Métodos DFT:

Figure 4.26 illustrates how frequently the respondents were buying local food in each of the listed food categories. As a whole, the results about frequency of buying local food in different product categories showed that a majority of the respondents were regularly buying what they considered as local food, and that application of the term local food was not limited to particular product categories. In addition, there was no significant difference across income groups in terms of frequency of buying local food in any of the listed product categories (see Appendix J for details).

Figure 4.26 Frequency of buying local food

The results showed that 85% (168) of the respondents bought local fresh fruits and vegetables at least once a week. A further 12% did so at least once a month. None of the respondents considered that this product category could not be local. This means that all the respondents had considered fresh fruits and vegetables while responding to the questions regarding local food in this survey.

Fifty-seven percent of the respondents bought local dairy products every week, and a further 15% did so at least once a month. It is noteworthy that another 15%

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stated they never bought local milk and a further 4% considered that the category of dairy products could not be local. One of the reasons why some respondents considered local dairy products were not available was because dairy products sold in New Zealand, especially liquid milk, tend to only indicate the country of production: “If labelled, I'd buy milk made in North Island, but it isn't the case (though it is NZ made)” (male respondent aged between 18-24 years). The limited information on labels about the origin of products is related to the fact that the New Zealand dairy industry is dominated by a small number of large-scale companies such as the Fonterra Co-operative Group Ltd that collects raw milk from dairy farms all around the country (Conforte, Garnevska, Kilgour, Locke, & Scrimgeour, 2008). Nonetheless, even if labels on dairy products only indicated the country of production, respondents who had defined local food as domestically produced food would consider the dairy products as local food.

In addition, 55% (106) of the respondents stated that they bought local bread on a weekly basis. These respondents presumably paid attention to the location or the person involved in the processing of the products when they defined local food. On the contrary, some respondents, including the 4 respondents who considered that bread could not be a local food in New Zealand, were concerned with the origin of ingredients: “Local means ingredients are not imported” (female respondent from age group of 25-34 years).

Respondents who bought local eggs every week comprised 51% of the local food shoppers, and respondents who bought local meat or meat products at least once a week comprised 45% of the local food shoppers. In common with dairy products, there were some respondents who felt unsure if the eggs and meat they purchased were local due to a lack of information: “For eggs, dairy products, and meat, don't know if I'm buying local.” (female respondent aged between 45-54 years). There were also respondents who did not buy local eggs or local meat because they had their own supply: “Have own supply of eggs and meat” (female respondent aged between 45-54 years). This means that the volume of self- production and food supplies from personal networks had influence on the volume and frequency of local food purchase.

A total of 50% of the respondents bought local beverages (including alcohol) at least once a month. Meanwhile, a total of 55% of the respondents bought local seafood at least once in three months. Even though the frequency of buying local food in the product categories of beverages and seafood was relatively low

compared with other product categories listed in the questionnaire, these results indicated that a majority of the respondents had considered these product categories as categories that could potentially be local.

It is important to note that the respondents stated the frequency of buying local food based on their own definitions of local food. This means that respondents who stated that they bought local food on a weekly basis might have meant that they bought domestically produced food, or that they bought directly from a farmer at a farmers’ market. Even though the definition of local food varied from respondent to respondent, the results showed that the distinction between local food and non-local food might be most important for fresh fruits and vegetables from the viewpoint of self-reported local food shoppers.

In addition, the fact that only a fraction ranging between 1-8% of the respondents excluded some product categories from their local food concept (i.e. they chose the alternative “this category cannot be local”) indicated that a majority of the respondents considered that the term local food applied to all of the listed product categories. This implies that, even if the frequency of buying local food in certain product category was currently low, the respondents may potentially increase their purchase depending on situations. Indeed, 85% of the current local food shoppers (162 respondents) were willing to buy more local food (Appendix J). Willingness to increase local food purchase did not vary significantly across income groups (Figure 4.27).

Figure 4.27 Do you wish to buy more local food?

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