Country-of-origin and choice of food imports: an in-depth study of European distribution channel gatekeepers
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Country-of-origin and choice of food imports: an in-depth study of European distribution channel gatekeepers John G Knight, David K Holdsworth and Damien W Mather Marketing Department, Otago School of Business, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand Correspondence: Dr John G Knight, Marketing Department, Otago School of Business, University of Otago, PO Box 56, Dunedin, New Zealand. Tel: þ 64 3 479 8156; Fax: þ 64 3 479 8172; E-mail: [email protected]
Received: 2 August 2004 Revised: 21 December 2005 Accepted: 14 July 2006 Online publication date: 18 January 2007
Abstract Country-of-origin preferences of distribution channel gatekeepers when sourcing food imports were investigated using in-depth interviews in five European markets. Channel member perceptions of product-country image related more to specific issues of confidence and trust in integrity of production, certification and regulatory systems than to country image stereotypes. This study integrates these trust-determining factors with priceperceived value constructs in order to build a comprehensive model applicable to food channel gatekeepers. Journal of International Business Studies (2007) 38, 107–125. doi:10.1057/palgrave.jibs.8400250 Keywords: country of origin; food imports; gatekeepers; trust; country image
Introduction Images that consumers have of particular countries are well recognised as having a major impact on propensity to purchase products from those countries (Papadopoulos and Heslop, 2002). Perceptions that consumers have of products from a country, as well as their feelings towards the people of that country and the desired level of interaction with those people, contribute to a country stereotype. The broader term product-country image (PCI) encompasses the multidimensional nature of the images of products and brands, together with the multiplicity of places that might be involved in the design, manufacture and assembly of products (Papadopoulos and Heslop, 1993a, b). Drawing on the fields of stereotypy and semiotic theory, Askegaard and Ger (1998: 52) have argued that both ‘product’ and ‘country’ are signs whose meaning ‘must be determined through the demasking of their denotations and the analysis of the connotations they evoke, and hence the myths they are inscribed in’. Stereotypes associated with a given country engender ‘mythological narratives’ in the minds of people of other countries, and the ‘dimensions of place, product, market context and usage context are central to understanding contextualised product-place images’ (Ger et al., 1999: 165). Geographic origin not only is a cognitive cue for judgements about product quality, but also has affective (emotional) and normative (relating to personal and social norms) connotations (Verlegh and van Ittersum, 2001).
Country-of-origin and choice of food imports
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The product-country image literature is concerned mainly with high-involvement consumer pur
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