Matecna: Slovak Consumers No Longer Looking only at Price of Foodstuffs

Matecna: Slovak Consumers No Longer Looking only at Price of Foodstuffs

Bratislava, May 12 (TASR) – Slovak consumers no longer consider the price of foodstuffs as primary, Agriculture and Rural Development Minister Gabriela Matecna (a Slovak National Party/SNS nominee) told a news conference following the SIMPLY 2017 forum on craft food held in Bratislava on Friday.

The ministry carried out a survey on consumer behaviour on a sample of 1,000 respondents last year. “The results were surprising also to us. Slovak consumers no longer just look at prices when buying foodstuffs, but they primarily look at their quality. Secondly, they look at the origin of foodstuffs and the price only comes in third place,” said the minister.

Matecna believes that the change in consumers’ behaviour, seeking as low as possible prices of foodstuffs in big retail chains, must come from below, i.e. from consumers themselves. “This change is coming. Therefore, I am reminding all our primary producers and processors to prepare themselves for the fact that consumers want high-quality and fresh foodstuffs and they are willing to pay more for it,” added Matecna.