Consumer'S Perceptions About Ethics In Agro-Food Products' Marketing

The research shows whether tools and instruments used for agro-food products’ marketing are moral or not. Studies on agro-food products’ marketing are available; however , none of these focuses on the ethical approach of marketing activities of agro-food compa- nies. In answering this question, a piece of qua- litative research is carried out on customers, focusing on their perceptions whether marketing is moral or not. The respondents were chosen among clients of hypermarkets, having a background in agricultural marketing studies. The reasons that support this choosing are that theY may critically assess the marketing activity and they have a better level of understanding the questions contained in the guide of discussion. The results show that consumers perceive some activities of agro-food producers less moral in those regarding products’ content, packaging, price, and promotion. This conclusion has implications for processes of decision making on marketing that agro-food companies should take into account. Managers of these companies should know the criticisms that con- sumers bring up to their marketing activities. It requires further research regarding the direction of how these decision processes might be improved in order to be more ethical to consumers.