Consumers’ Perception and Knowledge of Food Additives in Senegal: A Pilot Study

Food safety has become a major concern for consumers, as well as a priority for regulatory authorities. Faced with the growing industrial and domestic use of food additives, many questions are being asked and concerns are being felt by consumers around the world. Consumer perception defines the acceptability or rejection of food products, and has an impact on consumption patterns and behavior. To assess the level of knowledge and perception of food additives, a pilot study was carried out on a sample of 200 people in Dakar and Saint-Louis. A questionnaire was used to assess the acceptance or rejection, use and impact of food additives by consumers in Senegal. The results revealed several aspects. On the whole, the people surveyed expressed great mistrust and even rejection of these substances added to food products. This consumer perception is shared throughout the world, as indicated in numerous surveys. It also emerges from this study that, although most consumers are aware of the existence of these additives and their uses in the home, they feel that the use of these substances in industrial production is too excessive. What’s more, consumers associate food additives with numerous pathologies such as cancer, diabetes, hypertension, stroke and even sexual impotence. For some of these indexed pathologies, scientific studies have reached the same conclusions, although controversy still persists. On the other hand, for some of the other adverse effects mentioned, no cause-and-effect relationship has been scientifically demonstrated. In these latter cases, it seems that negative communication, misinformation and misconceptions have a major influence on consumer perception of food additives.

Study on the Influence of Food Packaging on the Psychology of Different Groups of Consumers

With the vigorous development of consumer culture in today’s society,various types of food packaging also appear in front of consumers in different forms.There are very big differences in food packaging in terms of shape,color,style and other aspects of information transmission,which have the most direct impact on the audience’s food consumption needs.Driven by the consumption-oriented society,food packaging has shown very obvious comprehensive characteristics,is significantly interdisciplinary,and has close connections with other disciplines.This article will analyze and sort out the impact of food packaging on consumer psychology from different perspectives.

Multi-Step Clustering of Smart Meters Time Series:Application to Demand Flexibility Characterization of SME Customers

Customer segmentation according to load-shape profiles using smart meter data is an increasingly important application to vital the planning and operation of energy systems and to enable citizens’participation in the energy transition.This study proposes an innovative multi-step clustering procedure to segment customers based on load-shape patterns at the daily and intra-daily time horizons.Smart meter data is split between daily and hourly normalized time series to assess monthly,weekly,daily,and hourly seasonality patterns separately.The dimensionality reduction implicit in the splitting allows a direct approach to clustering raw daily energy time series data.The intraday clustering procedure sequentially identifies representative hourly day-unit profiles for each customer and the entire population.For the first time,a step function approach is applied to reduce time series dimensionality.Customer attributes embedded in surveys are employed to build external clustering validation metrics using Cramer’s V correlation factors and to identify statistically significant determinants of load-shape in energy usage.In addition,a time series features engineering approach is used to extract 16 relevant demand flexibility indicators that characterize customers and corresponding clusters along four different axes:available Energy(E),Temporal patterns(T),Consistency(C),and Variability(V).The methodology is implemented on a real-world electricity consumption dataset of 325 Small and Medium-sized Enterprise(SME)customers,identifying 4 daily and 6 hourly easy-to-interpret,well-defined clusters.The application of the methodology includes selecting key parameters via grid search and a thorough comparison of clustering distances and methods to ensure the robustness of the results.Further research can test the scalability of the methodology to larger datasets from various customer segments(households and large commercial)and locations with different weather and socioeconomic conditions.

