Factors influencing the purchase of green milk

The presented study explores the nature of factors that facilitate the purchase of “green milk”, which serves as the most appropriate term for defining environmental and organic milk of animal and vegetable origin.
Aim. The study aims to identify factors that affect the indicators of disposition towards purchasing green milk.
Tasks. By summarizing previous studies, the authors put together a set of factors influencing green consumer behavior, conduct an empirical assessment of the impact of these factors, and specify the criteria for facilitating an environmental perception of food products by the consumer.
Methods. This study is based on empirical quantitative-qualitative research. Its qualitative section involves a series of semi-structured interviews aimed at gaining insights. The quantitative section is processed in IBM SPSS 23.0 using а regression analysis. Alpha level 10 % is chosen as the p-value. The respondents are selected using the snowball method with allowance for the niche component. Some respondents are micro-influencers running their own blogs, active on social media, and managing digital communities. From the age perspective, the respondents include millenials living in the capital of the Russian Federation (born in 1982-2000, according to V.V. Radaev) [1]. According to Nielsen, the consumption of organic products by millenials increased by 14 % in 2018, which makes them the fastest growing consumer segment in the eco-market. Moscow accounts for 70% of the Russian ecomarket [2]. Based on the above, the examined group of respondents can be regarded as innovators and early supporters of the emerging green milk market.
Results. Literature analysis reveals factors that could potentially affect green consumer behavior. The constructed regression model shows health concerns to be the main motive for buying green products. Despite certain difficulties in distinguishing between the terms “ecological” and “organic” in the context of the topic, it is established that milk (of vegetable and farm origin) can be both ecological and organic. The majority of consumers of these products are women. The key factors that consumers pay attention to when choosing environmental or organic food products are ingredients and eco-labels.
Conclusions. Based on the obtained results, marketers working with green products should focus on their health benefits. Ingredients and eco-labels are the key criteria for identifying a product as green. Therefore, it is necessary to provide information about the health benefits of the ingredients on the packaging, and it also advisable to put an eco-label. The results of the study make it obvious that consumers cannot tell the difference between official and non-official certification marks on green products. Thus, such words as green, organic, vegan, eco may not increase sales, but will help define the product as green. When developing a marketing communication strategy, it is necessary to keep in mind that women are the target audience in most cases. A potential business opportunity that deserves attention is organic products for men’s health, which will help to differentiate a new product. 

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