Ifoam Survey Report

The Development of a Consumer awareness and
Education Concept Based on A Consumer

Survey of Attitudes and Preferences Towards
Organic Foods and on the Review of Existing PR
Materials in East Africa.
Report Prepared for:

International Federation of Organic
Agriculture Movements
(IFOAM)
Report Submitted by:

Samuel K. Ndungu,
Kenya Organic Agriculture Network (KOAN),
P.O Box 72461-00200,
Nairobi, Kenya.
Email: koansecretariat@elci.org,
Website: www.koan.co.ke
Date: 1st December 2006
1
A) Acknowledgement
For the success of the survey, the following partners played a key role especially in field
work organization and therefore KOAN is indebted to them:
Mr. Derrick Tenywa, Coordinator National Market Development, National Organic
Movement of Uganda (NOGAMU) who coordinated all the fieldwork in Uganda (Kampala
and Jinja).
Mr. Jordan Gama, the National Coordinator, Tanzania Organic Agriculture Movement who
coordinated all the field work in Tanzania (Dar e salaam and Zanzibar)
Mr. Jack Juma, Certification and Standards Manager, Kenya Organic Agriculture Network
who coordinated field work in Mombasa.
Ms Masita, who was very instrumental in developing all the instruments (Questionnaire, key
informant screener and guide, PR questionnaire and Surveyors manual), She also facilitated a
training for supervisors of the field work, doing pre-testing of the questionnaires, data
processing and analyzing and contributed in writing the report.
Other people who contributed to the success of the survey includes: Wanjiru Kamau,
lobbying and advocacy Manager, KOAN who assisted in development of the instruments,
Noel Kwai, Marketing consultant, TOAM, who assisted in doing field work in Tanzania and
all the field surveyors, who assisted in carrying out the field work.
The support of the three National Organic Movements in East Africa; KOAN, NOGAMU
and TOAM through bridging the IFOAM projects funds was very much appreciated as it
assisted in full completion of the survey.
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B) Abbreviations
IFOAM International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements.
KOAN Kenya Organic Agriculture Network
TOAM Tanzania Organic Agriculture Movement.
NOGAMU National Organic Movement of Uganda
ABCDE Social Economic stratification where A is high and E is low (annex 5).
NGO Non Governmental Organization
PR Public relation
PPS Probability Proportionate to Size
SPs Sampling Points
NGO Non Governmental Organization
PGS Participatory Guarantee System
3
C) Table of Contents
1. Background Information 6
1.1 Introduction
1.2 Aim of the Survey
1.3 Overall Objective of the IFOAM Survey
1.4 Overall Objectives of the Assignment.
1.5 Key Research Objectives
2. Rationale 7
2.1 Demand Side Issues
2.2 Supply Side Issues
2.3 Existing Information Resources and Institutional Capacity
3. Research Methodology and Process 8
3.1 Technique
3.2 Survey Instruments
3.3 Field Work and Other Logistics
3.4 Data Processing and Analysis
4. Survey Results 9
4.1 Demographic Details of Survey Respondents and Composition of Key Informant
Interviews.
4.2 Quantitative Survey Findings 10
4.2.1 Awareness and Usage of Organic Food Products
4.2.2 Perceptions and Attitudes towards Organic Farming and Food Products.
4.2.3 Post Test of Organic Products Awareness and Educational Materials
4.2.4 Media Usage and Habits
5. Qualitative Survey Findings 25
5.1 General Business Issues In Relation to Customer Preferences
5.2 Issues Taken into Consideration When Stocking Organic Food
5.3 Attitudes Towards Organic Foods
5.4 Consumer Awareness Building and Education on Organic Products.
5.5 Verification Systems
6.0 Conclusions and Recommendations 27
7.0 Appendices 34
7.1 Survey Questionnaire
7.2 Key Informant screener
7.3 Discussion guide
7.4 PR Questionnaire
7.5 Instruction Manual for field Surveyors.
4
D) Tables and Figures
Tables
Table 1: Demographic details of the survey Respondents
Table 2: Composition of Key Informants
Table 3: Source of Information of what organic foods are
Table 4: Awareness of facts on organic products / farming
Table 5: A relation between Schooling and Knowledge of Organic products
Table 6 Reasons for consumption of organic food type
Table 7: Trust of verification methods
Table 8: Analysis of Likes and Dislikes In the Organic Agriculture Concept
Table 9: Sources of Organic Agriculture Information
Table 10: Media usage is provided in the table below by socio-economic class and
education level
Table 11: Existing PR materials
Table 12: A relation between existing PR Materials and their popularity
Table 13: Relation between considerations of purchasing food products and values
associated with organic Produce
Table 14: How best the Organic Information can be imparted
Figures
Figure 1: Respondents by age, gender and socio-economic class.
Figure 2: Respondents answer to the Facts about organic food
Figure 3: Respondents Awareness towards selected organic brands.
Figure 4: Preferred Outlet Purchase of Organic Foods.
Figure 5: Preferred Vs rejected Shopping Outlets.
Figure 6: Respondents Definition of Organic Food
Figure 7: Key associations of the Organic Food Concept among the Respondents
Figure 8: Whether the respondents have heard of any Organic advert
Figure 9: Activities for the last seven days by the Respondents
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1. Background Information
1.1 Introduction:
Agriculture has historically been the source of livelihood to most East Africans, as well as for
food security. Despite the impact of the green revolution, particularly over recent decades,
and the introduction of synthetic fertilizers and agrochemicals, agriculture in Eastern Africa
is still largely based on traditional method, characterized by no or little use of external inputs,
but driven by the timeless wealth of indigenous knowledge (such as for natural pest and
disease control, soil management and crop/livestock production) which still paramount in the
majority of rural communities within the region.
However, since the introduction of synthetic fertilizers and chemicals, application for soil
fertility and pest and disease control are becoming widely accepted and available practices;
also affordable through government schemes and subsidized commercial sector activities. As
a result of the increasing intensity of chemicals usage, ill effects on human health, the
environment and the ecology of these countries has became evident. Human and animal
illness from chemical-relate disorders, soils degradation, a significant decrease in the
diversity of agricultural systems, pest and disease resurgence and resistance, a resulting
decrease in yields, are some of the negative impacts widely acknowledged.
It has become evident to many that the green revolution is not the panacea. This widespread
realization has given rise to an increasing return to husbandry lead farming practices,
combining traditional knowledge and modern technology resulting in what is now formally
termed as “Organic Agriculture”; promoting environmentally, socially and economically
sound production of food and fibers.
Formal organic agriculture in East Africa can be traced in the early eighties, when the first
organic training institutions were established and since then it has developed far and wide.
However, the sector has developed slowly over these decades mainly because practitioners
and promoters have been working in isolated pockets, creating a situation where activities
were uncoordinated and often far less effective than their potential.
Over recent years, national organic movements have been established in each of the three
countries (Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya) as co-ordinating, sector representative, and service
providing bodies. However, the lack of organic markets and market access remains one of the
fundamental factors holding back the development of the organic sector in the region. Trade
is the oldest and most tangible auger in creating long-term economic development in rural
Africa. Therefore, there is vital need to understand the complexity of the inter-related reasons
why there has been little growth in the organic market activity in the region, and why organic
farmers are not accessing these markets.
In addition, a majority of consumers within the region are unaware of the value of organic
agriculture and products, in terms of health and environment, and therefore are not willing to
patronize organic products, particularly where there is no adequate identification in the
marketplace.
IFOAM is the international umbrella organization of organic agriculture movement’s world

wide. One of IFOAM’s objectives is to improve income and livelihood of rural communities
in East Africa through facilitation of trade in organic products by means of a regional
standard and certification cooperation. As such, there is a plan to develop and implement a
concept for “consumer education and awareness building” on organic products and standards
6
of the same in East Africa. The rationale behind this education and awareness building
project is based on the fact that a standard has no value if it is not known, and regional trade
of organic products can only emerge if there is knowledge about the standards and the
production. Therefore IFOAM’s overall objective as far as this project is concerned is to
increase consumers understanding of Organic Agriculture and to inform consumers in East
Africa about the new standard in the Region including the importance of Standards.
As a prerequisite to achieving this, IFOAM deemed it necessary to carry out a survey on the
attitudes and preferences of consumers in East Africa (Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania) and
scan existing PR materials to provide crucial information that will guide the education and
awareness building concept within the auspices of Harmonization of Guarantee Systems in
East Africa Project. KOAN which is a national membership organization which coordinates
organic agricultural activities in Kenya was commissioned to carry out this survey on behalf
of IFOAM with the help of TOAM and NOGAMU which are also organic agricultural
movements in Tanzania and Uganda respectively.
1.2 Aim of the survey:

Consumer education / consumer awareness building in East Africa
Identify consumers’ attitudes towards Organic Agriculture, collect PR materials and produce
recommendations for consumer awareness activities in East Africa
1.3 Overall Objective of the OSEA Project:

To develop organic standard in East Africa to improve income and livelihood of rural
communities in East Africa through facilitation of trade in organic products by means of a
regional standard and certification cooperation.
1.4 Overall Objective of the assignment:

To increase consumers understanding of Organic Agriculture and to inform consumers in
East Africa about the new Organic Guarantee Systems in the Region including the
importance of Standards
1.5 Key Research objectives were:

¾ Identify consumers’ attitudes towards organic products and different
verification systems in East Africa (Uganda, Tanzania, Kenya)
¾ Screen existing consumer awareness materials in East Africa
¾ Produce recommendations for consumer awareness activities to be
carried out in 2007.
2. Rationale
2.1 Demand-side issues:
‘A standard has no value if it is not known’ …and trusted. In order for the organic
marketplace to develop and expand, consumers need to be sensitised to the additional value
that organic food and non food product provide them, and exposed to clear, consistent and
reliable product identification in the form of attractive, endorsed labeling.
2.2 Supply-side issues:

