Determinants of purchase intention of Functional Food in Thailand: A Study on Young Adults

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Paul Kalin

Abstract

The increasing number of health conscious consumers has led to a growing demand of functional food in Thailand. The purpose of this paper is to examine the effects of perceived food quality attributes, food motives and health consciousness on the purchase intention of functional food.


The data were collected from 400 young adult consumers aging from 18 - 45 years old, living in Greater Bangkok, who consume functional food on a regular basis, using the convenience sampling approach. The data were then analyzed through descriptive and regression analysis.


The results indicated that perceived food quality attributes, food motives as well as health consciousness have a significant effect on purchase intention.


This study makes an important academic contribution to the understanding of young adults’ behavioral intention towards functional food in Thailand. This study also provides useful insights for product design, marketing activities as well as branding strategies of functional food in order to trigger purchase intention of their consumers.


This research is limited by the area scope as well as the nature and the number of determinants. Future research can focus on other areas in Thailand and also examine other determinants of purchase intention.

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