Research on the Influence of Anchor Attributes on Consumers’Online Behaviors in Social E-Commerce Platforms:The Moderating Effect of Platform Contextual Factors

As e-commerce continues to mature,the advantages of live streaming within the industry have become increasingly apparent,offering significant growth opportunities.Social e-commerce platforms,which are user-centered,integrate social networks with e-commerce by leveraging social interactions to drive product sales and enhance the overall consumer shopping experience.This type of e-commerce fosters engagement and promotes products by merging online communities with shopping behavior,creating a more interactive and dynamic marketplace.It not only retains the traditional e-commerce trading and marketing functions but also adds a social dimension,making live stream anchors crucial figures connecting consumers with products.These anchors can attract consumers with their appearance and charm,and use their expertise on live streaming platforms to guide consumers by recommending live content.They can also interact with their audiences and potentially influence them to purchase the recommended goods.It is evident that the attributes of anchors in live streaming rooms significantly impact consumers’online behavior.Therefore,researching how platform contextual factors regulate consumers’online behavior is of great practical significance.This study employs multilevel regression analysis to support its hypotheses using data.The findings indicate that contextual factors of the platform significantly influence online behavior,enhancing the positive relationship between user attachment and online activities.

Theoretical Analysis of Consumers’Purchase Motivation in the Context of Environmental Protection

Through reviewing and summarizing the existing research on consumer motivation,and combining the characteristics of human behavior and the objective needs of environmental protection,this paper analyzes and defines consumers’purchase motivation.In the context of environmental protection,purchase motivation is divided into demand motivation,value recognition motivation,recognition motivation,and interest motivation.Their definitions are given in this paper,which provides a conceptual basis for further research on the influence of purchase motivation on consumer behavior in the context of environmental protection.

Estimating the Consumers＇ Benefits of the Demand for Organic Fresh Milk in Taiwan

Certified agricultural standards （CAS） of the organic food label serve to increase food safety and restore the confidence and consumption level in Taiwan. The organic CAS represents food quality without the use of synthetic chemicals to protect consumers＇ health. As a consequence, production costs and consumer prices have increased. The aim of this study is to analyze consumers＇ perception of the organic CAS label and how purchasing behavior for the product is influenced by converting the Fresh Milk Logo to the organic CAS certified label, which is based on contingent behavior analysis. This study adopts factor analysis to extract the perceptions and preferences of the respondents. In addition, the on-site Poisson model to revise the truncated and endogenous stratification and assess consumer welfare precision. The incremental consumer surplus for consumer consumed organic fresh milk is approximately NT$8,979.

Optimal targeted advertising strategies based on consumers' value attributes

To evaluate the effects of consumers＇ value attributes on a firm＇s marketing strategies with targeted advertising, each consumer＇s value is measured according to the consumer＇s consuming behavior and consumption features. The baseline model in which a firm sends targeted advertising to myopic consumers with constant valuations is established. The results showthat, when a firm sells products to consumers with distinct values using the strategies of targeted advertising and discriminative price, the firm＇s equilibrium profit with targeted advertising may not always be higher than that using mass advertising, which depends on the ratio of high-value and low-value consumers. Then, three extension models are constructed.First, the firm sends targeted advertising to consumers with different targeting precisions. Secondly, the firm invests in the targeting precision of targeted advertising. Finally, the deliberation cost of rational consumers accepting the discriminative price and targeted advertising is considered. The results indicate that it is profitable for a firm to send targeted advertising to consumers with different value attributes.

Educated consumers don't believe artificial meat is the solution to the problems with the meat industry

