a Faculty of Food Science and Technology, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
b Faculty of Environmental Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
c Institute for Agricultural and Food Policy Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
Received 14 October 2009, Accepted 29 November 2009
In a developing economy like Malaysia with rising per capita income, there have been changes in the consumer demand for food attributes such as safety, freshness, appearance and texture. This study investigated the demand for food safety attributes for vegetables. The results suggested that food safety attributes were ranked the highest for leafy and root vegetables, and ranked second behind freshness for fruit vegetables. Consumers were also willing to pay premium prices for the safety attributes. The findings would have positive implications for the agrifood industry if it responds effectively to translate into business opportunities to these changes.
Keywords: food attributes; food safety; willingness to pay; vegetables
* corresponding author : Prof. Dr. Jinap Selamat