Means-end Chain Analysis of Food Products with Origin Quality Labels: An Application to Wine with Designation of Origin

For some agro-food companies, a product-positioning strategy based on product origin or a specific production method has become a viable option in increasingly globalized settings. The adoption of this approach to create added value for consumer products nevertheless requires balanced consideration of objective productperformance factors and the subjective judgments of potential consumers. This study sets out to analyze relationships between origin-based differentiation features of food products and the personal values on which consumers base their purchase decisions by applying means-end chain methodology through an interviewing technique known as laddering. The resulting proposal is that food-product positioning or communication strategies should not be based on attributes alone, but should also consider consumer personality factors. The study uses the wine market, where many of the products are differentiated by means of origin quality labels, to measure the relative impact of objective and subjective (or emotional) factors on the purchase decision, taking consumption frequency into account. The results show that regional sentiment and quality issues dominate the choice process, while consumption is associated with a sense of belonging and hedonic benefits. Consumers less interested in DO-labelled wine pay less attention to quality cues and product differentiation factors.

Keywords: Quality of origin labels, purchase decision, personal values, means-end chain, laddering, wine.