Consuming Rural Territories through Food – A Segmentation Analysis Based on the Food Choices of Urban Specialty Stores’ Customers

Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at https://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=wfpm20 Journal of Food Products Marketing ISSN: (Print) (Online) Journal homepage: https://www.tandfonline.com/loi/wfpm20 Consuming Rural Territories through Food – A Segmentation Analysis Based on the Food Choices of Urban Specialty Stores’ Customers Elisabete Figueiredo, Teresa Forte, Celeste Eusébio, Alexandre Silva & Mónica Truninger To cite this article: Elisabete Figueiredo, Teresa Forte, Celeste Eusébio, Alexandre Silva & Mónica Truninger (2022) Consuming Rural Territories through Food – A Segmentation Analysis Based on the Food Choices of Urban Specialty Stores’ Customers, Journal of Food Products Marketing, 28:8-9, 331-348, DOI: 10.1080/10454446.2022.2150831 To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/10454446.2022.2150831 © 2022 The Author(s). Published with license by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC. Published online: 24 Nov 2022. Submit your article to this journal Article views: 268 View related articles View Crossmark data Consuming Rural Territories through Food – A Segmentation Analysis Based on the Food Choices of Urban Specialty Stores’ Customers Elisabete Figueiredo a , Teresa Forte b , Celeste Eusébio c , Alexandre Silva d , and Mónica Truninger d a Department of Social, Political and Territorial Sciences, and GOVCOPP (Research Unit on Governance, Competitiveness and Public Policies), University of Aveiro, 3810-193, Aveiro, Portugal; b Department of Social, Political and Territorial Sciences, University of Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal; c Department of Economics, Management, Industrial Engineering and Tourism, and GOVCOPP (Research Unit on Governance, Competitiveness and Public Policies), University of Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal; d Instituto de Ciências Sociais, University of Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal ABSTRACT The increasing interest of consumers in rural provenance food products is known to meet concerns regarding authenticity, health, safety, and sustainability and to be based on knowledge and familiarity. Based on the results of a survey to 1553 customers of 24 urban specialty shops, located in three Portuguese cities, this study aims at identifying different segments of consumers of rural provenance foods according to the criteria they value when acquiring and consuming those products. From a hierarchical cluster analysis based on shopping preferences, three clusters were identified: The Influenced, choosing the products mainly by recommendation; The Provenance Seekers, privileging provenance and related qualities; and The Allembracers, considering a multiplicity of criteria when shopping. These clusters differ in terms of socio-demographic profiles, products bought, consumption behavior, familiarity with rural areas, and images of food products and territories of provenance. Results show the mutual influence of these dimensions on food preferences. KEYWORDS Food shopping criteria; hierarchical cluster analysis; rural provenance food products’ consumers; segmentation; customers of urban specialty shops Introduction There is an ongoing shift in contemporary consumers’ preferences toward provenance foods whose features and quality connect with perceptions of authenticity, health, safety, and sustainability (e.g., Figueiredo et al., 2022; Gangjee, 2017; Mapes, 2020; Truninger & Sobral, 2011). These preferences are being shaped by social discourses and driven by increasingly disseminated socio-political motivations regarding environmental protection, sustainable production, and responsible consumption alongside healthy choices and lifestyles (e.g., Birch et al., 2018; Figueiredo et al., 2022; Hatanaka, 2020). Concerns and familiarity with specific socio-economic contexts are also important in shaping and promoting this interest, especially in Southern Europe where recent dynamics of de-ruralization contribute to lingering social, familiar, and emotional ties with rural territories and respective socio-cultural imaginaries and practices (Figueiredo et al., 2022; Truninger, 2014). These are also contexts featuring a wide range of food quality policies anchored in territorial and social conventions and involving several stakeholders throughout food supply chains. CONTACT Elisabete Figueiredo [email protected] Department of Social, Political and Territorial Sciences, and GOVCOPP (Research Unit on Governance, Competitiveness and Public Policies), University of Aveiro, 3810-193, Aveiro, Portugal JOURNAL OF FOOD PRODUCTS MARKETING 2022, VOL. 28, NOS. 8–9, 331–348 https://doi.org/10.1080/10454446.2022.2150831 © 2022 The Author(s). Published with license by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives License (http:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, and is not altered, transformed, or built upon in any way. The terms on which this article has been published allow the posting of the Accepted Manuscript in a repository by the author(s) or with their consent. One of the stakeholders that have gained traction in recent years are small-medium retailers such as urban specialty shops selling rural provenance foods (Silva et al., 2021). These shops and their connections to the rural can be considered as part of a wider movement that has spawned academic interest over labels such as local food, Alternative Food Networks, Short Food Supply Chains, and other forms of production and distribution networks that have sought to counter the dominance of mass-produced foods (e.g., Crawford et al., 2018; Fernández-Ferrín et al., 2018; Kneafsey et al., 2017). However, the specific role of those shops in promoting rural-urban linkages and fostering the production, distribution, and consumption of rural provenance food products, although recently increasingly acknowledged, has been scarcely addressed (Figueiredo et al., 2022; Forte et al., 2022; Pétursson, 2018; Silva et al., 2021). On the one hand, these shops act as showcases for rural food products, territories of provenance, and local or regional cultural identities and ways of doing, fostering consumers’ interest and shaping their practices. On the other hand, they tend to support small to medium-scale productions and producers that otherwise would face more challenges and logistic and financial barriers to commercialize their products (Silva et al., 2021). Despite the extensive literature on food consumption and shopping determinants, the preference for rural provenance, traditional, nationally, or locally produced food products is a less studied topic, especially when considering – as this paper does – the differences between groups regarding the analyzed dimensions. Departing from the analysis urban specialty shops’ customers (and consumers) of rural provenance foods, the present paper aim is twofold: on the one hand, to identify different segments of customers based on the criteria they value when acquiring those products and, on the other hand, to characterize these segments considering their similarities and differences regarding their images on the food products and rural territories of provenance; the type of products acquired and their regions of origin; consumption practices and relationship with the shop; familiarity with rural territories and socio-demographic profile, to understand the influence of these dimensions on consumers’ rural provenance food preferences. The segmentation is based on a hierarchical cluster analysis (with Ward’s method and the Squared Euclidean Distance) undertaken on data collected through a survey directed to a sample of 1553 customers of 24 urban specialty shops located in three Portuguese cities: Aveiro, Lisbon, and Porto. The hierarchical cluster analysis was based on the criteria customers value when acquiring rural provenance food products. The three clusters identified – The Influenced, The Provenance Seekers, and The All-embracers – reflect relevant differences considering the dimensions analyzed and their mutual influence on customers’ food preferences, contributing to a deeper understanding of consumption practices and motivations of rural provenance food products. Results provide important contributions to rural provenance food marketing research, particularly for urban specialty shops and other food retailers to better target different types of customer in their promotion and selling strategies, by highlighting the strong connections between rural provenance food consumption and the role of familiarity with rural territories and products in determining consumers’ preferences. Literature review – shopping and consumption criteria of rural provenance food products The present article draws on the concept of rural provenance food products (Figueiredo, 2021; Figueiredo et al., 2022; Forte et al., 2022). This term was proposed as an overarching construct of the manifold definitions of non-intensive agri-industrial food production, including traditional, local, regional, organic, terroir, of special quality, or authentic foodstuffs. Underlying all these products and definitions lies their strong connection with the biophysical and natural resources of a given territory paired with the cultural legacies and values embedded in the modes of food production and transformation (Figueiredo et al., 2022; Fonte, 2008; Kneafsey et al., 2017; Montanari, 2006). By taking as a general premise that these products’ utter distinctiveness is based on their national, regional and local origin’s natural and cultural resources, the construct of rural provenance foods is wide enough to assure a common denominator for origin foods whose labels and meanings may vary 332 E. FIGUEIREDO ET AL. across cultural contexts guiding