Regional trade of organic products can only emerge if producers/ suppliers/ traders take part,
in sufficient numbers, in a reliable and professionally managed labeling scheme1 which
1
Which ensures third part verification and a sound traceability system
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provides clear, consistent identification in the marketplace to the consumers in an attracted
and confidence inspiring manner.
2.3 Existing information resources and institutional capacity:

Three strong and active national organic movements exist in the Eastern African region
(Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania) and some level of information from market and consumer
studies and PR materials are already available. For the success of the survey, the 3 East
African National Organic bodies were very vital in carrying out the field work. This was done
to maintain the spirit of East Africa cooperation.
3. Research Methodology and Process

3.1 Technique
Both qualitative and quantitative methodologies were employed in this survey.
A quantitative random survey was carried out amongst consumers in Kenya, Uganda and
Tanzania. In each country a total of 200 interviews were to be carried out thus bringing the
overall total sample target to 600. The 200 interviews in each country were distributed
between 2 towns, the capital city, and one other select town. The select towns were chosen
on the basis of their being major tourist areas. The interviews were distributed randomly
according to PPS (Probability Proportionate to Size) down to the SPs (Sampling Points)
within each town.
A qualitative survey was carried out amongst Key Informants in each of the 6 towns. They
Key Informants were classified into managers or proprietors of hotels, restaurants,
supermarkets and greengrocers. An overall total of 60 Key Informant Interviews were
carried out, 10 in each town.
3.2 Survey instruments

Two main instruments were prepared towards achieving the survey objectives:
• A structured questionnaire with both closed and open ended questions which was
administered to consumers for the quantitative random survey
• A short Questionnaire with open ended questions regarding the different organic
movements and other stakeholders experience in preparing and applying PR materials
• A discussion guide which was administered to key informants
• The above instruments were prepared on the basis of the research objectives. Past
surveys in the region were also perused so as to ensure that these survey instruments
indeed covered the key issues and that the data that would be obtained from these
instruments would help fill the current information gaps.
• One other instrument prepared was a recruitment questionnaire to help establish suitable
respondents who would fit the profile of Key Informants thus qualify to be interviewed
for the survey.
3.3 Fieldwork and other logistics

Before commencement of fieldwork, detailed training and briefing of field teams was carried
out in two phases. One was conducted in Nairobi, Kenya by a technical research expert to
representatives of KOAN, NOGAMU and TOAM. These representatives in turn trained their
field teams in their respective countries. A detailed field manual was used in the training and
a copy provided to all enumerators for reference during fieldwork.
Fieldwork was carried out over a 4-week period (staggered from country to country) in
October and early November 2006. A total of 30 enumerators were used for the whole
survey with representatives of KOAN, NOGAMU and TOAM acting as field supervisors
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Uganda Tanzania Kenya BASE
33% 197 34% 203 34% 202 100% 602 TOTAL
0% 0 0% 0 100% 154 100% 154 Nairobi
0% 0 0% 0 100% 48 100% 48 Mombasa
TOWN
0% 0 100% 177 0% 0 100% 177 Dar es Salaam
0% 0 100% 26 0% 0 100% 26 Zanzibar

Interviews.
100% 163 0% 0 0% 0 100% 163 Kampala
100% 34 0% 0 0% 0 100% 34 Jinja
35% 108 38% 118 27% 84 100% 310 Male
DER
GEN
30% 89 29% 85 40% 118 100% 292 Female
AB
4.0 Survey Results
37% 39 15% 16 48% 51 100% 106
Informant Interviews
46% 82 21% 37 33% 59 100% 178 C1
CLASS
SOCIAL
20% 38 49% 92 30% 57 100% 187 C2
ECONOMIC
34% 33 39% 38 28% 27 100% 98 D
15% 5 61% 20 24% 8 100% 33 E

responses across different interviews.
36% 41 16% 18 49% 56 100% 115 18 - 24

3.4 Data processing and analysis
bases by these breaks are robust enough.

39% 79 26% 53 35% 70 100% 202 25 - 34
32% 46 35% 50 32% 46 100% 142 35 - 44
9
22% 20 49% 45 29% 26 100% 91 45 - 55
AGE BRACKET
43% 10 39% 9 17% 4 100% 23 56+
3% 1 97% 28 0% 0 100% 29 Don't know
7% 2 90% 27 3% 1 100% 30 No formal schooling

Informal schooling only
Table1: Demographic details of survey respondents
19% 3 63% 10 19% 3 100% 16 (including Koranic

schooling)
30% 12 60% 24 10% 4 100% 40 Some primary schooling

EDUCATION LEVEL
43% 20 30% 14 26% 12 100% 46 Primary school completed
Some secondary
53% 43 23% 19 23% 19 100% 81 school/high school
Secondary school/high
32% 48 39% 58 29% 44 100% 150 school completed
Post-secondary
4.1 Demographic Details of Survey Respondents and Composition of Key
26% 33 16% 20 58% 72 100% 125 qualifications, other than

university e.g. a
26% 6 30% 7 43% 10 100% 23 Some university

economic class, age, and education level. Largely these are the sample breaks that have been
used to analyze the findings in chapter 3.0 of this report particularly where the respondent
Table 1 below shows the total sample breakdown by country in terms of town, gender, socio-
The data was processed and analyzed over a 2 week period (October to November 2006).
qualitative survey was analyzed through grid preparation so as to enable comparison of

throughout the fieldwork duration as well as carrying out some of the Key Informant
The quantitative survey was analyzed using SPSS to produce a clean data file while the
51% 30 7% 4 42% 25 100% 59 University completed
0% 0 0% 0 100% 12 100% 12 Post-graduate
0% 0 100% 20 0% 0 100% 20 DIDN'T MENTION

Table2 : Composition of Key Informant interviews
Hotels Restaurants Green-grocers Supermarkets

KENYA
Nairobi 3 3 2 2
Mombasa 3 2 1 2
TANZANIA
Dar-es Salaam 4 3 2 1
Zanzibar 2 2 2 2
UGANDA
Kampala 3 3 2 4
Jinja - 3 3 3
4.2 Quantitative Survey Findings
4.21 Awareness and usage of organic food products

In order to gauge the levels of awareness of consumers on organic food products they
were first asked what they understood by the term ‘organic foods’. There appeared to be
a significantly high lack of awareness as out of the total sample, 38% said they did not
know or were not sure what the term ‘organic foods’ means. Majority of these who were
not sure or did not know were from the Tanzania sample (57%), followed by Kenya
(44%) and only 13% from Uganda. Another 26% of the total sample said that organic
foods were natural foods, 17% said that they were foods without chemicals, 9% foods
not sprayed with pesticides, 8% traditional or indigenous foods, 6% foods grown with
manure, while herbal foods, and healthy/nutritious foods were each mentioned by 3% of
the total sample. Fig 1 below shows the responses by age, gender and socio-economic
class.
Understanding of 'Organic Foods'
Don't know / not sure Natural foods

Foods w ithout chem icals Foods not sprayed w ith pesticides
Traditional / indigenous foods Foods grow n w ith m anure
Herbal foods Healthy / nutritious foods
70
58
60
49 47.5
50
42
39
40 37 37
34
32
31
29 28
30 2626
26 25
22 23
20 20 19 20.5
17 18
20 15 16 15 15
12 13 12
10 11 10
87 88 88 9 999 8.5 9 9 9
10 76 7 6.5 6.5
4 5 4 56 4 5.5 6
2 3 3 3 23 34 4 4 44 3.5 24
1 1
0
Male Fem ale 18-24 25-34 35-44 45-55 56+ ABC1 C2D E
10
In terms of education level, the responses can be seen in the table below. It is apparent that
more respondents with lower education level said they were not sure or did not know what
‘organic foods’ are as compared to those with higher education level.
Some university
university e.g. a
Post-secondary
Primary school
schooling only
Post-graduate
Some primary
qualifications,
school/high
school/high
Secondary
completed
secondary
completed
completed
other than
University
No formal
schooling
schooling
Informal
school
school
Some
BASE 30 16 40 46 81 150 125 23 59 12
Don’t know / not
40% 44% 40% 46% 44% 46% 38% 26% 10% 17%
sure
Natural foods 23% 13% 23% 15% 21% 22% 33% 26% 37% 58%
Foods without
27% 25% 8% 13% 11% 12% 16% 17% 32% 58%
chemicals
Foods not
sprayed with 7% 13% 5% 2% 2% 5% 14% 9% 22% 17%
pesticides
Traditional /
3% 13% 20% 11% 7% 7% 8% 0% 7% 0%
indigenous foods
Foods grown with
10% 0% 3% 0% 11% 2% 6% 9% 12% 8%
manure
Herbal foods 7% 0% 0% 7% 5% 3% 2% 13% 0% 0%
Healthy /
7% 0% 5% 9% 1% 2% 2% 0% 3% 8%
nutritious foods
The consumers were also asked their source of information on what organic food products
are. Word of mouth and teachings at school or college appear to be the most common source
of information across the different ideologies of what organic foods are. This is followed by
television programmes or adverts and radio programmes or adverts. Details can be seen in
the table below:
Table 3: Source of information on what organic foods are HEALTHY / NUTRITIOUS

FOODS NOT SPRAYED
FOODS GROWN WITH

INDIGENOUS FOODS
WITH PESTICIDES
FOODS WITHOUT
NATURAL FOODS
TRADITIONAL OR
HERBAL FOODS
CHEMICALS
MANUIRE
FOODS
BASE (n =) 154 104 54 47 36 20 19

