The Arctic as a food producing region: Consumer perceptions and market segments

• Published in: Canadian Journal of Agricultural Economics/Revue canadienne d'agroeconomie
• Main Authors: Yang, Yang, Hobbs, Jill E., Natcher, David C.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Wiley 2020
• Subjects: Arctic; Canada
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/cjag.12255; https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/cjag.12255; https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1111/cjag.12255

Abstract The Canadian Arctic is a unique food producing region. Much of the food produced in the Canadian Arctic has a strong tie with Indigenous cultures and communities, is produced or harvested in a pristine environment, and features species not commonly consumed in other parts of Canada. Building upon previous work and using data from a survey of Canadian consumers featuring a discrete choice experiment positioned around a seafood purchasing decision (Arctic Char), we use a latent class model to examine heterogeneity in consumer responses to Arctic food. We identify three groups (classes) of consumers who differ in the relative importance placed on geographic origin, Indigenous origin, wild harvested (vs. farmed), and certification for sustainability and authenticity. A class membership model explores the sociodemographic and psychographic characteristics differentiating consumers across these three groups, including food neophobia and consumers’ prior perceptions of the Arctic as a food producing region with respect to quality expectations, environmental and social impacts, Indigenous cultural origins, health, moral and price concerns. Our analysis sheds light onto Indigenous cultural origin as a novel type of credence attribute. We discuss implications for the Arctic food sector and for regional certification initiatives.