consumers’ choices (DeSoucey, 2010; Figueiredo et al., 2022; Forte et al., 2022) and meeting several consumers’ values (Schwartz, 1991), alongside emotional attachments (Pícha et al., 2018; Tsakiridou et al., 2009). These attributes relate to consumer demands for a reliable origin and authenticity (Mapes, 2020; Truninger & Sobral, 2011) ensuring traceability, an increasing valued attribute in food preferences that guarantees the consumer regarding raw materials and production processes (Kehagia et al., 2007; Madaleno et al., 2019). The local embeddedness of products and supply chains, especially when using sustainable farming and food production (Crawford et al., 2018; Reid & Rout, 2016) and the close relation to nature (Murdoch et al., 2000) are essential parts of the perception of higher quality and genuineness. Perceptions of food quality are shaped by political, and economic contexts, forces and discourses that, at the same time, shape the provenance foods themselves (DeSoucey, 2010; Tellstrom et al., 2006), namely – although not exclusively – through certification schemes such as the European Union (EU) food quality labels (Grunert & Aachman, 2016; Tregear & Giraud, 2011). Despite other characteristics and some paradoxes associated with those schemes (as discussed, for example, in DeSoucey, 2010; Gangjee, 2017; Grunert & Aachman, 2016), quality labels are designed to protect food producers, territories of origin, as well as to foster the interest and support consumers’ preferences by closing the gap between them and those producers, products, and territories (e.g., Figueiredo, 2021; Fonte, 2008). Be the case as it may, it has been argued that consumers can more easily recall a relation between quality and origin (officially certified or not) than between a brand and quality (e.g., Guerrero et al. 2009). This suggests that information about provenance, by itself, may affect consumers in affective, instrumental, and normative ways (Tellstrom et al., 2006). Specifically, it provides cues for products’ quality, authenticity, and trustworthiness, also giving them and their consumption practices a symbolic and emotional value, such as social status or self-image (e.g., Bryla, 2015; Mapes, 2018, 2020). In the same vein, even though price is generally perceived more as a barrier than an enabler factor, consumers appear to be inclined to pay a premium price for locally produced and traditional foods, perceived as superior in quality (e.g., Castelló & Mihelj, 2018). This predisposition may reflect the idea of ‘good money for value’ (instead of the so-called ‘good value for money,’ Arsil et al., 2018) and their increasing embodiment of a ‘positional good,’ signaling a rank in the social hierarchy (Lo Monaco & Bonetto, 2019) or the belonging to an ‘elite’ (Mapes, 2018). Provenance foods are often related to a higher perception of safety and naturalness (Guerrero et al., 2009; Kehagia et al., 2007) and to a closer linkage to particular and familiar territories, both acting as strong drivers for its consumption. Food consumption is increasingly driven by socio-political motivations, concerns, and values, as already suggested, many related to environmental protection, farming sustainability, and social equity. Seen through the lens of the basic human values theory (Schwartz, 1991), rural provenance foods choice appears to draw on the value of universalism expressed by the protection of others and nature’s well-being and, also, on benevolence reflected in the concern with one’s own and personal relations’ well-being as it may be seen in the purchase of organic, local and slow food (Bianchi & Mortimer, 2015), being motivated again by health concerns (e.g., Arsil et al., 2018; Guerrero et al., 2009), safety and trust (e.g., Guerrero et al., 2009; Paddock, 2014), as well as by environmental and social concerns (e.g., Birch et al., 2018; Casini et al., 2016; Kneafsey et al., 2017) both with wider contexts and with local communities (e.g., Madaleno et al., 2019). In the same vein, the influence of normative elements, such as moral and ethnocentric norms, was also found in many consumers of local and specialty foods (Bianchi & Mortimer, 2015; FernándezFerrín et al., 2018). Ethnocentric consumption is influenced by political, economic, and also health values and concerns, as shown by the recent pandemic effects (Pekkanen & Penttilä, 2021). Recalling the different elements of consumption values theory (Schwartz, 1991) this endogenous preference may meet also emotional functions, such as a nostalgic ‘yearning for the past’ or patriotic feelings of belonging (Barham, 2003; Castelló & Mihelj, 2018). Recent research is reframing the preference of consumers for what is local, familiar, and close as a matter of helping behavior (Skallerud & Wien, 2019) and guided by social concerns, such as the desire to contribute to the economy and agricultural JOURNAL OF FOOD PRODUCTS MARKETING 333 production of one’s national