Locally Grown Ethnic Greens and Herbs: Demand Assessments and Production Opportunities for East Coast Farmers

This study primarily focuses on estimating consumer demand for ethnic greens and herbs, willingness to pay a premium for fresh leafy greens and herbs, document preferences for local produce and demographic characteristics of ethnic consumers’.  The first phase of the project documents the consumer buying patterns relating to ethnic greens and herbs using Internet Bulletin Board focus group meetings.  Four separate Internet bulletin board sessions were conducted to better understand consumer use of ethnic greens and herbs and perceived quality, price, and availability.  Each of the two-day sessions, conducted from March 10 to 12, 2010, included eight to 12 consumer panelists who identified themselves with one of four ethnic groups: Asian Indian, Chinese, Mexican, or Puerto Rican.  Panelists participated if they met the screener criteria: belonged to one of the ethnic groups of interest, primary grocery shopper, living within the East Coast region of the U.S., and at least 18 years of age.  The Internet bulletin board methodology was chosen to allow panelists to respond to a variety of questions, posed by researchers, and respond to other panelists’ submissions.  Groups were segmented based on ethnicity in order to ascertain any issues related to specific cultures’ use of ethnic greens and herbs and whether authentic products were available.  Overall, availability of ethnic greens and herbs depended on panelists’ location.  As might be expected, panelists who mentioned residing in more metropolitan areas expressed that they had access to ethnic greens and herbs, and through at least one outlet.  Others replied that certain greens and herbs were difficult to find locally.  A minority of panelist reported traveling distances up to 40 miles from their residence to purchase such ingredients.  Availability of ethnic markets, product quality and freshness, and price influenced their purchasing decisions.  For those who were able to compare conventional grocery stores with ethnic markets, they noted that greens and herbs tended to be higher quality and, since they believed stock rotated more frequently at ethnic markets, were fresher and priced lower.  While a few panelists provided prices for items sold at ethnic markets, compared to conventional grocery stores, most of the panelist either believed prices were lower.  These responses will be used to construct a telephone survey of ethnic consumers matching the criteria stated above. Data from both studies will provide growers and retailers with information vital for meeting demand and exceeding the needs of ethnic consumers they serve.