collected. The survey targeted people of different age groups, genders,
educational backgrounds and from different areas in Lebanon. The obtained responses were
exported into an Excel sheet and then analyzed using IBM SPSS_Statistics_22_win64.

Table 1 Respondents based on their demographic characteristics

Descriptive statistics

Frequency Percent

Gender Male   207 30.4 %

Female 473 69.6 %

Age 18-25 442 65.0 %

25-40 144 21.2 %

40-60 94 13.8 %

Area of residence Beirut  169 24.9 %

Mount Lebanon  132 19.4 %

North /Akkar 91 13.4 %

Bekaa /Baalbeck Hermel 109 16 %

South /Nabatiyeh 179 26.3 %

Level of education Bachelor's Degree  413 60.7 %

Master's Degree & PhD  132 19.4 %

Up to High School  135 19.9 %

Survey respondents were split between 69.6% females and 30.4% males. The biggest portion
of respondents were aged between 18 and 25 years old with 65% total respondents, whereas
people with the age 40-60 years old constituted the smallest part with 13.8%. Individuals aged
between 25 to 40 constituted 21.2%. This result is mainly due to the fact that the younger crowds
usually uses social media platforms and are prone to answer online surveys. In addition, area of
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residence percentages was distributed with 24.9% in Beirut, 19.4% in Mount Lebanon, 13.4% in
North/ Akkar, 16% and 26.3% in Bekaa/ Baalbeck Hermel and South/ Nabatieh respectively.
Finally, the clear majority of individuals who participated in the survey are individuals having
bachelor’s degrees accounting for 60.7%, followed by similar percentages with individuals
having master’s degree and PhD or up to high school degrees accounting for 19.4% and 19.9%
respectively. Table 1 above summarizes the demographic data related to the questionnaire
respondents.

Table 2 below show the frequencies and percentages of respondents about the first thing they
look at when buying a packaged food product. The respondents had to choose between 4 options:
brand, design, packaging and price.

Table 2    First thing customers look at when buying a packaged food product.

What is the first thing you look at when buying a packaged food product?
  Frequency Percent
Price 234 34.4
Packaging 140 20.6
Brand 259 38.1
Design 47 6.9
Total 680 100.0

From the results obtained and presented in table 2, 38.1% of respondents have chosen the
brand as the first thing they look at when buying a packaged food product. And with
approximately a closer percentage they have chosen price with about 34.4%. Whereas, 20.6%
have chosen packaging and 6.9% chose design.

The tables below show the frequencies of respondents with different questions among the
questionnaire. The respondents had to evaluate their response by choosing among 5 options:
Disagree, Strongly Disagree, Neutral, Agree and Strongly Agree.

Table 3 Frequencies of respondents with different questions among the questionnaire according
to age.