Percent 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%
Word of mouth 50 29 12 14 - 6 4
32% 28% 22% 30% - 30% 21%
Taught in school / college 38 26 23 6 14 4 4
25% 25% 43% 13% 39% 20% 21%
Television programmes /adverts 18 11 6 1 3 3 4
12% 11% 11% 2% 8% 15% 21%
Radio programmes / adverts 14 11 7 2 3 - -
9% 11% 13% 4% 8% - -
Books 12 11 5 4 3 - -
8% 11% 9% 9% 8% - -
Don't know / not sure 10 6 1 3 1 2 4
11
6% 6% 2% 6% 3% 10% 21%
Newspaper 8 12 4 4 - 2 -
5% 12% 7% 9% - 10% -
Magazines 8 13 8 - - 3 2
5% 13% 15% - - 15% 11%
At a promotional / educational 8 6 1 3 3 3 1
event 5% 6% 2% 6% 8% 15% 5%
KARI/Teachings from experts 1 2 1 - - - -
1% 2% 2% - - - -
A shop in the estates 1 1 - 1 - - -
1% 1% - 2% - - -
Internet 1 - - - 1 - -
1% - - - 3% - -
Traditional knowledge 1 1 - 1 - - -
1% 1% - 2% - - -
Supermarkets 1 - - - - - -
1% - - - - - -
Own opinion - - - 9 - 1 1
- - - 19% - 5% 5%
Practices organic farming - - - 1 - 2 1
- - - 2% - 6% 5%
Consumers’ awareness on certain facts about organic products was also tested. A set of
statements was read out to the respondents and they were asked to state whether or not they
were aware of this fact. Fig 2 below shows the findings.
Are you aware that...?
Yes No
100
90
80 44
70
69 69
60 83 80
50
40
30 56
20
31 31
10 17 20
0
There are local There is an There is a national Organic products Organic products
standards for organic organic should be are supposed to
organic products certification body m ovem ent in identified by a be certified
in Kenya / Uganda / Kenya / Uganda / logo
Tanzania Tanzania
There appears to be low awareness of organic products in as far as all but one of these basic
facts is concerned. Responses by country are provided in the table below where it becomes
12
evident that there was somewhat higher awareness in Tanzania on most of the statements as
compared to Kenya and Uganda. It is important to note however that some of this may be
‘claimed’ awareness given that the statements were read out to the respondents and they were
asked to state whether they were aware of these facts or not.
Table 4: Awareness of facts on organic products / farming
TOTAL Kenya Uganda Tanzania

There are local standards for organic YES 31 18 24 49
products NO 69 82 76 51
There is an organic certification body in YES 17 13 15 23
Kenya / Uganda / Tanzania NO 83 87 85 77
There is a national organic movement in YES 20 17 28 16
Kenya / Uganda / Tanzania NO 80 83 72 84
Organic products should be identified by YES 31 19 14 59
a logo NO 69 81 86 41
Further, to gauge awareness on organic products, respondents in the three countries were
asked to state whether or not they were aware of certain organic brands in their respective
markets and for those who were, whether they were also aware that these brands were
organic. Fig 3 shows the results.
Are you aware of... and if so that it is organic?
No -- -- -- -- Yes Yes but not aware its organic Yes & aware its organic
100
94
92 92 91
89 89
90
80
80
70
60 56
52
50 48
44
40
30 35
20 28
20
20 11 11
8 8 9
10 12 6
9 6
8 4 4 1 5 3 5 4.5 4.5 5 5 6
0
Out of Africa Meru Herbs Green Tanika Chai Green Viungo Tefu Solar Mop Solar Amfri Solar
Coffee Chamomile Dreams Coffee Tea Spices Dried Fruits Dried Fruits Dried Fruits
Tea Vegetables
13
Out of Africa Coffee (Kenya) and Tanika Coffee (Tanzania) were the two products that
turned out to be significantly known. However few of those who had heard of Out of Africa
coffee knew it is organic while almost half of those who claimed to know Tanika coffee also
said they knew that it is organic.
In terms of education level, the findings can be seen in the table below
Table 5: A relation between Schooling and Knowledge of Organic products
Some secondary school/high

(including Koranic schooling)
Primary school completed
qualifications, other than

Some primary schooling
University completed
No formal schooling
school completed
Some university
university e.g. a
Post-secondary
Post-graduate
school
Out of Africa YES 0% 0% 50% 25% 26% 39% 43% 70% 60% 66%
Coffee NO 100% 100% 50% 75% 74% 61% 57% 30% 40% 34%
Meru Herbs YES 0% 33% 25% 8% 21% 16% 24% 30% 20% 20%
Chamomile Tea NO 100% 67% 75% 92% 79% 84% 76% 70% 80% 80%
Green Dreams YES 0% 0% 0% 17% 16% 7% 6% 0% 8% 20%
Vegetables NO 100% 100% 100% 83% 84% 93% 94% 100% 92% 80%
Tanika Coffee YES 50% 33% 40% 17% 7% 32% 76% 55% 57% -
NO 50% 67% 60% 83% 93% 68% 24% 45% 43% -
Chai Green YES 7% 40% 0% 0% 11% 0% 5% 14% 0% -
Tea NO 93% 60% 100% 100% 89% 100% 95% 86% 100% -
Viungo spices YES 11% 50% 0% 0% 11% 2% 5% 14% 0% -
NO 89% 50% 100% 100% 89% 98% 95% 86% 100% -
Tefu Solar YES 0% 0% 0% 5% 5% 4% 18% 0% 20% -
Dried Fruits NO 100% 100% 100% 95% 95% 96% 82% 100% 80% -
Mop Solar YES 0% 33% 8% 5% 9% 4% 18% 17% 20% -
Dried Fruits NO 100% 67% 92% 95% 91% 96% 82% 83% 80% -
Amfri Solar YES 0% 0% 0% 5% 9% 2% 24% 0% 20% -
Dried Fruits NO 100% 100% 100% 95% 91% 98% 76% 100% 80% -
On usage, consumers were asked whether they have ever consumed or considered consuming
organic products. Surprisingly, majority of the total sample claimed they had ever consumed
organic products (49%), a significant number (34%) however were not sure or did not know,
11% said no while 6% said they had considered consuming. There were no major disparities
in response by country. However, expectedly, the higher socio-economic classes were the
majority in terms of those who had ever consumed ABCI being at 57%, as compared to C2D
and E at 41.5% and 24% respectively.
Those who said they had ever consumed or considered consuming organic products were
further asked to specify which types of organic foods these were in particular. Expectedly an
overwhelming majority mentioned organic fruits and vegetables (85%), followed by organic
cereals which received 35% mention, then organic dairy products and organic meat at 16%
and 14% respectively and finally organic bread and pasta at 8%. Organic fruits and
vegetables were popular across the three countries. Cereals however appeared to have a
14
significantly higher mention in Tanzania (65%), as compared to Kenya (39%), and Uganda at
a mere 8%. There was also no mention of organic dairy products nor organic bread and pasta
at all in Uganda as well as a much lower mention of organic meat (5%) as compared to
Kenya 19%) and Tanzania (18%).
Reasons for consumption of the different types of organic food products were also explored
and these are tabulated below.
Table 6: Reasons for consumption of organic food type
VEGETABLE
BREAD AND
PRODUCTS
CEREALS
FRUITS &
PASTA
DAIRY
MEAT
S
BASE 280 115 54 45 26
100% 100% 100% 100% 100%
They are healthy / nutritious 141 55 32 22 18
50% 48% 59% 49% 69%
They are safe to consume / not contaminated 69 33 18 15 15
25% 29% 33% 33% 58%
They are tasty 59 23 22 24 14
21% 20% 41% 53% 54%
They are readily available 36 27 18 14 10
13% 23% 33% 31% 38%
Good for management of illnesses 36 12 12 9 9
13% 10% 22% 20% 35%
They are affordable 27 18 14 10 12
10% 16% 26% 22% 46%
They are environmental friendly 23 14 10 10 11
8% 12% 19% 22% 42%
Makes me feel in touch with my indigenous 19 15 11 9 10

roots 7% 13% 20% 20% 38%
No specific reason / indifferent 15 7 6 3 -
5% 6% 11% 7% -
The health and safety factors appeared to be the key motivating factors of consumption /
purchase followed by taste. Similarly, the health factor and taste factor also appeared to be
ranked highly as key considerations when purchasing food products in general when
respondents were asked to rank seven key purchasing considerations from most important to
least important. By working out a mean score, the ranking was as follows:
Most Important
Price / affordability
Health / nutrition value
Packaging quality
Taste
Availability
Packaging size
Brand name
This analysis implies that organic food products should be quite popular with consumers
given that some of the reasons most people consume them are also some of the key
15
considerations when purchasing food products in general. Noteworthy however is that price /
affordability is the most important consideration when shopping hence organic food products
need to be perceived as affordable in order to increase consumption by consumers.
Those who said that they had never consumed organic food products nor considered doing so
were also asked to give their reasons for this. The overwhelming majority, 79%, had no
specific reasons or, were indifferent. Other reasons cited albeit insignificantly were as
follows:
They are not readily available or don’t know where to get them 8%
They are expensive 5%
They are not tasty 3%
They are not healthy 3%
They are unsafe 3%
This implies that there may be no real barriers or resistance to consumption of organic
products. What could be lacking is more education and awareness of organic products and
farming to drive home the benefits so as to make consumers keener to consume organic.
Those who had said they had ever consumed or considered consuming organic products were
also asked where they would prefer to purchase organic products from. The results are as
seen in fig 4: below:
Prefered outlet for purchase of organic products
Total Kenya Tanzania Uganda
0
18
Dukas / kiosks 8
8
5
18
Farm gate 20
14
18
Open air m arkets 37
29
27
31
26
Greengrocers 23
27
44
Superm arkets 18
47
37
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50
Supermarkets were overall the most preferred particularly in Kenya and Uganda and in all
three countries this was particularly true for the capital cities. This was followed by
greengrocers who, were actually more preferred than supermarkets in Tanzania but not as
preferred as open air markets. Farm gate was more popular in Kenya and Tanzania as
compared to Uganda while dukas / kiosks were more popular in Tanzania as compared to
Kenya and Uganda.
16
Similarly respondents were asked which places they would not purchase organic food
products from. Fig 5: below provides a comparative analysis of the various outlet types in
terms of acceptance / preference versus rejection or disapproval. Note however that the
majority were not sure or did not know which outlets they would not purchase organic foods
from and this could imply that there are also no real barriers to outlet types hence there is
great potential for distribution of organic products.
Prefered vs. rejected outlet for purchase of organic products
Yes No
36
Don't Know / not sure
5
12
Dukas / kiosks
8
2
Farm gate
14
27
Open air m arkets
27
2
Greengrocers
27
9
Superm arkets
37
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
Respondents who said that they have ever consumed or considered consuming organic foods
products were also asked how they would verify that the foods they are buying or consuming
are organic. 31% said they buy or would buy from specific farmers who they know practice
organic farming, 30% also said they would check the labels, 30% that they purchase or would
purchase from specific shops that they know sell organic products, 24% said they practice
their own organic farming, 19% were not sure or did not know while 18% said they would
only purchase specific brands that they know to be organic. Further the respondents who
mentioned any given verification method as discussed above were asked whether they trust
this method or not. The findings are tabulated below:
Table 7: Trust of verification methods

