Consumer Awareness of Palm Oil as an Ingredient in Food and Non-Food Products

Vegetable oil crop production has increased faster than other food or industrial crops in recent years. Palm oil which is widely grown in tropical areas has become the most internationally produced and traded oil with a detrimental effect on the natural environment and the sustainability of producing communities. The general perception of the industry conveys a negative image to consumers. To better understand the extent consumers’ perception of palm oil products would inform stakeholders in the sector 25 one-to-one interviews using the means-end laddering technique (Olson and Reynolds, 2001) were carried out to elicit attributes which led to the establishing of value perceptions of products containing palm oil. Pal production practices have elicited negative Environmental Concern Values regarding the availability of resources for future generations. Environmental consciousness seems to be an important attribute marketers should take into account when both developing and promoting products. However, consumers’ perception of palm oil as a product ingredient was regarded as minimal. Palm oil was perceived as being a more natural product whose naturalness could be exploited regarding ‘physical wellbeing’ values leading to helping consumers achieve a health life and higher self-stem.