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 Age
18-25 25-40 40-60
  Count Column N % Count Column N % Count Column N %
You look for the package when Disagree 4 .9% 2 1.4% 1 1.1%
selecting food products to buy. Strongly Disagree 7 1.6% 1 .7% 0 0.0%
Neutral 79 17.9% 22 15.3% 16 17.0%
Agree 204 46.2% 65 45.1% 48 51.1%
Strongly Agree 148 33.5% 54 37.5% 29 30.9%
The design of the package is Disagree 9 2.0% 6 4.2% 2 2.1%
important in attracting your Strongly Disagree 7 1.6% 2 1.4% 1 1.1%
attention to a product.
Neutral 61 13.8% 21 14.6% 24 25.5%
Agree 183 41.4% 64 44.4% 44 46.8%
Strongly Agree 182 41.2% 51 35.4% 23 24.5%
The graphic on the package draws Disagree 10 2.3% 7 4.9% 0 0.0%
your attention to the item. Strongly Disagree 12 2.7% 4 2.8% 3 3.2%
Neutral 89 20.1% 29 20.1% 26 27.7%
Agree 193 43.7% 64 44.4% 43 45.7%
Strongly Agree 138 31.2% 40 27.8% 22 23.4%
The color of the package has an Disagree 33 7.5% 10 6.9% 7 7.4%
impact on your buying behavior. Strongly Disagree 41 9.3% 9 6.3% 4 4.3%
Neutral 128 29.0% 47 32.6% 44 46.8%
Agree 146 33.0% 48 33.3% 21 22.3%
Strongly Agree 94 21.3% 30 20.8% 18 19.1%
You think that the quality of Disagree 10 2.3% 1 .7% 1 1.1%
packaging saves the product. Strongly Disagree 19 4.3% 4 2.8% 2 2.1%
Neutral 56 12.7% 8 5.6% 14 14.9%
Agree 158 35.7% 56 38.9% 32 34.0%
Strongly Agree 199 45.0% 75 52.1% 45 47.9%
You change to another product if Disagree 12 2.7% 2 1.4% 1 1.1%
you have bad experience with Strongly Disagree 19 4.3% 7 4.9% 5 5.3%
packaging handling material.
Neutral 87 19.7% 9 6.3% 10 10.6%
Agree 164 37.1% 41 28.5% 34 36.2%
Strongly Agree 160 36.2% 85 59.0% 44 46.8%
The font used on the package has Disagree 48 10.9% 14 9.7% 5 5.3%
an impact on your buying decision. Strongly Disagree 64 14.5% 17 11.8% 7 7.4%
Neutral 190 43.0% 60 41.7% 43 45.7%
Agree 100 22.6% 38 26.4% 31 33.0%
Strongly Agree 40 9.0% 15 10.4% 8 8.5%
You look for the easy opening of Disagree 55 12.4% 6 4.2% 2 2.1%
the product before buying it. Strongly Disagree 67 15.2% 13 9.0% 6 6.4%
Neutral 141 31.9% 45 31.3% 36 38.3%
Agree 121 27.4% 54 37.5% 30 31.9%
Strongly Agree 58 13.1% 26 18.1% 20 21.3%
The price affects your buying Disagree 6 1.4% 3 2.1% 0 0.0%
decision. Strongly Disagree 16 3.6% 4 2.8% 1 1.1%
Neutral 78 17.6% 14 9.7% 11 11.7%
Agree 162 36.7% 55 38.2% 49 52.1%
Strongly Agree 180 40.7% 68 47.2% 33 35.1%
You choose eco-friendly packaging Disagree 27 6.1% 8 5.6% 1 1.1%
material. Strongly Disagree 30 6.8% 9 6.3% 4 4.3%