The production of in vitro meat by cell culture has been suggested by some scientists as one solution to address the major challenges facing our society. Firstly, consumers would like the meat industry to reduce potential discomfort of animals on modern farms, or even to avoid killing animals to eat them. Secondly, citizens would like meat producers to reduce potential environmental deterioration by livestock and finally, there is a need to reduce world hunger by increasing protein resources while the global population is predicted to grow rapidly. According to its promoters, artificial meat has a potential to make eating animals unnecessary, to reduce carbon footprint of meat production and to satisfy all the nutritional needs and desires of consumers and citizens. To check these assumptions, a total of 817 educated people（mainly scientists and students） were interviewed worldwide by internet in addition to 865 French educated people. We also interviewed 208 persons（mainly scientists） after an oral presentation regarding artificial meat. Results of the three surveys were similar, but differed between males and females. More than half of the respondents believed that ＂artificial meat＂ was feasible and realistic. However, there was no majority to think that artificial meat will be healthy and tasty, except respondents who were in favour of artificial meat. A large majority of the respondents believed that the meat industry is facing important problems related to the protection of the environment, animal welfare or inefficient meat production to feed humanity. However, respondents did not believe that artificial meat will be the solution to solve the mentioned problems with the meat industry, especially respondents who were against artificial meat. The vast majority of consumers wished to continue to eat meat even they would accept to consume less meat in a context of increasing food needs. Only a minority of respondents（from 5 to 11%） would recommend or accept to eat in vitro meat instead of meat produced from farm animals. Despite these limitations, 38 to 47% of the respondents would continue to support research on artificial meat, but a majority of them believed that artificial meat will not be accepted by consumers in the future, except for respondents who were in favour of artificial meat. We speculated that the apparent contradictory answers to this survey expressed the fact that people trust scientists whoare supposed to continuously discover new technologies potentially useful in a long term future for the human beings, but people also expressed concern for their health and were not convinced that artificial meat will be tasty, safe and healthy enough to be accepted by consumers.

Consumers' perceptions on GM food safety in urban China

The debate about the safety of genetically modified （GM） food has attracted public attention in concurrence with the rapid development of agricultural biotechnology. This paper examines the consumers＇ perceptions on the safety of GM food in China. Based on a unique survey dataset, this study shows that consumers in urban China have significantly changed their perceptions on GM food safety. The percentage of consumers who perceived such food as unsafe for consumption increased by more than 30% in the 2002-2012 period. Approximately half of the consumers did not have an opinion on this issue. Major shifts have been occurred after 2010, likely because of the increasing influence of negative media reports on GM technology in recent years. Several individual and household＇s characteristics are shown to significantly affect consumers＇ perceptions on GM food safety, such as gender, education, food allergy experience and resident city size. The paper concludes with policy implications.

Research on Rural Consumer Demand in Hebei Province Based on Principal Component Analysis

By selecting the time sequence data concerning influencing factors of rural consumer demand in Hebei Province from 2000 to 2010,this paper uses the principal component analysis method in multiplex econometric statistical analysis,constructs the principal component of consumer demand in Hebei Province,conducts regression on the dependent variable of consumer spending per capita in Hebei Province and the principal component of consumer demand so as to get principal component regression,and then conducts quantitative and qualitative analysis on the principal component.The results show that total output value per capita (yuan),employment rate,and income gap,are correlative with rural residents' consumer demand in Hebei Province positively;consumer price index,upbringing ratio of children,and one-year interest rate are correlative with rural residents' consumer demand in Hebei Province negatively;the ratio of supporting the elderly and medical care spending per capita are correlative with rural residents' consumer demand in Hebei Province positively.The corresponding countermeasures and suggestions are put forward to promote residents' consumer demand in Hebei Province as follows:develop county economy in Hebei Province and increase rural residents' consumer demand;use industry to support agriculture and coordinate urban-rural development;improve rural medical care and health system and resolve actual difficulties of the masses.

Non-Cooperative Differential Game Based Energy Consumption Control for Dynamic Demand Response in Smart Grid

In this paper, we conduct research on the dynamic demand response problem in smart grid to control the energy consumption. The objective of the energy consumption control is constructed based on differential game, as the dynamic of each users’ energy state in smart gird can be described based on a differential equation. Concept of electricity sharing is introduced to achieve load shift of main users from the high price hours to the low price hours. Nash equilibrium is given based on the Hamilton equation and the effectiveness of the proposed model is verified based on the numerical simulation results.