context, supporting local communities, farmers, producers, fostering more job opportunities and contributing to rural development (e.g., Casini et al., 2016; Figueiredo et al., 2022; Reid & Rout, 2016). As Pekkanen & Penttilä (2020) refer, this may be related to what has been called responsible or ethical consumption, more influenced by environmental and social concerns than by nationalist rhetoric. As Hatanaka (2020) and Pekkanen and Penttilä (2020) point out, ethical consumption is connected to the idea of consumers as knowledgeable citizens that make food choices partially based on the “invisible others that help feed us” (Carolan, 2018, p. 148). According to Hatanaka (2020), the values related to both ethnocentric and ethical consumption have contributed to put rural provenance foods in the spotlight (Hatanaka, 2020). Familiarity – which is often related to consumers’ ethnocentrism (Fernández-Ferrín et al., 2018; Figueiredo et al., 2022) – was found to be associated with higher knowledge and more frequent consumption of these foodstuffs (Figueiredo et al., 2022; Reid & Rout, 2016). Familiarity with rural provenance food products comes in many forms, spanning from recognizing the products, raw materials, and ways of production to being knowledgeable of and connected to the products territories of provenance (Figueiredo et al., 2022; Seo et al., 2013). A first level of familiarity with food is related to the physical and sensorial attributes of the products, especially visual elements, labels, and packaging (Kehagia et al., 2007; Tellstrom et al., 2006). In the specific case of rural provenance foods, however, familiarity cannot be conceived merely as a visual recollection or knowledge of a given product or brand. Considering that food is embedded in a social and cultural context (Montanari, 2006), provenance food, in particular, anchors in specific territories, knowledge, and values that one contacts while growing up, structuring one’s habitus (Figueiredo et al., 2022; Jang & Lee, 2019), promoting both a sensorial and symbolic familiarity (Pereira et al., 2015; Truninger, 2014), that ranges from appreciating specific flavors and scents to recognizing certain ways of cooking and preparing foodstuffs (Jang & Lee, 2019). The integration of these foodstuffs in shared practices and familiar reference points translates into a symbolic and social organization, fostering bonds between those who share them and between people and the places of food provenance (Lo Monaco & Bonetto, 2019; Seo et al., 2013; Truninger, 2014), forging taste, preferences and dietary habits (Figueiredo et al., 2022). Although risk avoidance and disgust may be also involved in consumers’ preferences for familiar products and brands (e.g., Donato, 2021; Madaleno et al., 2019), as it may induce neophobia-related feelings toward unfamiliar foods (e.g., Kim et al., 2009; Madaleno et al., 2019) especially in exotic and non-familiar contexts, those aspects seem less relevant regarding rural provenance food products. As Memery et al. (2015) refer familiarity and knowledge of food products and their territories of origin also feature concerns toward rural communities’ development and well-being, as well as motivate specific, generally positive, representations regarding those communities. As Figueiredo et al. (2022) found, the salience of consumption of rural provenance food products amongst the consumers with stronger rural ties is connected with positive images regarding Portuguese rural territories. These shape consumers’ motivations not only for acquiring Portuguese rural products but to support Portuguese agriculture and rural communities. Also, Eusébio et al. (2017) and Soares da Silva et al. (2016) conclude that positive images of rural territories impact the consumption of local foods, especially from those visiting those territories more often and engaging in several activities in the countryside. Familiarity thus unfolds at different levels of analysis (national, regional, and local) and different group’s identities, belonging, and interpersonal relations (e.g., Capellini et al., 2015; Figueiredo et al., 2022; Paddock, 2014), at the same time reflecting the socially stratified nature of food consumption as exemplified by Mapes (2020). Rural provenance products do not fit squarely a so-called cosmopolitan or elite taste (Mapes, 2020) as it is often represented by consumers (as well as by other agents within the food supply chains) as related to peasant, pre-modern, and pre-capitalist societies (Figueiredo, 2021; Figueiredo et al., 2022). These connections and images of rural food products and on their territories of origin are arguably stronger in Southern European countries in which the more recent dynamics of de-ruralization have promoted long-lasting connections with rural territories and their products (Figueiredo et al., 2022; Truninger, 2014) that are still quite visible and dynamic across 334 E. FIGUEIREDO ET AL. various