TRUST
VERIFICATION METHOD No Yes Not
sure
Buying from specific farmers who practice organic farming 14% 77% 9%
Checking labels 18% 75% 7%
Purchasing from specific shops that are known to sell organic products 22% 69% 9%
Practicing own organic farming 15% 73% 11%
Purchasing specific brands known to be organic 11% 77% 12%
All respondents were asked whether or not they felt that there was need for a verification
system. Majority 69%, said yes and 31% said no. In Kenya 52% said yes and 48% no, in
Tanzania 70% said yes and 30% no while in Uganda 85% said yes and 15% said no. Overall,
17
need for a verification system also appeared to be more important to the higher socio-
economic groups than the lower ones. Those who felt there was need for a verification system
were also asked to state who should be in-charge of providing this verification. Majority
mentioned the government (51%) and this received the highest mention across the three
countries, 46%, 78%, and 32% for Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda respectively. Out of the
total sample who felt a need for verification, 19% also said it should be provided by an
independent certification body and 18% said it should be done by NGOs working with
farmers. Other responses given were companies buying from farmers, 10%, groups of
producers 7% and the producer himself 6%.
4.22 Perceptions and Attitudes Towards Organic Farming And Food Products
In order to gauge perceptions and attitudes, respondents were given a statement defining or
describing organic farming / products to read or it was read out to them and were then asked
to react to it. The statement was as follows:
“Organic produce or products are those produced and processed

through a system that encourages biological natural processes on
the farm, allows farm animals to exhibit natural behavior and
excludes the use of synthetic pesticides, chemical fertilizers,
antibiotics and genetically modified organisms.”
Based on this statement an overwhelming majority said that they thought organic products
were a good thing as can be seen in the pie chart below.
The positive response cut across the three countries, towns, age-groups and socio-economic
classes as well as education level of different respondents.
Based on the working definition of organic products, do you think that organic products are...?
Fig 6: Respondents definition of organic food.
Good thing Both good and bad Bad thing Don't know / not sure
2%
1%
5%
92%
The respondents were also asked to specify what aspects in particular of the statement they
liked and which they disliked. A country by country, and town by town analysis of likes is
given below since majority had no dislikes or were not sure (79%):
18
Table 8: Analysis Of Likes And Dislikes In The Organic Agriculture Concept
Exclusion Encourag Exclusion Farm Exclusion Exclusion Not
of ement of of animals of of sure
chemical biological synthetic allowed genetically antibiotics
fertilizers natural pesticides to exhibit modified
processes natural organisms
behaviour
TOTAL Like 47% 36% 35% 15% 12% 11% 10%
Dislike 4% 1% 4% 2% 6% 4% 79%
Kenya Like 72% 50% 53% 27% 22% 19% 6%
Uganda Like 16% 47% 17% 13% 4% 1% 5%
Tanzania Like 53% 12% 35% 6% 9% 13% 19%
Nairobi Like 66% 44% 50% 17% 11% 9% 6%
Mombasa Like 90% 69% 60% 56% 54% 50% 4%
Kampala Like 17% 45% 19% 11% 3% 1% 4%
Jinja Like 12% 58% 6% 18% 6% 0% 9%
Dar es Sal Like 52% 9% 36% 3% 8% 11% 21%
Zanzibar Like 58% 31% 31% 23% 15% 31% 0%
Generally it appears that the most liked aspects across the countries and the towns are
exclusion of chemical fertilizers, encouragement of biological natural processes, and
exclusion of synthetic pesticides. This could be an indication of key aspects of organic
farming or products that should be over-emphasized during the educational and promotional
campaign. In Mombasa however the respondents seemed to be enthusiastic about all the
aspects of the statement.
Having been exposed to the statement defining organic products, the respondents were asked
to give a score on a scale of 1 to 10 (where 1 is not important at all, and 10 is very important)
as to how important it would now be to them to consume organic products. Overall, majority
gave high scores hence a mean score of 8.1. At data analysis stage, the responses for this
question were cross-tabulated with the responses from the usage question so as to see the
importance of consumption by those who had ever consumed, ever considered consuming
and those who had not or never considered consuming organic products. Interestingly, it
turned out that even for those who had never consumed or never considered consuming
organic products, it was now quite important to them to consume organic products after
learning what organic products are. The mean scores were as follows:
How important is it for you to now consume organic food products?

Importance score out of 10
Those who had ever consumed 8.3

Those who had ever considered consuming 8.7
Those who had never consumed or considered 7.4
Again this implies that it is more out of a lack of awareness on organic products that lends to
low or non-consumption of organic products.
In order to gauge what consumers would most associate with organic foods, respondents were
exposed to several short statements and asked to state which one they felt was most suited to
organic foods. The key associations were ‘is very nutritious / healthy’, ‘is very tasty’, ‘is
safe’ and ‘is for everyone’ as can be seen in the chart below:
19
Fig 7 Key associations of the Organic Food Concept Among the Respondents
Organic food associations
Total Kenya Tanzania Uganda
Is very nutritious / healthy
90
80
Is for the young Is very tasty
70
60
50
40
Is for the elite 30 Is safe

20
10
0
Is fashionable / trendy Is for everyone
Is easily available Is affordable
Respondents were also asked to give their suggestions on what should be done to
improve or support organic farming and the market for organic products. 26% said that
organic farming technology should be taught to farmers, 22% said creation of more
awareness on organic foods, and 11% said the government should encourage high level
of organic production, while 5% mentioned media advertisements. 36% had no
suggestions.
4.23 Post Test of Organic Products’ Awareness and Educational Materials

In response to whether they had heard or seen any advertising or information relating to
organic farming or food products in the last one year, majority said they had not (54%), 31%
said they had while 15% were not sure. Tanzania had a significantly large proportion of
respondents who were not sure (39%) as compared to 2% and 3% in Kenya and Uganda
respectively. Thus only 16% in Tanzania said they had seen or heard some information or
advertising as compared to 35% in Kenya and 42% in Uganda.
The following sources were given by the respondents who said they had heard or seen some
information or advertising on organic farming or products in the last one year.
20
Table 9: Sources of Organic Agriculture Information
COUNTRY TOWN GENDER
Mombasa
Tanzania
Kampala
Zanzibar
Uganda
Salaam
Female
Nairobi
Dar es
Kenya
Male
Jinja
TOTAL
BASE 184 70 32 82 60 10 27 5 73 9 90 94
100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%
Radio program or 62 14 4 44 11 3 3 1 39 5 36 26
news 34% 20% 13% 54% 18% 30% 11% 20% 53% 56% 40% 28%
TV program or 60 16 9 35 12 4 7 2 35 0 35 25
news 33% 23% 28% 43% 20% 40% 26% 40% 48% 0% 39% 27%
In a book 43 9 4 30 7 2 4 0 30 0 26 17
23% 13% 13% 37% 12% 20% 15% 0% 41% 0% 29% 18%
newspaper in the 42 17 2 23 13 4 1 1 22 1 24 18
general news
23% 24% 6% 28% 22% 40% 4% 20% 30% 11% 27% 19%
section/stories
Health worker – 37 10 3 24 8 2 2 1 23 1 14 23
doctor, nurse or
nutritionist 20% 14% 9% 29% 13% 20% 7% 20% 32% 11% 16% 24%
Friends advice or 33 16 1 16 12 4 0 1 16 0 18 15
discussion 18% 23% 3% 20% 20% 40% 0% 20% 22% 0% 20% 16%
Packaging / 28 19 4 5 17 2 4 0 5 0 14 14
products in shop 15% 27% 13% 6% 28% 20% 15% 0% 7% 0% 16% 15%
Social function / 27 7 2 18 4 3 1 1 18 0 10 17
community meet 15% 10% 6% 22% 7% 30% 4% 20% 25% 0% 11% 18%
TV advert or 23 10 3 10 6 4 1 2 10 0 7 16
commercial 13% 14% 9% 12% 10% 40% 4% 40% 14% 0% 8% 17%
In a magazine 23 11 2 10 8 3 2 0 10 0 15 8
13% 16% 6% 12% 13% 30% 7% 0% 14% 0% 17% 9%
Advertisement in 20 6 0 14 3 3 0 0 13 1 11 9
a newspaper 11% 9% 0% 17% 5% 30% 0% 0% 18% 11% 12% 10%
From a leaflet or 18 8 1 9 5 3 1 0 9 0 8 10
brochures 10% 11% 3% 11% 8% 30% 4% 0% 12% 0% 9% 11%
Radio 16 3 5 8 2 1 2 3 8 0 9 7
advertisement 9% 4% 16% 10% 3% 10% 7% 60% 11% 0% 10% 7%
Attended a 16 4 0 12 1 3 0 0 12 0 10 6
lecture, class or
study/at school 9% 6% 0% 15% 2% 30% 0% 0% 16% 0% 11% 6%
from a teacher
Majority 41% however were unable to describe the advert or information or remember the
message or what in particular about organic food or farming the information or advert they
had seen or heard was about. Those who could remember all had very varying responses or
descriptions hence no significant percentages to report.
Respondents were also probed about specific adverts or promotional events on organic
products or farming, one for each of the three countries. They were as follows:
Kenya: Ecofest 2006 – Musical event but with promotion of organic products
Uganda: NOGAMU Day
Tanzania: TOAM Mr. Juma TV Advert
The findings were as follows:
21
Fig 8: Whether the respondents have heard of any Organic advert
Have you ever heard of...?
Yes No Don't know / not sure
100 3
5
90
80 39
70
60
76 81
50
40
57
30
20
10 19 16
4
0
Kenya - Ecofest 2006 Tanzania - TOAM Mr. Jum a TV Uganda - NOGAMU Day
Advert
As can be seen in the chart above, awareness levels of these promotions were quite low
despite them having been singled out as 3 of the major or key promotional items on organic
products / farming in the 3 countries by the organic movements in the same countries.
Majority of those who said they were aware were upper socio-economic class ABC1 as
opposed to C2D. Those who said they had ever heard of these adverts / promotions or events
were further asked what messages came through to them. Majority across the three countries
however could not remember nor were they sure what the messages were.
In Kenya 75% of the 39 people who were aware of Ecofest said they did not know or were
not sure what the message was, 10% cited that people were encouraged to appreciate and take
care of the environment, 8% said that people were encouraged to eat organic foods with
entertainment as the medium of communication, 3% said it was about the importance of
organic foods, and another 3% said it was about healthy living.
In Tanzania, out of the 8 people who were aware of the Mr. Juma TV advert, 3 of them said
they did not know or could not remember the message, 2 said it was promoting organic
farming and 3 said it was on the importance of consuming organic products.
In Uganda, 68% of the 31 people who had heard of NOGAMU Day did not know or were not
sure what it was about, 13% said it was promoting organic farming, 6% said it was about
importance of usage of organic products, another 6% mentioned that it was education on how
organic products can be preserved by solar. 3% said it was something to do with pesticides
while another 3% talked of it being about explaining the organization structure of NOGAMU.
22
Those who were aware of the advert / promotion events were also asked to give a liking score
out of 10. Ecofest scored 4.7 out of 10, Mr. Juma TV advert scored 6 out of 10, while
NOGAMU Day scored 7.5 out of 10.
4.24 Media Usage and Habits

