Parents' perceptions of pork sausages as a meal solution

Pork sausages are a popular meat as they are generally considered tasty, versatile and convenient and thus fit with the busy lifestyles of today's consumer, however, they can contain high levels of fat. Sales for this product have increased in recent years which suggests that the high fat levels are being traded-off against the positive characteristics associated with the product. In this study the perception of parents with regard to pork sausages is considered as this group face the added challenges of coping with children's food demands. An adaptation of the Theory of Planned Behaviour was used to guide this research. The influences of attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioural control, habit and pester power on intention to serve pork sausages were considered. The findings suggest that attitudes, pester power and habit are the most significant determinant of intention. This study also considers if this population group is homogenous with regard to their perceptions of sausages. Four segments were identified and their consumption behaviour differed. Furthermore, when asked if they would increase their consumption of sausages if a health benefit was added the responses differed considerably by segment. A number of marketing implications are suggested based on these findings. doi:10.1300/J038v13n04_01