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 Age
18-25 25-40 40-60
  Count Column N % Count Column N % Count Column N %
Neutral 181 41.0% 60 41.7% 38 40.4%
Agree 135 30.5% 45 31.3% 35 37.2%
Strongly Agree 69 15.6% 22 15.3% 16 17.0%
It is important to you that the Disagree 3 .7% 2 1.4% 1 1.1%
information is printed clearly on Strongly Disagree 10 2.3% 3 2.1% 1 1.1%
the package.
Neutral 47 10.6% 12 8.3% 9 9.6%
Agree 172 38.9% 52 36.1% 33 35.1%
Strongly Agree 210 47.5% 75 52.1% 50 53.2%
The language used on the package Disagree 30 6.8% 7 4.9% 2 2.1%
food product affects your buying Strongly Disagree 37 8.4% 9 6.3% 4 4.3%
decision.
Neutral 122 27.6% 45 31.3% 16 17.0%
Agree 158 35.7% 43 29.9% 50 53.2%
Strongly Agree 95 21.5% 40 27.8% 22 23.4%
You choose the package according Disagree 42 9.5% 12 8.3% 5 5.3%
to being able to reuse the product. Strongly Disagree 45 10.2% 9 6.3% 10 10.6%
Neutral 169 38.2% 56 38.9% 34 36.2%
Agree 132 29.9% 49 34.0% 36 38.3%
Strongly Agree 54 12.2% 18 12.5% 9 9.6%
Packaging is the first criteria you Disagree 37 8.4% 9 6.3% 3 3.2%
look at when selecting an item. Strongly Disagree 54 12.2% 13 9.0% 11 11.7%
Neutral 129 29.2% 37 25.7% 36 38.3%
Agree 155 35.1% 60 41.7% 29 30.9%
Strongly Agree 67 15.2% 25 17.4% 15 16.0%
You think that a high quality Disagree 14 3.2% 4 2.8% 2 2.1%
package material means a high Strongly Disagree 31 7.0% 7 4.9% 4 4.3%
price.
Neutral 100 22.6% 37 25.7% 18 19.1%
Agree 193 43.7% 64 44.4% 45 47.9%
Strongly Agree 104 23.5% 32 22.2% 25 26.6%
You change to another brand due Disagree 71 16.1% 16 11.1% 5 5.3%
to a change in packaging of the Strongly Disagree 105 23.8% 27 18.8% 11 11.7%
existing brand.
Neutral 176 39.8% 67 46.5% 39 41.5%
Agree 66 14.9% 23 16.0% 32 34.0%
Strongly Agree 24 5.4% 11 7.6% 7 7.4%
You purchase products as advised Disagree 15 3.4% 10 6.9% 4 4.3%
by friends or family. Strongly Disagree 35 7.9% 9 6.3% 4 4.3%
Neutral 132 29.9% 51 35.4% 34 36.2%
Agree 199 45.0% 50 34.7% 42 44.7%
Strongly Agree 61 13.8% 24 16.7% 10 10.6%
You think products offered by Disagree 34 7.7% 12 8.3% 6 6.4%
leading brands are always better. Strongly Disagree 67 15.2% 21 14.6% 6 6.4%
Neutral 155 35.1% 47 32.6% 37 39.4%
Agree 136 30.8% 49 34.0% 38 40.4%
Strongly Agree 50 11.3% 15 10.4% 7 7.4%
You select products according to Disagree 9 2.0% 1 .7% 1 1.1%
your lifestyle. Strongly Disagree 11 2.5% 8 5.6% 0 0.0%
Neutral 84 19.0% 20 13.9% 12 12.8%
Agree 215 48.6% 69 47.9% 55 58.5%

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 Age
18-25 25-40 40-60
  Count Column N % Count Column N % Count Column N %
Strongly Agree 123 27.8% 46 31.9% 26 27.7%
The innovative package can change Disagree 29 6.6% 7 4.9% 1 1.1%
your decision while purchasing. Strongly Disagree 38 8.6% 9 6.3% 1 1.1%
Neutral 144 32.6% 40 27.8% 31 33.0%
Agree 166 37.6% 67 46.5% 46 48.9%
Strongly Agree 65 14.7% 21 14.6% 15 16.0%

Through analyzing table 3, the results of question 1 was distributed by agree and strongly
agree to that the respondent look for packaging when electing a food product to buy. When
respondents were asked for the design (question 2) and graphic (question 3) on the package
importance, their answers were also distributed between agree and strongly agree. When asking
for color importance (question 4) the results show that young age groups agreed (33%) while the
older ages 40-60 don’t care for color when choosing a product to buy (46.8%). Going into
question 5 where we asked if the quality of packaging saves the product, respondents answered
strongly agree and agree. Also from results we can realize that people will always change into
another product if they have bad experience with packaging handling material (question 6).
When asking for the font (question 7) and the easy opening of product package (question 8), the
results among the different age groups were neutral. When respondents were asked if price
affects their buying decision (question 9), all age groups had agreed. And analyzing questions 10
and 13 (using eco-friendly packaging material and being able to reuse the product package), we
realize that majority of answers was neutral among all age groups. Information printed clearly on
package (question 11) and language used (question 12) showed that both criteria are important to
customer since majority of answers was that they agree. According to older ages 40-60,
packaging won’t be the first criteria they look at when buying (question 14) since majority
answered neutral, while younger ages answered with agree. All ages agreed that high quality
packaging material will mean a high price (question 15). When respondents were asked if they
will change to another brand due to a change in the packaging material of the existing one
(question 16), all age groups answered neutral. From results we can realize that people among
different age groups will purchase products as advised by friends and family (question 17) and
according to their lifestyle (question 19). People with ages 25-60 agrees that products offered by
leading brands are always better (question 18), while younger ages 18-25 had a neutral answer.