Respondents were also asked about their activities in the past seven days versus the previous
day as a way of gauging what media consumers mostly come into contact with. The findings
are shown in the chart below country by country:
Figure 9: Media Activities for the last seven days by the Respondents
Activities Done
Listened to radio Watched TV
Read a newspaper Shopped at a supermarket
Seen a billboard Shopped at an open market / hawker / kisok
Seen a small poster on a wall Went to a restaurant or hotel
Been out with friends Read a book
Read a magazine Seen a film
Browsed the internet Attended a social function
Read a leaflet or brochure Been to a health facility
100 Attended a class or lecture
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Kenya - past 7 Kenya - yesterday Uganda - past 7 Uganda - Tanzania - past Tanzania -
days days yesterday seven days yesterday
Radio stations that were most often listened to in the past 7 days in Kenya were, Kiss FM
16%, Capital FM 11%, Classic FM 11%, Easy FM, Baraka FM, and KBC Kiswahili at 7%,
followed by Hope FM and Metro FM both at 6%.
In Tanzania most often listened to radio stations in the past seven days were Radio one 36%,
followed by Radio Tanzania 16%, Clouds FM 12%, and Radio Tumaini at 7%.
In Uganda most often listened to radio stations in the past seven days were Radio Simba
21%, CBS One 19%, Capital FM 9%, KFM 8%, Akaboozi 7%and Radio Maria at 6%.
These would be key stations to target during promotions or campaigns although it is

important to note that this survey was purely urban hence if a rural population is also to be
targeted these or even other stations would need to be considered in different strengths.
23
TV stations most often watched in the past seven days were as follows
Kenya – KTN 34%, NTV 29%, DSTV 13%, KBC 13%.

Tanzania – ITV 42%, TVT 20%, Star TV 11%, Channel 10 10%.
Uganda – WBS 68%, UTV 11%, EATV 9%, DSTV 7%.
Newspapers read most often in the past seven days were as follows:
Kenya – Daily Nation 83%, The Standard 9%.
Tanzania – Mwananchi 22%, Majira 19%, Mtanzania 14%, Nipashe 9%.
Uganda – New Vision 52%, The Monitor 25%, Bukkedde 22%.
Again these would be key TV stations and newspapers to use for a campaign keeping in mind
the urban bias of the survey.
Table 10: Media usage is provided in the table below by socio-economic class
and education level:
Primary school completed
qualifications, other than

Some primary schooling
University completed
No formal schooling
school/high school
school completed
Some secondary
Some university
Post-secondary
Post-graduate
university
AB C1 C2 D E
KENYA RADIO MOST OFTEN LISTENED TO
Kiss FM 24% 15% 17% 4% 0% - 0% 0% 0% 29% 10% 13% 33% 13% 50%
Capital FM 10% 20% 4% 8% 0% - 0% 0% 0% 0% 10% 10% 22% 22% 10%
Classic FM 14% 7% 11% 8% 14% - 0% 0% 0% 0% 10% 15% 22% 13% 0%
Easy FM 10% 13% 2% 4% 0% - 0% 0% 0% 0% 5% 10% 11% 13% 0%
Baraka FM 5% 2% 13% 4% 14% - 0% 33% 0% 21% 5% 7% 0% 0% 10%
KBC-Kiswahili 2% 2% 9% 13% 29% - 67% 0% 22% 14% 12% 0% 0% 0% 10%
Hope FM 10% 6% 4% 8% 0% - 0% 0% 0% 0% 12% 6% 11% 4% 0%
KENYA TV MOST OFTEN WATCHED
KTN 24% 48% 37% 23% 0% 0% 0% 67% 10% 24% 45% 38% 30% 25% 40%
NTV 29% 25% 37% 23% 17% 0% 0% 0% 20% 35% 29% 36% 30% 17% 20%
DSTV 36% 11% 2% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 5% 9% 10% 42% 40%
KBC 100
4% 9% 12% 32% 50% 0% 0% 40% 12% 13% 11% 20% 0%
% 10%
TANZANIA RADIO MOST OFTEN LISTENED TO
Radio One 56% 31% 31% 44% 60% 45% 0% 26% 27% 33% 40% 32% 50% 67% -
Radio Tanzania 11% 22% 17% 8% 20% 27% 40% 11% 9% 17% 23% 11% 0% 0% -
Clouds FM 0% 9% 13% 12% 20% 0% 0% 16% 18% 6% 13% 26% 0% 33% -
Radio Tumaini 0% 6% 9% 8% 0% 0% 0% 11% 18% 0% 4% 11% 17% 0% -
TANZANIA TV MOST OFTEN WATCHED
ITV 27% 39% 39% 53% 67% 0% 0% 53% 13% 19% 62% 44% 33% 25% -
TVT 36% 19% 19% 21% 8% 22% 17% 12% 38% 44% 18% 19% 0% 25% -
Star TV 9% 19% 10% 0% 17% 22% 0% 6% 13% 13% 16% 0% 33% 0% -
Channel 10 9% 10% 9% 16% 17% 11% 0% 6% 0% 6% 16% 19% 0% 25% -
East Africa TV 0% 10% 3% 11% 8% 0% 0% 12% 13% 6% 7% 6% 0% 0% -
UGANDA RADIO MOST OFTEN LISTENED TO
Radio Simba 13% 22% 26% 29% 0% 0% 0% 18% 35% 24% 17% 24% 20% 20% -
CBS One 13% 19% 32% 16% 0% 0% 67% 27% 25% 12% 23% 21% 0% 10% -
24
Capital FM 15% 14% 3% 0% 0% 0% 0% 9% 0% 10% 11% 6% 40% 10% -
KFM 8% 11% 8% 3% 0% 0% 0% 9% 0% 7% 9% 18% 0% 10% -
Akaboozi Radio 2 8% 6% 3% 6% 40% 0% 0% 18% 20% 7% 0% 9% 0% 0% -
Kiira FM 100
0% 3% 11% 13% 40% 0% 9% 5% 15% 2% 3% 0%
% 0% -
UGANDA TV MOST OFTEN WATCHED
WBS 55% 70% 85% 65% 75% - - 83% 60% 71% 60% 81% 50% 70% -
UTV 13% 8% 7% 17% 25% - - 0% 13% 16% 13% 10% 0% 0% -
East Africa TV 8% 9% 15% 9% 0% - - 17% 27% 3% 11% 6% 50% 0% -
DSTV 16% 8% 0% 0% 0% - - 0% 7% 3% 6% 3% 0% 20% -
5. Qualitative Survey Findings
5.11 General Business Issues In Relation To Customer Preferences

The key informants were asked to state the three most common issues they encounter in their
business as relating to consumers’ preferences of food products. The following issues were
mentioned by most:
• High quality products
• Service – quick, efficient & professional
• Availability of products / supply
• Price / affordability
• Variety of products to select from
• Consistency of quality and supply
• Origin / source of product – is it credible / trustworthy?
5.12 Issues Taken Into Consideration when Stocking Organic Food

In relation to that the key informants were also asked to state the three common issues they
take into consideration thus when stocking up on food products to sell to their customers.
The following were mentioned most:
• High quality of products
• Demand for the products – is there high demand amongst their customers for that type of
products?
• Availability / supply side issues – is there a reliable and consistent flow from suppliers so
that they do not end up disappointing their customers?
• Price – are these products affordable to them as business people and hence can still
remain affordable to the end consumer even with them making a reasonable margin from
the sale of the products?
• Variety – because customers’ preferences are varied hence try to cater for most needs
and demands
These issues were common across the three countries and across the different types of key
informants. What emerges here is that what drives business decisions is customer needs or
preferences.
5.21 Attitudes towards Organic Foods