groups of the population (Figueiredo et al., 2022; Ramos & Truninger, 2021). These connections promote complex networks between people and territories and are linked to small-scale production and specific social contexts even if a large part of the population currently lives in urban contexts. The complexity of the connections and their transformation over time contributed to shaping familiarity and knowledge, as well as preference for rural provenance food products (Figueiredo et al., 2022), also redefining rural identities and promoting (as Reid & Rout, 2016, refer) increasing interest in rurality and its manifestations, including food. How rural provenance products are perceived and the motivations that make them appealing to consumers are also, as suggested before, modeled by the promotional strategies and marketing devices employed to portray them. Forte et al. (2022), pp. – in a study with a large sample of physical and social network-based promotional materials of rural provenance foods – found that provenance is indeed a keystone for their marketing, together with authenticity, superior quality, distinctiveness, rootedness, sustainability, and health, clearly matching the consumers’ preference criteria for this type of foods. In this vein, by bringing the food products and, through their embedded features, their places of provenance into urban contexts, specialty food shops play a relevant role in the promotion of those products. By bringing the food products closer – and making them available – to the urban consumers, these shops also promote experiential and informational familiarity, contributing to shaping consumers’ preferences and food selection criteria (Silva et al., 2021). The outreach strategies employed by these stores tend to be customized, investing in the products’ promotion to different consumer segments and in emotional attachments between consumers, stores, products, and territories of provenance (Forte et al., 2022; Pétursson, 2018). All of these are potentiated through the emergence and increasing use of digital media, particularly social media (Simeone & Scarpato, 2020), marketing devices increasingly replacing traditional word-of-mouth and prone to establish closer and familiar relationships with customers (Lhadari et al., 2020). This ‘digital word-of mouth’ can indeed create a deeper awareness of the products as well as motivate discussions and exchanges between ‘social consumers,’ who tend to be more open to more information (Simeone & Scarpato, 2020). Methodology Data collection To identify and characterize the different segments of customers of urban specialty shops selling rural provenance food products, a questionnaire was applied between October 2020 and June 2021 to 1553 clients of 24 shops located in the cities of Aveiro, Lisbon, and Porto, in Portugal. These cities were selected based on their number of residents and visitors. Lisbon and Porto are the country’s largest cities in terms of number of inhabitants and ranked, respectively, 63rd and 96th in the most visited cities in the world (Euromonitor International, 2019). Aveiro is a medium-sized city, according to Portuguese standards and was chosen for comparison purposes, as, although it experienced an increase in the number of tourists, these are mainly one-day visitors. All the three cities have experienced an increase in the number of specialty food stores, during the last decade. The 24 shops were randomly selected (using a random number generator) based on a hierarchical cluster analysis resulting from data collected through a survey targeting specialty food shops owners and managers in each city (N = 113). Three clusters of shops were identified following the hierarchical cluster analysis based on the criteria of selling Portuguese rural provenance food products: The Wine Focused (including shops mainly selling wine and other beverages), The Rural Provenance Focused (integrating shops selling mostly products of rural provenance) and The Generalist (including stores selling a diversity of products from different provenances) (see, Silva et al., 2021, for a thorough characterization of these clusters of shops). From these, and also considering the city of location, the 24 shops were then selected. The distribution of these shops by clusters is as follows: 4 shops from The Wine Focused cluster; 11 from The Rural Provenance Focused and 9 from The Generalist. Regarding JOURNAL OF FOOD PRODUCTS MARKETING 335 the city of location: 5 shops are located in Aveiro, 9 in Lisbon and 10 in Porto. The selection of the customers at each of the 24 shops followed convenience sample procedures. We visited each shop in different days (week days and Saturdays) at different time periods, to include a greater diversity of customers. The questionnaire was prepared both in English and in Portuguese (based on, among others, Birch et al., 2018; Casini et al., 2016; Fernández-Ferrín et al., 2018; Gangjee, 2017; Guerrero