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Last but not least, innovative package can change the customer among different age groups
buying decision while purchasing (question 20).
 Chi-square test according to age

A chi-square test of independence was performed to examine the relation between different
age groups and different asked questions in the survey. The relation between these variables was
significant. Table 4 below shows the respective X2 and p values.

Table 4 Significant results from chi-square test according to age

  X2 p
The design of the package is important in attracting your attention to a
product. 15.78 0.046
You change to another product if you have bad experience with packaging
handling material.
31.782 0.00

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 You look for the easy opening of the product before buying it.
29.808 0.00
The price affects your buying decision. 15.847 0.045
The language used on the package food product affects your buying
decision. 20.482 0.009
You change to another brand due to a change in packaging of the existing
brand. 31.782 0.00
The innovative package can change your decision while purchasing.
15.559 0.049

 Chi-square test according to gender

A chi-square test of independence was performed to examine the relation between genders
and if graphic on the package draws the customer attention to the item. The relation between
these variables was significant (X2= 13.782, p= 0.008). All the rest questions showed
insignificant relation between variables.
 Chi-square test according to area of residence

A chi-square test of independence was performed to examine the relation between areas
of residence and if customer thinks that a high quality package material means a high price. The
relation between these variables was significant (X2= 27.897, p= 0.033). All the rest questions
showed insignificant relation between variables.
 Chi-square test according to level of education

A chi-square test of independence was performed to examine the relation between areas
of residence and if the innovative package can change customer’s decision while purchasing. The
relation between these variables was significant (X2= 18.579, p= 0.017). All the rest questions
showed insignificant relation between variables.
Table 5 Significant correlation between the design of packaging in attracting the customer
attention to a product and if packaging is the first criteria customer look at when selecting an
item
Correlations
The design of the package is Packaging is the first criteria
important in attracting your you look at when selecting
  attention to a product. an item.
The design of the Pearson Correlation 1 .228**

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package is important in Sig. (2-tailed)   .000
attracting your attention N
680 680
to a product.
Packaging is the first Pearson Correlation .228** 1
criteria you look at when Sig. (2-tailed) .000  
selecting an item. N 680 680
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).
 
The Pearson’s r for the correlation between the design of package and if packaging is the
first criteria when selecting food product variables is 0.228.

IV Discussion
In an attempt to find how packages, influence the decision of customers in buying
packaged food products, the results of the questionnaire were thoroughly studied and analyzed.
Looking closely at the results obtained, we can confirm that packaging is one of the most
important factors of a food product but not the first one. We can confirm that there are different
elements that have an effect on buying behavior other than packaging. Packaging design,
innovation and color affects buying behavior. Indeed, there is no significant relationship between
product packaging and buying behavior.

20
 From results analysis, customer’s first choices in buying products are the brand and the
price regardless of the package itself. Based on those results, we cannot say there is a 100%
equal relationship between packaging and buying behavior, but there is a positive thinking and
trend about reputed brands and price. Past research has been focused on the impact of packaging
on consumer buying behavior. [10] In 2005, Rundh has concluded that packaging attracts
consumers' attention to a particular brand, enhances its image, and influences consumer’s
perceptions about the product. Also packaging imparts unique value to products.

