The Lumen Scholar shared her research exploring consumer motivations to purchase aesthetically imperfect fruits and vegetables from grocery retailers.
Elon University senior and Lumen Scholar Sara Machi presented her research at the 55th annual Society for Marketing Advances (SMA) conference in Louisville, Kentucky.
Her presentation, “An International Transformation of Produce: The Marketing of Imperfect Produce in France and the United States,” focused on the findings from the first two studies of her Lumen project, which explore consumer motivations to purchase aesthetically imperfect fruits and vegetables from grocery retailers.
The first study included data from a series of depth interviews conducted with French and U.S. grocery shoppers, and the second study included data from a larger online panel survey. The data was partially collected during Machi’s semester abroad in France.
Machi identified several themes which indicate key drivers of consumer willingness to purchase aesthetically imperfect produce, including price, appearance, knowledge of food waste, and the retailer presentation of the produce.
Machi, a marketing major with a French minor, presented her research during the “Understanding Credibility and Marketing in the Food and Wine Industries” session. She was one of only a few undergraduate students presenting at the conference.
Machi conducted her research under the mentorship of Assistant Professor of Marketing Alisha Horky.
The SMA annual conference brings together marketing educators and professionals from around the world. SMA is dedicated to fostering service, research and education in all phases of marketing.
The Lumen Prize, awarded for the first time in 2008, provides select Elon students with a $15,000 scholarship to support and celebrate their academic and creative achievements. Lumen scholars work closely with faculty mentors to pursue and complete their projects.