et al., 2009; Kneafsey et al., 2017; Soares da Silva et al., 2016) and structured to address respondents’ sociodemographic profile, the selection criteria regarding the purchase of rural provenance food products, the products acquired at the shop on the survey date, regions of provenance, frequency of consumption, connections with rural territories, as well as the representations on those territories and the food products. A pilot test with some customers (10) from shops located in Aveiro and Porto was conducted, resulting in the fine-tuning of language and the introduction of some alternative responses in the close-ended questions. Data was collected mainly through face-to-face questionnaires at the shops (N = 1475–95%) and, additionally, through an online version disseminated through institutional networks and by the considered urban specialty stores in their social media pages (N = 78–5%). Data analysis To segment the customers of the 24 shops regarding the reasons to purchase and consume Portuguese rural provenance food products, a hierarchical cluster analysis, using Ward’s method and the Squared Euclidean Distance, was undertaken. In order to segment the customers, their answers to the Likertscale question “what do you usually value when you buy traditional food products and beverages of Portuguese rural origin? (from 1 – less important to 5 – more important)” were considered. The question comprises 20 items (reasons) and the respondents had to indicate its relevance when buying Portuguese rural provenance food products. As shown in Table 1, those items encompass a variety of motives, from the sensorial characteristics of the products (e.g., taste, appearance), the previous knowledge on the products or brands, their national and local production, the environmental impact of their production, to advertisement and recommendations. Based on the analysis of the agglomeration schedule and of the dendrogram, a three-cluster solution was obtained. Tests were used to compare the clusters regarding qualitative variables (e.g., sociodemographic characteristics; familiarity with rural areas; the type of products bought at the shop and their regions of origin; and images of rural territories and rural provenance food products. Since the assumptions of ANOVA did not meet, Kruskal-Wallis test was used to compare the clusters regarding the relevance attributed to the set of reasons to acquire and prefer the products. The analysis was performed using SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences) software, version 25 (IBM, USA). Findings Sample profile Overall, when choosing and buying rural provenance food products, respondents mainly value sensorial features, especially taste, freshness, and appearance; Portuguese, local and rural provenance; shop characteristics, such as the fair price of the products, the trust in the store, and in its specialized customer services; as well as features related to social concerns, as the support for Portuguese agriculture and rural communities (Table 1). The majority of the respondents are frequent consumers of Portuguese rural provenance food, almost half of them being regular customers of the shop in which they were surveyed and a few participating in activities promoted by the store (such as wine and/ or food tastings, thematic dinners, meeting the producers; Table 2). A large proportion of respondents bought wine and other beverages, followed by cheese and other milk products, cured meat and other animal-based 336 E. FIGUEIREDO ET AL. products, and vegetables, fruits, herbs and similar. The regions of provenance of the products bought are mainly the North, Center, and Alentejo, all prominent production areas of these foods (Table 3). In general, respondents have a very positive image of Portuguese rural territories, often associating them with tranquility, appreciation, and well-being, as well as with the environment and natural elements (Table 4). Images of Portuguese rural provenance food products are more diffuse, although their general quality stands out together with their sensorial characteristics (Table 5). Interestingly, almost half of the sample has relatives living in Portuguese rural areas and more than half of the respondents have visited Portuguese rural territories in the last three years engaging in a wide range of activities, including tasting local gastronomy and wines and buying local food products (Table 6). In terms of the socio-demographic profile, the analyzed sample comprises a slightly higher percentage of females, a greater proportion of Portuguese customers, married or cohabiting individuals, of people in professional active age, employed, with higher education levels and with a net monthly household income between less than 1000€ (42.5%) and 2200€ (37.4%; Table 7). These income levels may be considered slightly lower than the average salary per household in Portugal, as evinced by the recent study of Ferreira et