Consumer confidence and consumers’ preferences for infant formulas in China

A series of safety incidents related to domestically-produced infant formulas(DIFs) almost destroyed Chinese consumer confidence in domestic dairy products. Understanding consumer confidence and its effect on consumption behavior is important to restore consumer confidence and enhance the competitiveness of domestic dairy industry. This article first measures Chinese consumer confidence in DIFs safety using a two-dimension scale(optimism and pessimism) and then investigates its effect on consumers’ preferences for DIFs through a choice experiment. Involving 450 consumers residing in Beijing, Tianjin and Shijiazhuang, the experiment elicited information on their preferences for DIFs with six attributes(organic raw milk, farm-to-table traceability, region of origin, quality certification, animal welfare, and price). Our analysis yields four findings. First, Chinese consumers still lack confidence in DIFs safety. Second, quality certification is the most preferred product characteristic, followed by organic raw milk and farm-to-table traceability. Third, serving as a signal of high quality, price exerts a positive impact on choices of DIFs for pessimistic consumers. Finally, consumer preferences for farm-to-table traceability and region of origin are significantly influenced by consumer confidence.

Welfare and Market Impacts of Food Safety Measures in China: Results from Urban Consumers' Valuation of Product Attributes

This study provides an economics assessment of various food safety measures in China. A choice experiment approach is used to elicit Chinese consumer preferences for various food safety attributes using data from a 2008 urban consumer survey. An alternative welfare calculation is used to model aggregate market impacts of select food safety measures. Our results show that the largest welfare gains are found in the current government-run certiifcation program. The implementation of a third-party certiifcation system, a traceability network and a product label would generate signiifcant value and would help reduce current system inefifciencies in China. This study builds on previous research and provides an alternative approach for calculating consumer valuation of safety and quality attributes that can be used to estimate aggregate economic and welfare impacts.

Analysis on energy demand and CO2 emissions in China following the Energy Production and Consumption Revolution Strategy and China Dream target

A quantitative model was applied to analyze the energy demand and CO2 emissions in China following the Energy Production and Consumption Revolution Strategy(2016e2030)and long-term economic and social development target China Dream.Results showed that 1)toward the 2050 China Dream target,total final energy consumption is expected to peak at 3.9 Gtce in 2030 and remain stable until 2050,whereas total primary energy consumption is expected to reach an upper platform by 2040 and around 5.8 Gtce by 2050;2)the proportion of non-fossil fuels is expected to reach approximately 50%and that of natural gas to reach more than 16%by 2050;3)CO2 emissions from energy use are expected to peak at 9.6 Gt by no later than 2030 and then gradually decline to 6.7 Gt by 2050.

Consumers＇ Perceptions about Food Quality Attributes and Their Incidence in Argentinean Organic Choices

The objective of this paper is to analyze consumers＇ perceptions about risk and quality attributes of food consumption; and to evaluate the incidence of these factors when buying organic products in the Argentinean domestic market. Data derives from a food consumption survey on organic and non-organic consumers conducted in Buenos Aires City, Argentina, in April 2005.The Lancaster model （1966） provided the theoretical basis. The results yielded by the estimated logistic model suggest that consumers with higher educational level, who eat healthy food, and consider food control organisms as ＂inefficient＂ are more likely to buy organic products. A high percentage of consumers read and trust label information in Argentina. This has interesting policy implications to promote differentiated and high value products, and to reduce information asymmetries.

Analysis of Consumers' Willingness to Pay for Traceable Fresh Fruits in Shanghai City and Countermeasures

By the survey of consumers' behaviour of purchasing fresh fruits, this paper researches the group characteristics of people who consume traceable fresh fruits, and analyses the main factors influencing consumers' willingness to purchase. Based on this, corresponding proposals are put forward as follows: first, the government should not only focus on supervision and regulation over food security, but also strengthen the education of food security knowledge, publicity and promotion of traceable system; second, the government and related enterprise should particularly pay attention to the impact of consumers' individual characteristics on willingness to purchase and purchase behaviours, and work out feasible strategy of traceable food marketing, according to consumers' preferences, consumers' attention to health, consumers' attention to the healthy growth of children and other factors; finally, when implementing the system, the state and the government should take into full account the average income level of consumers, give full play to the effect of scale merit, and work out the reasonable price that can be accepted by most of consumers.

