Several factors affect the consumer product perception and, consequently, his/her intention to purchase. Among such factors is the expectation which can be created by the food label/packaging, which represents the first contact between the person and the product. This study aimed at investigating the effect of the manipulated package characteristics on the consumer intention to purchase for minimally processed cabbage, taking into account the consumer individual differences. Five minimally processed cabbage package characteristics (information, production type, colour, price and product visibility) were manipulated yielding 12 packages, according to a fractional factorial design. The intention to purchase for cabbage was evaluated by 144 consumers based only on the package observation. The data were analysed using Conjoint and Cluster Analyses. Only one segment of consumers was identified, where participants had very similar intention to purchase. Information had highest relative importance (77%) revealing its role for participants. The production type, colour and price also had a significant effect (p<0.0001) on the consumer intention to purchase for minimally processed cabbage. A higher intention to purchase was observed for the "with no chemical products" and "low price" package.
Consumer; intention to purchase; conjoint analysis; packaging