al. (2021), suggesting the relevance of the perception of the products’ fair price amongst the preference determinants, as Table 1. Cluster identified according the reasons to buy Portuguese rural provenance food products. Clusters Total Cluster 1 Cluster 2 Cluster 3 Kruskal-Wallis The Influenced The Provenance Seekers The Allembracers Reasons to buy Portuguese rural provenance food products* (N = 1452, 100%) (N = 1022, 70.4%) (N = 226, 15.6%) (N = 204, 14.0%) Mean Mean Mean Mean Value p-value That they are produced in Portugal 4.23 4.09 4.52 4.63 93.092 0.000 If they look good 4.12 4.09 3.86 4.56 67.173 0.000 That they are local 4.12 4.00 4.19 4.65 95.974 0.000 Having a fair price 4.20 4.05 4.39 4.73 109.058 0.000 If they taste better 4.33 4.16 4.60 4.89 174.438 0.000 If they are fresh produce 4.17 4.06 4.08 4.82 128.688 0.000 If they are officially certified (PDO, IGP, Organic) 3.48 3.39 3.15 4.33 133.835 0.000 To know the producers 3.47 3.37 3.17 4.29 138.433 0.000 To know the products’ brands 3.51 3.43 3.13 4.32 150.933 0.000 To know the products already 3.64 3.55 3.31 4.48 162.648 0.000 If they have been recommended by friends and/or family 3.80 3.79 3.20 4.51 183.008 0.000 If they are small-scale produced 3.84 3.69 3.85 4.57 128.127 0.000 To be produced in Portuguese rural areas 3.95 3.69 4.45 4.67 226.905 0.000 The fact that I can buy the products in my residence area 3.62 3.33 4.29 4.31 189.049 0.000 Being advertised on mass media/ social media 3.23 3.49 1.80 3.50 293.388 0.000 That they are healthier 3.92 3.76 4.05 4.54 107.101 0.000 To trust in the store and in its specialized customer service 4.01 3.84 4.35 4.48 100.396 0.000 To support Portuguese agriculture and rural areas 4.09 3.87 4.54 4.67 179.917 0.000 Their nutritional information 3.81 3.78 3.37 4.50 120.944 0.000 If their production carries a low environmental impact 3.95 3.76 4.14 4.65 138.715 0.000 Notes: * Items classified in a five-point type Likert scale from 1 – “ less important” to 5 – “more important” Values in bold correspond to the higher values when statistically significant differences exist Values in bold and italic correspond to the second higher values when statistically significant differences exist JOURNAL OF FOOD PRODUCTS MARKETING 337 discussed below and, somehow, contradicting the findings of Mapes (2018) on the ‘elitist’ character of these products. Cluster profiles Three different clusters emerged from the hierarchical cluster analysis performed based on the reasons to buy Portuguese rural provenance food products (Table 1). Significant statistical differences were found among the three clusters regarding consumption behavior (Table 2), type of products acquired and regions of provenance (Table 3), images of Portuguese rural territories (Table 4) and food products (Table 5), familiarity with rural areas (Table 6) and socio-demographic profile (Table 7). Cluster 1 – The Influenced – is the largest one (N = 1022, 70.4%), including respondents who, when choosing rural provenance food products, tend to rely on recommendations from family and friends, advertisements on mass and/ or social media, and the nutritional information. Previous knowledge of the food products, their brands and producers, together with quality labels (such as PDO, IGP and Organic) and products’ appearance are also important criteria for this group. The respondents included in this cluster are more likely to buy vegetables, fruits, and similar, especially from the Northern region of Portugal. Although the majority of The Influenced respondents tend to be frequent consumers of Portuguese rural provenance foods, they are less likely – when compared to the other two clusters (especially the second one) – to consume these products, to be regular customers of the shop where they are surveyed and to engage in the activities promoted by the store. This cluster is divided regarding the representations of Portuguese rural areas. On the one hand, The Influenced are the ones more likely to represent these areas in a more negative light, as abandoned, isolated, and aged. On the other hand, they are also more likely to associate rural areas with positive aspects, such as tranquility and well-being, as well as – similarly to the third cluster – roots and nostalgia. Portuguese rural provenance food products are portrayed by this group mainly as artisanal and traditional, based on experience and know-how. The Influenced are more likely to have fewer connections (familiar and otherwise) with rural territories and to have visited them in the last three years. However, when visiting Portuguese rural areas, they tend to engage, more than the other two clusters, in cultural visits, nature tourism activities, and acquire more handicraft products. These respondents are more likely to be married or single, and have lower literacy and income levels. Interestingly, this group is more likely to include Non-Portuguese respondents which may help explain their fewer