Modelling the Roles of Cewebrity Trust and Platform Trust in Consumers’Propensity of Live-Streaming:An Extended TAM Method

Live streaming is a booming industry in China,involving an increasing number of Internet users.Previous studies show that trust is a cornerstone to develop ecommerce.Trust in the streaming industry is different from that of other e-commerce areas.There are two major dimensions of trust in the live streaming context:platform trust and cewebrity trust,which are both important for customers to adopt and reuse a specific live streaming service.We collected questionnaire data from 520 participates who have used live streaming services in China.We model the collected data and identified factors that can influence users’propensity by an extended technology acceptance model(TAM)method.According to our analysis,both cewebrity trust and platform trust will greatly influence users’intention to reuse a certain platform.Moreover,results also indicate that cewebrity trust is far more important than platform trust.These findings can lead to several management strategies to improve the adherence of users to streaming platforms.

The Influence of E-Commerce on Marketing Practitioners and Consumers

The paper sets out to examine the influence of e-commerce on marketing practitioners and consumers. This researcher found out that e-commerce brings about a new experience for both consumers and marketing practitioners as both groups try to achieve their different goals that end in an online relationship between the duo. This posses a lot of challenges for marketers who have to adapt and modify their offline marketing strategies to suite and meet the demands of e-commerce bringing about the whole concept and execution of e-marketing. The issue of the benefits as well as trust for online transactions based on the fear of insecurity from the consumers＇ perspective was also discussed. In all, the authors concluded that it＇s important for organizations engaging in e-commerce to come up with proper strategies to address these issues and build consumer trust in e-commerce; aiding it to further adapt to the ever changing needs of the business world.

A robust optimization model for demand response management with source-grid-load collaboration to consume wind-power

To accommodate wind power as safely as possible and deal with the uncertainties of the output power of winddriven generators,a min-max-min two-stage robust optimization model is presented,considering the unit commitment,source-network load collaboration,and control of the load demand response.After the constraint functions are linearized,the original problem is decomposed into the main problem and subproblem as a matrix using the strong dual method.The minimum-maximum of the original problem was continuously maximized using the iterative method,and the optimal solution was finally obtained.The constraint conditions expressed by the matrix may reduce the calculation time,and the upper and lower boundaries of the original problem may rapidly converge.The results of the example show that the injected nodes of the wind farms in the power grid should be selected appropriately;otherwise,it is easy to cause excessive accommodation of wind power at some nodes,leading to a surge in reserve costs and the load demand response is continuously optimized to reduce the inverse peak regulation characteristics of wind power.Thus,the most economical optimization scheme for the worst scenario of the output power of the generators is obtained,which proves the economy and reliability of the two-stage robust optimization method.

Consumers’experiences and preferences for plant-based meat food:Evidence from a choice experiment in four cities of China

This paper examined consumers’experiences in and preferences for plant-based meat(PBM)food and their respective correlates,based on data from an online survey of 579 consumers in four major cities in China in early 2021.We first described consumers’experiences in consuming and purchasing PBM food and their correlates,and then analyzed consumer preferences using hypothetical choice experiment.The experiment offered consumers various options to purchase burgers made from PBM or animal-based meat(ABM),combined with different countries of origin(COO),taste labels,and prices.Our data showed that respondents hold overall positive attitudes toward PBM food;85 and 82%of respondents reported experience in eating and purchasing PBM food,respectively.More than half of them ate PBM food because they wanted to try new food(58%),or were interested in healthy food(56%).Income,religion,and dietary restrictions were significantly correlated with consumers’experiences in PBM food consumption.Results from the Random Parameter Logit Model based on the hypothetical choice experiment data showed that 79%of respondents chose PBM burgers and were willing to pay an average of 88 CNY for a PBM burger.We also found that 99.8 and 83%of respondents are willing to buy burgers made in China and those with a taste label,with a willingness to pay(WTP)of 208 and 120 CNY,respectively.The heterogeneity test revealed that females and those with at least a bachelor’s degree,higher income,religious beliefs,and dietary restrictions are more likely to buy PBM burgers than their counterparts.