THE ANALYSIS OF PERCEIVED VALUE FACTORS AFFECTING PARENTS’ TO PURCHASE PACKAGED BABY FOOD PRODUCTS IN THAILAND
Authors: Limsuwan Prapimpun 
Published: September 2019

Purpose: The purpose of this study seeks to explore parents’ perceived product value to purchase packaged baby food products. The study utilized exploratory factor analysis to identify appropriate factors that influence parents’ decision making to purchase of packaged baby food products in Thailand.

Methodology: Data were obtained by a preliminary quantitative study carried out in Bangkok, Thailand conducted with 400 parents who are aware of packaged baby food products and used to purchase the products for their children who aged between 6 months to 5 years old. This study used a constructed model of consumers ’choices that uses factors in the combined models to understand the consumers’ decision. The questionnaire included 41 dimensions of factors were utilized by exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA).

Main Findings: A Varimax rotated factor structure comprising 41 items with 11 major dimensions of consumers’ choice to purchase packaged baby food products, which has demonstrated good psychometric properties with Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure of Sampling Adequacy value equal to 0.826. A factor structure was generated, which explain 63.61% of the total variance from EFA. Factor 1, comprising 6 items, was designated as “brand name value”; factor 2, comprising 6 items, was designated as “distribution factors”; factor 3, comprising 6 items, was designated as “healthy and safety factors”; factor 4, comprising 3 items, was designated as “Product design ”; factor 5, comprising 3 items, was designated as “proximity”; factor 6, comprising 4 items, was designated as “Influencer factors”; factor 7, comprising 2 items, was designated as “Online promotional factors”; factor 8, comprising 2 items, was designated as “Perceived convenience”; factor 9, comprising 3 items, was designated as “Monetary Value”; factor 10, comprising 4 items, was designated as “Sensory Appeal”; and factor 11, comprising 2 items, was designated as “Traditional promotional factors”.

Implications/Applications: As a result of food innovation, packaged baby food products are now able to target a wider range of child consumption that is more diverse and demanding nutritional and health benefits.  Packaged baby food products have entered the global markets and have rapidly gained increasingly market shares. The food industry has reacted to packaged baby food products trend by developing a growing variety of new products with health-related claims and images. This research paper, applying factor analysis, elicited consumer behavior toward packaged baby food products. Factor analysis highlighted the key factors by the perception of nutritional value in determining parents’ purchase intention toward packaged baby food products.  This research attempts to bring together the results of fundamental and applied research into packaged baby food products and their development and commercialization in food products. This study aims to gains firstly to promote parents to take into consideration while purchasing packaged baby food products and secondly, to establish implications for achievement among food companies and retailing opportunities.