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Kim, Seon-Woong, Jayson L. Lusk, and B. Wade Brorsen. “‘Look at Me, I’m Buying Organic’:

The Effects of Social Pressure on Organic Food Purchases.” Journal of Agricultural and

Resource Economics, 2018.

Sales in the United States for organic foods continue to grow. The total U.S. sales

increased from $3.6 billion to $39 billion between 1997 and 2014. About 75% of grocery

stores now sell organic foods. The high demand has sparked debates on the factors

driving this boost for organic foods. In previous studies, “consumers preferred

organically grown food because of health concerns, perceived taste, perceived

environmental benefits, perceived benefits to local farmers, improved welfare, and other

factors” (Kim et al. 364). However, it is possible that the demand for organic food is

“driven by social pressure” (Seon-Woong et al. 364).

Social standing has become a prominent issue in society. The authors further explain

how social pressure can affect organic food purchases. In his study, Kim asked subjects

to choose organic and inorganic products in a control group. Each subject chose a product

in front of acquaintances and recorded the data collected. They were testing the people’s

willingness to pay a premium for organic, which was about 90% of the subjects. People

exposed to others were more likely to increase their desire to pay for organic food. In

addition, celebrities often promote the belief that buying organically healthier foods is the

best choice to make. It has become the norm to purchase those foods due to society's high

praise and publicity.

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In conclusion, the study “suggested that consumers purchase organic foods as a symbolic

action to indicate their high social status to others” (380). When most of the subjects were

not under the watch of others, they were more comfortable picking conventional foods

rather than organic. The societal push for organic foods increased the consumer’s

willingness to pay premium prices.

Nuttavuthisit, Krittinee, and John Thogersen. "The Importance of Consumer Trust for the

Emergence of a Market for Green Products: The Case of Organic Food." Journal of

Business Ethics, 2017.

Consumer trust is a key term in the scholarly journal by Nuttavuthisit and Thogersen. For

companies to sell a product, they need consumer trust to establish a market for credence

goods. In this case, they have two differentiations of trust: embedded and disembedded.

Embedded trust can be referred to as being the “tradition, personal, or localized form of

trust” and disembedded as a more “universalistic and institutional form” (324). For

example, for embedded trust, going to a local store that is well known. As for

disembedded, the use of “green” to label products. For consumers to buy organic foods,

they need to believe that the product is beneficially important and from an authentic

supply chain. Authenticity would indicate the retailer, the certification, and the organic

labels, confirming that the product is genuine.

The journal continues to examine the development and low trust in organic food in

Thailand. They used two focus groups and ten interviews to reveal the knowledge on low
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trust, certification, control, and labeling of organic food. Nuttavuthisit and Thogerson

developed six hypotheses on the possible outcomes of their study. In Thailand, better-off

families were more accessible and able to afford organic food than urban dwellers. The

previous information, along with the lack of confidence in the Thai organic certification

and control, were prominent barriers to the organic food market in Thailand. An example

used in the journal, a survey, showed “41% agreed with the statement that ‘products sold

organic are not really organic’ and only 17% … believed that the Thai Government

Control of organic foods does a good job” (332).

The authors concluded that consumer trust significantly impacts the belief and attitude

toward organic food, which can hinder their purchases. Overall, doubt in the control

system and authenticity of the food negatively impacts buying.

Smith-Spangler, Crystal, et al. “Are Organic Foods Safer or Healthier than Conventional

Alternatives?: A Systematic Review.” EBSCOhost, 2012.

Organic foods are “generally grown without pesticides or fertilizers or routine use of

antibiotics, or growth hormones” (Smith-Spangler 348). The U.S. sales of organic foods

have significantly increased from 1997 to 2010, where consumers can pay up to twice as

much as conventional foods. In “Are Organic Foods Safer or Healthier Than

Conventional Alternatives?: A Systematic Review,” the health benefits of organic foods

are being studied. Two independent investigators gathered data on methods, health

outcomes, and nutrient and contaminated levels of organic food.

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When examining the harvesting or processing methods, Smith-Spangler reported that

sixty-eight percent (352) showed that it was the same for both groups, organic and

inorganic. There were also no significant differences in the levels of nutrients and

vitamins (353). However, when they examined the pesticide contamination, seven

percent of residue was found in organic and thirty-eight percent in conventional (352).

Bacterial contamination was not significantly drastic, with seven percent organic and six

percent conventional (352). Although it is common among both groups, organic products

were at a higher risk. The use of antibiotics also proved to be bacteria-resistant in organic

foods but could lead to antibiotic-resistant infections in humans.

The finalized report showed that the risk for contamination was prominent in both

groups, with an increased risk of E. coli in organic foods. Even though organic products

have benefits, they could negatively affect consumers as much as conventional products.

Overall, the cases were heterogeneous but lacked substantial evidence to prove that

organic foods were more nutritious.

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Works Cited

Kim, Seon-Woong, et al. “‘Look at Me, I’m Buying Organic’: The Effects of Social

Pressure on Organic Food Purchases.” Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics,

vol. 43, no. 3, 2018, pp. 364–387. JSTOR, https://www.jstor.org/stable/26797526.

Nuttavuthisit, Krittinee, and John Thøgersen. "The Importance of Consumer Trust for the

Emergence of a Market for Green Products: The Case of Organic Food: JBE." Journal of

Business Ethics, vol. 140, no. 2, 2017, pp. 323-337. ProQuest,

https://go.openathens.net/redirector/tamiu.edu?url=https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-

journals/importance-consumer-trust-emergence-market-green/docview/1865250016/se-2,

doi:https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-015-2690-5.

Smith-Spangler C, Crystal, et al. “Are Organic Foods Safer or Healthier than Conventional

Alternatives?: A Systematic Review.” EBSCOhost, 2012 American College of Physician,

4 Sept. 2012, web.s.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=0&sid=347521d1-

2607-4e6b-a240-ddb71064fd34%40redis.