Key informants were also asked to share their views on organic foods. Majority were of the
opinion that organic foods are very healthy and nutritious because they are natural, and free
from chemical residues. Most said that these foods are of high quality as compared to non-
organic and some even said that they are tastier. Some mentioned that consumption of
organic products is an emerging world trend and consumers who have learnt about it and
25
discovered its benefits are very keen about it and prefer to consume organic. Others said that
although organic foods present very attractive benefits of consumption, they are significantly
more expensive than the non-organic hence most who consume them are middle to upper
class persons.
When asked what they sell, organic or non-organic, most said that they sell both but more of
non-organic and the main reason for this was that they complained there is very limited and
unreliable supply of organic products. Additionally the demand they said is not very high
because most people do not know or understand much about what organic products are and
so are not asking specifically for organic products. Those who know are few and amongst
these the demand is high but overall demand for organic products is low. The higher prices
of organic were also a deterrent factor to some key informants who said that they would not
make as good margins on these products as they would the non-organic.
Thus most key informants admitted that despite themselves knowing the value and benefit of
organic, do not place a high priority as such to stocking organic; they are mostly driven by
consumer demand and since most consumers do not demand organic then they cannot give
priority to organic. A few key informants however said they give 100% priority to organic
products but these were the ones whose businesses were started solely as organic product
outfits e.g. some greengrocers and restaurants in Kenya.
When asked how they ensure what they are stocking is organic, most said that they but from
specific organic farmers or manufacturers. Others said they have their own rigorous systems
of checking the suppliers. However a few mentioned that they were not necessarily sure
about the sources given that there are no proper verification systems in place in East Africa
as compared to Europe.
The respondents who said they stock or sell some organic products were also asked to say
how satisfied they are with the organic products they stock in terms of quality, price and
availability. A majority expressed high satisfaction level in as far as quality is concerned
saying that their customers who were purchasing organic were very happy with the quality.
However in terms of price and availability majority expressed quite a high level of
dissatisfaction saying that organic was costly meaning that these products would not move
fast enough because they were being bought by the upper social classes mostly and even then
the margins on these products were not great. Also on availability suppliers were few and
unreliable and this reflects very negatively on them to their customers when they fail to
deliver. A respondent from a supermarket said that they had over 60 codes for organic
products which had gone dormant because of supply issues.
On what would motivate them to sell more organic, most said that if consumers were
educated and hence started demanding organic more then they definitely would also seek to
sell organic more to meet consumer demand. Also if supply issues could be improved upon
in order to meet the demand, this would motivate them to sell more organic.
5.22 Consumer Awareness Building and Education On Organic Products

Key informants were asked to give their opinion on what key issues consumers should be
educated on concerning organic farming. An overwhelming majority said that the consumers
simply need to be educated on what organic farming and products are all about and more so
what the benefits of consumption are. Most key informants believed that if only more
consumers knew, they would definitely prefer to consume organic products as opposed to
non-organic. This knowledge they felt would best be imparted through the mass media;
26
Radio, TV and newspapers, and the bearers of this message should be producers, suppliers
and manufacturers with governments also participating particular line ministries such a
health, trade, agriculture. Other participants could be NGOs also involved in health and / or
agricultural issues.
Asked whether they as business people in the food industry have played any role in trying to
promote organic products, majority answered in the affirmative although clarifying that what
they had been able to do was very small scale mostly within their own business premises.
They cited examples such as fliers and brochures, providing separate shelves for organic
products and also educating their key staff on them so that they can explain to the
consumers.
5.24 Verification Systems

On how their customers verify that the products are organic, most said that they provide
designated places in the business premises for organic products or menus for restaurants and
hotels so when their consumers selected from these designated places, they know they are
selecting organic products. Others also said that the organic products are clearly labeled as
such while some said that the consumers ask for their guidance on what is organic vs. non-
organic. Generally they said their customers are comfortable with these methods of
verification but sometimes ask a lot of questions about the source so as to be completely
reassured.
Most key informants were not aware of the available standards of organic products nor
whether their suppliers had certification on this save for the Kenya Bureau of Standards,
certification mentioned by some. A few whose businesses are solely organic were aware of
organic standards and whether or not the suppliers were certified.
6. Conclusions and Recommendations

There is rather a high lack of awareness in East Africa of organic foods or organic farming.
Many don’t know or are not sure what it is and even most of those who say they do are in
reality not fully conversant with what organic really entails. When some facts are displayed
to them it becomes evident by their own admittance that indeed awareness is low. Majority
of those who are unaware belong to the lower socio-economic classes and because they form
a larger proportion of the population, awareness in the region can be termed as low overall. It
is not surprising therefore that consumption levels are modest or low; slightly over half the
sample have never consumed nor considered consuming organic as what is not in the
mindset, cannot be in the consideration set. Tanzania seemed to score dismally in the
awareness score, consumption score. As compared to other East African countries Tanzania
registered 57%, followed by Kenya (44%) of respondents who indicated they are not aware
of organic foods. Uganda respondents seemed to score highly in all areas (only 13% said they
don’t know). It shows therefore that the awareness creation in Uganda is significant and
bearing fruits. This also corresponds to the number of respondents who have heard or seen
advertisement or promotion materials regarding organic food. As shown below Tanzania
registered the majority of those who are not sure (39%) followed by Uganda (3%) and Kenya
(2%). Out of the respondents, Uganda had the highest percentage of those who have seen or
heard organic agriculture information (42%).Their strategy therefore needs to be shared with
the other East African partners
27
Table 11: Over the past 1 year, have you been told, heard, seen or read any
information or advertising relating to organic farming or organic food
products?
Yes No Not sure
Kenya 35 63 2
Uganda 42 55 3
Tanzania 16 45 39
However as the silver lining on the cloud, it is important to note that as implied by the
findings, there may not be any other ‘real’ barriers to consumption given that majority of
those who have never consumed or considered consuming don’t have any particular reason
for this or are just indifferent. This means that were they made fully aware of what organic
products are and their benefits, they might be more inclined to consume. Of course the
products must also be made available since as consumers’ knowledge and awareness
increases, this will be expected to lead to an increase in demand yet there seems to be a gap in
the East Africa market where many key informants are of the view that availability is a
serious issue – there are not enough suppliers and the few who are there are not reliable
enough.
When broken down into specific types of organic foods people have ever consumed, an
overwhelming majority talk of fruits and vegetables and a significant number mention
cereals. As per the findings, organic dairy, meats, pasta and bread, are little consumed and
again this can be linked to an awareness issue. It seems that many might be holding a
misconception that organic produce can not be anything else other than fruits and vegetables
although this was not specifically tested in the study. Key motivating factors of consumption
are health and safety factors and these could well be the promotional pillars for building or
increasing organic consumption in East Africa. This notion is strengthened by the fact that
when speaking about purchasing of food products in general, some of the top considerations
are health and safety issues for most. Price is however also a top consideration and this must
be looked into given that key informants complained that price of organic is considerably
higher than that of non-organic foods. This result seemed to correlate with Envirocare survey
by Sogn O. and et al 2006, carried out in Tanzania where the issue of safety in food also and
health concern came out clearly.
Still, despite awareness levels being low and by extension consumption incidence,
perceptions and attitudes towards organic foods appears to be quite positive. This is evident
from the reactions to the working definition or description of organic products. Once the
respondents are exposed to this, an overwhelming majority say that indeed organic products
28
are a good thing and also give a high score on the importance scale saying that knowing what
they now know, it would be very important to them that what they consume is organic. This
is true even of those who have never consumed nor considered consuming organic.
On verification systems, many feel that there should be some kind of verification system for
organic products in the region thus this is an issue that should indeed be pursued and
actualized. The country governments would be crucial in this process or system as many
view them as the suitable frontrunners in this endeavour.
Indeed organic products’ promotional and educational initiatives are lacking in the region as
implied by the low awareness and consumption levels of organic foods but more so as
evidenced by analysis of the post-test of such promotional and educational activities.
Majority say they have not heard or seen any information on organic products in the last one
year or so and those who claim they have are unable to describe or recall the messages being
passed across. This is as per the consumer study findings yet from information compiled by
KOAN, NOGAMU and TOAM, it is apparent that there are quite a lot of initiatives going on
in the three countries in terms of education or promotion of organic as can be seen in the table
below. It can be inferred that despite the existence of these initiatives, there may not be
enough exposure or perhaps effective delivery of them hence little or no impact. Other than
the mass-media ones, most of these initiatives have also not been done on a very large scale
so perhaps cannot be expected to have a great national or regional impact.
Table 11: Existing PR materials