According to [11] Sisodiya and Sharma, the marketing mix has a significant relationship
between consumer buying behaviors whereas price factor exerts greatest influence on consumer
buying decision. In this study, the results have shown that consumer’s first choice is the brand.
They buy products according to the brand regardless of the price they should pay.

According to [12] Oloyede, O. O., & Lignou, S., price and quality were the main driving
forces for consumers’ purchase intent, whereas in this study, brand and package were the driving
forces for customers to buy a product.

[13] Checking a research done in North America by Keller, D. (n.d.), 3,500 people were
surveyed, and 69% of those consumers are happy to pay a premium for environmentally friendly
products. In this study, the results have shown that consumers will buy certain products by
choosing the brand. It is not of high percentage that the Lebanese population cares about eco-
friendly products.

[14] Sadat, S., Alhosseini, N., Danai, H., Mehdi, N., & Kamrani. (n.d.), confirmed the
effect of “market orientation” on quality of product packaging. The results showed that the focus
on customer needs, market orientation, learning capability of the organization, as well as
technological capacities of the organization, managers’ and employees’ tendency to abandon the
existing knowledge, concentration on core competencies of the organization, lack of investment
on previous technologies and strategic relation of the organization with customers and suppliers
have a positive impact on the quality of pharmaceutical products packaging. In Lebanon results
showed that innovative packaging can change the customer’s decision while purchasing
products.

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 As a result, table 13 illustrates the discussion of hypotheses and mentions the authors who
previously supported or not the stated relationships.

Table 6 Hypotheses testing

Hypothesis Authors Examples Analysis

Rundh (2016) [15]

H1: You look for the package when Mazhar, Mahera and Daud, Sayeda and Arz Bhutto,
selecting food products to buy. Sana and Mubeen, Muhammad (2015) [16] Supported

H2: The design of the package is Vyas, H. (2015)[17] Supported

important in attracting your attention

22
to a product.

Underwood, R., Klein, N. M., & Burke, R. R. (2001,

H3: The graphic on the package
December)[18]
draws your attention to the item. Supported

H4: The color of the package has an

impact on your buying behavior. Saad Ahmed Javed1*, Sara Javed2 (2015)[19] Supported

H5: The font used on the package

has an impact on your buying
Deng, X., & Fligner, A. (2019)[20]
decision. Supported

H6: The price affects your buying Not

Sisodiya and Sharma (2018)
decision. supported

H7: You choose eco-friendly

Oloyede, O. O., & Lignou, S. (2021)
packaging material. Supported

H8: The innovative package can

Sadat, S., Alhosseini, N., Danai, H., Mehdi, N., &
change your decision while
Kamrani. (n.d.)
purchasing. Supported

V Conclusion and Recommendations

Results of the research study on the influence of packaging on buying food product stipulated the
following conclusions:
● Packaging and its elements should be treated as one of the most important tools in
today’s marketing communications towards consumers. Appropriate and vivid picture or
packaging colors contribute to catching consumer’s attention and interest. Besides each

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 element’s single function, we think that a good combination of these elements may make
the product more eye-catching.
● Packaging has a better reach than advertising does. It promotes the buying decision.
● Bringing innovation in the packaging design also increases the value of the product in the
consumer mind.

Recommendations:
● Product packaging should be valuable for brand equity, product differentiation, market
segmentation, and pricing.
● It is necessary to set the packaging standard and to implement strategy accordingly for
better protection and promotion of a product.
● It is believed that culture difference does have an impact on companies’ initiatives to
design the product package, for instance, during our research; the choices of packaging
colors are quite different between the area of residence. Thus, it is recommended that it is
important for international companies to take a consideration of culture differences when
they design the product package in different parts of the World.
● It is finally recommended that the marketers of the industry should consider the
packaging as the sole factor for the success of any product, also, they should take up
other important factors of the marketing while they are launching new products or
revitalizing old products.

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VI Appendix
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1LamWeBflVzAuSURIkJ22Lsi_8vzB5Lw6AA4b-Fr7IbI/edit

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