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US Consumer Commitment
to Organic Increasing

From <www.organicts.com>
Sept. 5, 2002

USA: ORGANIC FOOD BUYERS LOYAL, NON-BUYERS
NOT INTERESTED

21 August, ACNielsen

New research released by ACNielsen U.S., shows that organic food buyers are
extremely loyal to the category, and intend to keep buying, while non-buyers
have virtually no interest in organic products.

The study found that, of the one-third of consumers who have purchased
organic food or beverage products in the past six months, 85 percent plan to
continue purchasing organics. However, among non-buyers, only three percent
plan to buy such products in the next six months.

Phil Lempert, food industry analyst and spokesperson for Consumer Pre*View,
said, "The high price of organics is the primary obstacle to broader
acceptance in the marketplace. I expect prices to decline as more mainstream
manufacturers broaden the array of organics available to consumers, but
manufacturers and retailers also have a significant opportunity to increase
sales by clearing up consumer confusion and providing more education about
the benefits of organics."

When asked how they feel about organic products, 63 percent agreed that
"organic products are more expensive than similar non-organic products," far
ahead of other attributes such as "no pesticides" (41 percent), "healthier"
(26 percent), "do not contain genetically modified organisms" (22 percent),
"better quality" (14 percent), and "less likely to have a food allergy
reaction" (13 percent).

The latest ACNielsen Consumer Pre*View study also found consumers who
indicated an intention to eat healthier have, in fact, made purchases in
line with that intention. The study compared buying behavior among consumers
who, in a March/April 2002 survey, said they planned to eat healthier in the
next six months with those who said they did not plan to eat healthier.
Subsequent purchasing was analyzed within four categories - salad dressing,
ice cream, mayonnaise and frozen dinners - that include products that make
healthy claims such as low fat or reduced calories, versus those without
healthy claims.

Across all four categories, consumers who intended to eat healthier showed a
higher incidence of purchasing the products within each category that had
healthy claims. Those consumers were also found to be less deal sensitive
when it came to purchasing products with healthy claims.

According to Nick Sorvillo, senior vice president, ACNielsen Homescan, "What
consumers say they will do and what they actually do are often in conflict.
However, when it comes to eating healthier, we found that consumers are, in
fact, backing up their intentions with their purchase decisions. The fact
that they are less deal sensitive when it comes to purchasing products with
healthy claims is further evidence of their resolve to eat healthier. The
take-away for marketers is that they must continue moving beyond segmenting
consumers by demographics alone and tailor their efforts to different
attitudinal segments."

ACNielsen, a VNU company, is the world's leading marketing information
company. Offering services in more than 100 countries, the company provides
measurement and analysis of marketplace dynamics and consumer attitudes and
behavior. Clients rely on ACNielsen's market research, proprietary products,
analytical tools and professional service to understand competitive
performance, to uncover new opportunities and to raise the profitability of
their marketing and sales campaigns.