MATERIAL DESCRIPTION & MESSAGE
KENYA
1 10 Reasons to go Organic Poster that elaborates the reasons why one should
consume organic products
2 Kenya Organic Agriculture Brochure Gives general background about KOAN,
Network activities and programs
3 KOAN Brochure that elaborates on OMAP, its mission,
Organic Marketing Assistance vision and objectives
Program
4 Kenya Organic Catalogue Small booklet on organic production and
producers in Kenya
5 Ecofest 2005/6 Fun-filled day highlighting issues on organic food
and environmental sustainability
6 Public Talk Open talk and debate on issues on organic
agriculture
7 Radio questions and answer Held over a 5 day period on one radio station
session where questions related to OA were asked with
correct answers getting gift packs of organic
products
8 Radio Program Radio program on KBC where experts in OA are
Mali Shambani interviewed and listeners phone in with questions
9 Farmers Market Exhibitions where farmers are able to interact with
consumers and learn about OA
UGANDA
1 NOGAMU brochure The vision mission and objectives
2 NOGAMU shop fliers Message on them is benefits of organic and
products available
29
3 NOGAMU bulletin This is a quarterly newsletter that highlights
activities implemented, research done and any
relevant information about organic members
would wish to share out
4 Posters, stand flags, year Basic organic messages and pictures of events in
calendars and planners, t-shits, the organic sector
caps, pens and key rings
TANZANIA
1 Stickers / banners Go organic hile you live, I say when you die you
will be organic anyway
Fine nature makes fine country – a lover of nature
2 T-shirts, jackets, caps Organic for sustainable life; go organic
3 Booklets / leaflets Kanuni za kilimohai
Kudhibiti mmomonyoko wa udongo
4 Posters Njia za kudhibiti mmomonyoko wa udongo;
Njia za kuvuma maji ya mvua kwa matumizi ya
shambani
Madhara ya mmomonyoko wa udomgo
Kurutubisha ardhi kwa kutumia mbolea ya asili
5 Books Udongo hai na mbolea asili
6 Advert Bio-organics
The good get better.. energize the plants immune
system
7 Organics directory Contact list and roles of organic stakeholders
8 Magazines Eco Forum; Ecology and farming – the war on
pests and problem with poisons, growing organic,
etc
9 Video and TV Grocery store wars
Even the three selected initiatives (one per country) perceived prior to this study to be ‘key’
or ‘somewhat substantial’ performed rather dismally in awareness hence can be concluded as
not having met their desired impact. A widespread educational and awareness building
campaign to increase awareness in the region on organic products and their benefits is
therefore in order. Not only should it be carefully and professionally developed to but also
well executed. Key informational areas that should be taken into consideration for such a
campaign are:
• Defining and describing clearly what organic farming / products entail versus non-
organic. This should target the 62% of the population who indicated they don’t know
what organic foods are. The campaign should also focus more on middle to high income
social class who indicated 25% knowledge of organic products.
• Explaining and demonstrating distinctly the benefits of consuming organic foods. To
capture the interests of consumers, the health and safety aspects should Cleary come out
of campaign. This is because it scored the highest as a motivator of the current organic
consumers (Scored more than 50% in all the products consumed)
• Educating consumers on how best to identify organic products. Promotion of organic
products using a mark or logo to identify them should also be considered. Some
consumers even after being asked whether they have consumed some presented organic
products could not tell whether they are organic or not. Only 44% of the consumers of
Out of Africa coffee the highest consumed organic products among the ones presented
indicated they know it is organic. This was also seen in Tanzania where Tanika coffee
30
was the most significantly consumed organic product. There is therefore a need for
verification system (69%), which should also provide a marketing logo. In the usage of
such a logo, the government should be involved (51%) in regulating it together with an
independent body (19%).
• Informing consumers on where they can buy organic products or where they are
available. Availability was a big issue and also information of where consumers can buy
organic food. Awareness creation should focus on informing consumers where they
should buy organic products. Promotion through stores already selling organic foods will
therefore be desirable.
So as to reach as many people as possible a relationship between what was regarded as
popular source of organic information and indicated successful PR materials should be
considered. If this information is passed through the popular mode amongst the target
population, the awareness will be successful. The table below shows such relationship.
Table 12: Relation between Existing PR materials and their Popularity.

Most popular sources of Indicated successful PR Popular Media
organic Information Materials
Radio program or news • Radio program • Kenya - Kiss FM,
Mali Shambani-Kenya Capital FM, Classic
FM
• Tanzania -Radio one,
Radio Tanzania,
Clouds FM.
• Uganda- Radio Simba,
CBS One, Capital FM.
• Video/TV/Radio- • KTN, NTV, DSTV.
TV program or news Tanzania • ITV, TVT, Star TV.
• WBS, UTV 11, EATV
In a book; written materials, pamphlets, • Booklets/leaflets-
brochures.
Tanzania
• 10 reasons to go organic
Poster-Kenya
• Shop leaflets and fliers-
Uganda
• Newsletter-Uganda
• Daily Nation, The
Standard
newspaper in the general, news
section/stories • Mwananchi, Majira.
• New Vision, The
Monitor.
• Ecofest 2005/6 •
• T- shirts/Caps/Stickers •
• shirts, key rings and •

pens,
• Calendars •
31
The above relation will therefore be very crucial when making decisions on the consumer
awareness and consumer education and which media to use.
Table 13: Relation between considerations of purchasing food products and

values associated with organic Produce
Considerations of Purchasing Food Association of Organic food products

products
Healthy/Nutrition Healthy/Nutritious (50%)
Quality Safe (25%)
Taste Tasty (21%)
Availability
Packaging size
Brand name
The above 3: Health/Nutrition, Quality/safety, Tasty should form the main coding of the
‘Organic message’.
Table 14: How best the Organic Information can be imparted
Formats Promotional events: Ecofest,

NOGAMU day
Types of Media Radio,TV, newspapers, pamphlets,

fliers
Message Bearers Producers, Suppliers

Manufacturers
Governments, NGOs
Participants/Stakeholders Organic movements, traders,

producers, partners
32
7. Appendices
7.1 Annex 1: Survey Instruments (Questionnaire)
A SURVEY ON CONSUMER ATTITUDES AND PREFERENCES TOWARDS ORGANIC

FOODS IN KENYA, UGANDA AND TANZANIA, OCTOBER - NOVEMBER 2006
Respondent’s name (complete at end of interview)________________________________________
PO Box__________________________________________________________________________
Telephone Number/s________________________________________________________________________
Write in a detailed description of how to reach the respondent again. Include landmarks like nearest school, church, sub-
chief.
Interviewer’s name
Time Interview Began Ended Interview length (In mins)
______________________ ____________________ ____________________
I declare that this interview has been carried out strictly in Interviewers signature.
accordance with the training I received in every respect, with a
properly selected respondent.
Country
Kenya 1 Tanzania 2 Uganda 3
Town
Nairobi 1 Dar es Salaam 3 Kampala 5
Mombasa 2 Zanzibar 4 Jinja 6
Sample point number:
33
START HERE: SAMPLING
1) Speak to any adult at the selected household
Write down first name of the adult spoken with:______________________________
S1) Read out introduction
Hello, my name is _________________. Today we’re conducting a survey on general consumer

perceptions and attitudes towards food products and we’re interested in your opinions. We have
selected your household by chance from this area. Please speak your views freely because whatever
you say is confidential - we are combining your views with those of hundreds of others who are also
being interviewed. There is no right or wrong answer – it is just your honest views we are interested
in.
Only if necessary: The research is being funded by International Federation of Organic Agriculture
Movements as part of its preparation to create awareness of East African Organic Standards. The
survey is being carried out in Kenyan, Tanzania and Uganda.
2) Randomly select one person who lives there, even if not at home at present
S2) Please could you tell me the first names of each adult aged 18 or over who lives here in this
household (sharing food), and who has been living here for at least 4 weeks, starting from the oldest
down to the youngest.
List all the adults in the household here Assign numbers to each person
according to alphabetical order e.g.
name that starts with A = 1
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Select the respondent assigned number 1 in the table above.
NOW COMPLETE THE AGE, GENDER, AND EDUCATION LEVEL GROUP OF YOUR SELECTED
RESPONDENT IN THE TABLE BELOW AT S5.
NOW YOU MUST FIND THAT PERSON TO INTERVIEW. IF THAT PERSON IS NOT AT HOME,
YOU MUST ARRANGE TO COME BACK A SECOND AND A THIRD TIME TO GET HIM OR HER
OVER A TWO-DAY PERIOD.
ONLY IF HE/SHE IS STILL NOT AVAILABLE, SUBSTITUTE THE RESPONDENT FOR A PERSON
OF THE SAME AGE GROUP, GENDER AND EDUCATION LEVEL GROUP FROM THE SAME
SAMPLING POINT.
IF THE RESPONDENT REFUSES TO BE INTERVIEWED, CONTINUE WITH THE RANDOM

ROUTE AND INTERVIEW THE NEXT RANDOMLY SELECTED RESPONDENT.
PLEASE REFER TO YOUR NOTES IF YOU CANNOT REMEMBER
34
S3) Please could I find that person and arrange to speak with them? Either go to where that person
is, or arrange to come back later to speak with them later today
Made appointment to come back later 1 Write in time & location of appointment.
Skip 2 households and then proceed with a new
questionnaire
Went to where the person is and found them 2 Proceed to QA1
Other Write In 3
S4) Code how many visits you have had to make to the house / other locations in order to get this
person
First attempt 1
Second attempt 2
Third attempt 3 After three attempts to get this respondent, you may
make a substitution. Go to S5
S5) Could you tell me the gender, age and educational level of _______ The respondent you were
trying to interview
Gender Age Achieved educational level

Male 1 18-24 1 Has no education 1
Female 2 25-34 2 Has some or complete primary 2
35-44 3 Has some or complete secondary or other higher 3
qualifications but not university
45-55 4 Has university or college education 4
56+ 5
S6) If substituting.
The aim here is to find another respondent in this area who has the same age, educational level
and gender as the person selected.
Check question S5 above,
Proceed to the next door household
Repeat the introduction
Ask: Is there anyone in this household who is _______ (gender), aged ________ , and who has
__________ education?
Once you have identified a similar person, continue to Q1.
Remember that the first box of the questionnaire on page 1 should be filled for the person you finally
interview, not for the person you originally tried to interview.
Repeat introduction if necessary
A. AWARENESS & USAGE
A1) Could you please tell me, what do you understand by the term ‘organic foods’? What do you think
they are? Do not read out responses, more than one answer possible
Natural foods 1
Herbal foods 2
Foods grown with manure 3
Foods without chemicals 4
Foods not sprayed with pesticides 5 Continue
Traditional / indigenous foods 6
Healthy / nutritious foods 7
OTHERS (Write in specific response)
35
Don’t know / not sure (Do not read out) 99 Go to A3
A2) From where did you get to learn that ‘organic foods’ are _______________ (mention answers
given in A1 above), in other words what was your source of information? Do not read out
responses, more than one answer possible
Not sprayed with
Other (specify)
Traditional /
Grown with
indigenous
chemicals
pesticides
nutritious
Healthy /
Without
manure
Natural
Herbal
Television programmes /adverts 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Radio programmes / adverts 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
Newspaper 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3
Magazines 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4
Books 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5
Taught in school / college 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6
At a promotional / educational event 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7
Word of mouth 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8
Don’t know / not sure (Do not read out) 99 99 99 99 99 99 99 99
A3) I am now going to read out a true set of statements about organic food products one by one and I
want you to tell me whether you are aware of this or not by simply saying yes or no. Did you know
that_________________ (read statements in table below one by one)
Yes No
a There are local standards for organic products? 1 2
b There is an organic certification body in Kenya / Tanzania / Uganda? 1 2
c There is a national organic movement in Kenya called KOAN? (in Tanzania called 1 2
TOAM / in Uganda called NOGAMU?)
d Organic products should be identified by a logo 1 2
A4) Have you ever consumed or considered consuming ‘organic food products’? Read out and code
appropriately
Yes - have consumed 1 Continue