connections with national rural territories, as well as their greater reliance on recommendations when choosing rural provenance food products. The Provenance Seekers formed Cluster 2 (N = 226, 15,6%), grouping respondents that are more likely to value provenance-related features (Portuguese, rural and local) when buying food products. Table 2. Cluster profile regarding consumption behavior toward Portuguese rural provenance food products. Clusters Consumption behavior** Total Cluster 1 Cluster 2 Cluster 3 Chi-square test N % The Influenced The Provenance Seekers The Allembracers (N = 1022, 70.4%) (N = 226, 15.6%) (N = 204, 14.0%) %* %* %* Value p-value Frequent consumption of Portuguese rural food products 1081 74.4 71.5 86.5 79.2 24.306 0.000 Regular customer of the store 718 49.7 45.9 66.4 49.8 30.941 0.000 Participation in activities promoted by the store 69 9.7 5.8 16.3 18.0 23.498 0.000 Notes:* Percentage in column Values in bold correspond to the highest values when statistically significant differences exist ** Only the values corresponding to “yes” are presented 338 E. FIGUEIREDO ET AL. be helpful in better targeting different types of customers and their needs and wants, both in their promotion and marketing strategies and in their tactics to improve specialized customer services and advice, fundamental in the building of trustworthy relationships. On the other hand, our results show that rural provenance products can be well disseminated to sporadic consumers, particularly through social media. This reinforces the central importance of this medium in contemporary food marketing, either strengthening the connection to those who are already familiar with the products and their origins or attracting new consumers. Increasingly addressed in current food marketing research, we found here that the role of this type of digital marketing benefits from transmitting notions of connection, proximity, familiarity, and quality – especially relevant in the case of traditional rural provenance foods. As consumers are the main targets of food marketing, these elements that characterize distinct segments of rural provenance foods consumption, may thus inform more tailored marketing approaches. Despite the relevance of our results and the article’s contributions, the findings are limited to just one country and a sample of customers of selected urban specialty shops located in just three cities in Portugal. Further research would be useful also considering regions other than Southern European, to better understand the analyzed dimensions, their mutual influence, and how more recent changes in rural societies, food production, and rural-urban connections may induce transformations in the motivations to purchase and consume rural provenance foods. Acknowledgments This work was financially supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology/ Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education (FCT/MCTES) – through national funds – and by the FEDER, within the PT2020 Partnership Agreement and Compete 2020 – for the research project STRINGS – Selling The Rural IN (urban) Gourmet Stores – establishing new liaisons between town and country through the sale and consumption of rural products (PTDC/ GES-OUT/29281/2017/POCI-01-0145-FEDER-029281). The authors would like to express their gratitude to the funders, as well as to Joana Couto and Catarina Vitorino that carried out an important part of the fieldwork. Disclosure statement No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s). Funding This work was supported by the Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia [PTDC/GES-OUT/29281/2017]; POCI - Programa Operacional Competitividade e Internacionalização [POCI-01-0145-FEDER-029281. ORCID Elisabete Figueiredo http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7170-3369 Teresa Forte http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3817-7410 Celeste Eusébio http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2220-5483 Alexandre Silva http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7273-567X Mónica Truninger http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4251-2261 Ethics approval statement This work was approved by the University of Aveiro Ethics and Data Protection Board. All the participants in the survey were fully informed about the aims of the research and invited to give their informed consent before answering the questionnaire. This is in line with the General Regulation for Data Protection in force in the University of Aveiro and Portugal (Regulation (UE) n. 2016/679, 27 April 2016). JOURNAL OF FOOD PRODUCTS MARKETING 345 References Andersson, H. (2020). Nature, nationalism and neoliberalism on food packaging: The case of Sweden. Discourse Context & Media, 34, 2–10. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dcm.2019.100329 Aprile, M. C., Caputo, V., & Nayga Jr, R. M. (2012). 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