Yes - have considered consuming 2
No 3 Go to A5
Don’t know / not sure (Do not read out) 99 Go to A6
A4b) Which types of organic food products have you ever consumed or considered consuming? Read
out and code as appropriate. Multiple response allowed
Organic dairy products 1

Organic fruits and vegetables 2
Organic cereals 3
Organic bread and pasta 4
Organic meat and meat products 5
A4c) Why do you / did you consume or why have you ever considered consuming _______ (mention
type of organic food product coded in A4b above)? Do not read out responses
Reasons Dairy Fruits & Cereal Bread Meat

Veg & Pasta
They are tasty 1 1 1 1 1
They are healthy / nutritious 2 2 2 2 2
They are safe to consume / not 3 3 3 3 3
contaminated
36
They are affordable 4 4 4 4 4
They are readily available 5 5 5 5 5
Good for management of illnesses 6 6 6 6 6
Makes me feel in touch with my 7 7 7 7 7
indigenous roots
They are environmental friendly 8 8 8 8 8
No specific reason / indifferent 9 9 9 9 9
A5) Why have you never consumed or considered consuming organic food products? Do not read
out responses
They are not tasty 1

They are not healthy / nutritious 2
They are unsafe 3
They are expensive 4
They are not available / don’t know where to get them 5
No specific reason / indifferent 6
For those coded 1 and 2 at A4 ask A5b and A5c otherwise skip to A6
A5b) Where do you / would you prefer to purchase your organic food products from? MULTIPLE
RESPONSES ALLOWED. DO NOT READ OUT
A5c) Where do you / would you not purchase your organic food products from? MULTIPLE
RESPONSES ALLOWED. DO NOT READ OUT
A5b A5c
Supermarkets 1 1
Greengrocers 2 2
Hotels 3 3
Restaurants 4 4
Open air markets 5 5
Farm gate 6 6
Dukas / kiosks 7 7
Don’t know / not sure (Do not read out) 99 99
A6) Have you ever heard of the following products? Code answers in the grid below. Ask only for
brands relevant to country where you are conducting the survey e.g. if in Kenya ask only
about Kenya brands
A7) For all those products aware of at A6 ask: Did you know that ____________ (mention
product) is an organic product? Code answers in the grid below
A8) For all those products aware of at A6 ask: Have you ever consumed ________ (mention
product)? Code answers in the grid below
A9) For all those products aware of at A6 and for which they are aware are organic at A7 ask:
Was the fact that ____________ (mention product) is an organic product have anything to do with
your decision to consume it? Code answers in the grid below
A6 A7 A8 A9
KENYA PRODUCTS (BRANDS) YES NO YES NO YES NO YES NO
a Out of Africa Coffee 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2
b Meru Herbs Chamomile Tea 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2
c Green Dreams Vegetables 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2
TANZANIA PRODUCTS (BRANDS) YES NO YES NO YES NO YES NO
37
d Tanika Coffee 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2
e 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2
f 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2
UGANDA PRODUCTS (BRANDS) YES NO YES NO YES NO YES NO
g Tefu Solar Dried Fruits 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2
h Mop Solar Dried Fruits 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2
i Amfri Solar Dried Fruits 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2
Ask All
A10) Thinking about purchasing of food products in general, I would like you to tell me what you take
into consideration. Please rank the following considerations in order of priority from the most
important to the least important. Write in the order from 1 to 7 in the column next to the
attributes
Price / affordability
Packaging (quality)
Packaging (size)
Availability
Health / nutrition value
Taste
Brand name
Ask those coded 1 and 2 at Q.A4, others go to B1

A11) How do you / would you verify or know that the foods you are buying / consuming are organic?
Read out. Record answers in the table below
Ask for each method of verification mentioned at A11..

A12) Do you trust this method of verification of ____________ (mention method of verification)?
Record answers in the table below
A11 A12
Yes No Don’t know /
not sure
Only purchase from specific shops that I know sell organic products 1 1 2 99
Check the labels 2 1 2 99
Buy from a specific farmer who practises organic farming 3 1 2 99
Practise my own organic farming 4 1 2 99
Only purchase specific brands which I know to be organic 5 1 2 99
OTHERS (Write in specific response) 1 2 99
Don’t know / not sure (Do not read out) 99
If coded 2 for any one of the verification methods at A12 above ask
A13) What do you feel could be done to improve your trust with ________________ (mention method
of verification)?
Specific shops that sell organic products (Write In)
Don’t know / not sure 99

Labels (Write In)

Specific farmers who practice organic farming (Write In)
38
Specific brands known to be organic (Write In)

OTHER VERIFICATION METHOD (Write In)
A 14) Do you think there is a need for a system of verification of organic food products?
Yes 1 Continue No 2 Go to Section B
A14b) Who do you think should be responsible for providing this verification? READ OUT
The Government 1
Independent certification company 2
Companies buying from farmers 3
Groups of producers checking each other 4
NGO’s working with farmers 5
The producer himself 6
Don’t know / not sure (Do not read) 99
OTHER (Write In Specific Response)
B. PERCEPTIONS AND ATTITUDES
Now I am going to give you a statement describing organic products. Please read it together with me
as I read it out aloud to you then I will ask you some questions based on it.
“Organic produce or products are those produced and processed through a system
that encourages biological natural processes on the farm, allows farm animals to
exhibit natural behavior and excludes the use of synthetic pesticides, chemical
fertilizers, antibiotics and genetically modified organisms.”
B1) Having read this statement, do you think organic products are a good thing or a bad thing?
Good thing 1 Continue

Bad thing 2 Go to B3
Both good and bad - have both positives and negatives 3 Continue
Don’t know / not sure (Do not read out) 99 Continue
B2) What do you like about this statement in relation to organic products? Do not read out, more
than one answer possible.
B3) What do you dislike about this statement in relation to organic products? Do not read out, more
than one answer possible.
B2 B3
Encouragement of biological natural processes 1 1
Farm animals allowed to exhibit natural behaviour 2 2
Exclusion of synthetic pesticides 3 3
Exclusion of chemical fertilisers 4 4
Exclusion of antibiotics 5 5
Exclusion of genetically modified organisms 6 6
39
Don’t know / not sure (Do not read out) 99 99
Ask All
B4) Having read this statement, to what extent would it now be important to you that the foods you
consume are organic? Please tell me how important it would be on 1 to 10 point scale where 1 is not
important at all and 10 is very important.
Increasing importance
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
B5) I have some short statements / attributes that different people have used to describe different
types of foods. I am going to read them out to you and I would like you to tell me in your own opinion
which of these statements is most suited to organic food. Please note that there is no right or wrong
answer, it is just your opinion I am interested in. Which of the statements would you say is the
second most suited to organic food? Which statement would you say is the third most suited to
organic food?
1st 2nd 3rd

Is very tasty 1 1 1
Is very nutritious / healthy 2 2 2
Is fashionable / trendy 3 3 3
Is affordable 4 4 4
Is for the elite 5 5 5
Is for everyone 6 6 6
Is safe 7 7 7
Is easily available 8 8 8
Is for the young 9 9 9
Is traditional 10 10 10
B6) Do you have any suggestions on what can be done to improve or support organic farming and the
market for organic products?
None 99
C. POST TEST OF ORGANIC PRODUCTS AWARENESS & EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS

C1) Over the past 1 year, have you been told, heard, seen or read any information or advertising
relating to organic farming or organic food products?
Yes 1 Continue No 2 Go to C7 Don’t know 99 Go to C7
C2) Please tell me all the different places you got this information. Show card or read out. Circle all
mentioned probe for any other
Packaging / products in a shop 01 Wall painting on a shop or similar Kupaka ukuta 15
rangi katika duka au shughuli inayofanana na hiyo
Bidhaa zilizowekwa kwenye pakiti/ bidhaa kwenye duka
Advice or discussion (any communication) with your 02 In a book Katika kasha 16
friends / colleagues
Ushauri au majadiliano (mawasiliano yoyote) na rafiki
zako
At a social function / community meeting / baraza 03 From a leaflet or brochures you saw somewhere 17
Kutoka kwenye kipeperushi au kijarida ulichoona
Katika shughuli ya kijamii / mkutano wa jamii /baraza mahali fulani
40
From a health worker – like a doctor, nurse or nutritionist 04 Seen a film or advertisement at a cinema Nimeona 18
filamu au tangazo katika jumba la sinema
Kutoka kwa mfanyakazi wa afya – k.m daktari, muuguzi
au mfanyakazi wa jamii.
From a community or political leader or elder 05 Seen a film, program or advertisement at a video 19
show room (where you pay to go), Nimeona filamu.
Kutoka katika jamii, au mwanasiasa au mzee Kipindi au tangazo katika kumbi za filamu (ambapo
unalipia kuingia)
At church or from a church leader / mosque or Muslim 06 In a magazine Katika jarida 20
leader / other religious leader
Katika kanisa au kutoka kwa kiongozi wa kanisa
TV program or news 07 From the internet Kutoka kwenye mtandao 21
Kipindi cha TV au kipindi cha habari
TV advertisement or commercial 08 Attended a lecture, class or study / at school from 22
a teacher
Tangazo la Televisheni/au njia nyingine za matangazo
mbali na tangazo la Televisheni Nimehudhuria mhadhara, darasani au mafunzo
Shuleni kutoka kwa mwalimu
Radio program or news Kipindi cha redio au habari 09 Seen a live drama / play or puppet show 23
Nimeona mchezo wa kuigiza moja kwa moja
kutoka kwenye jukwaa
Radio advertisement Tangazo la biashara kutoka 10 In an agricultural club 24
kwenye redio
Kutoka kwenye kikundi cha shule
In a newspaper in the general news section/stories 11 Concert sarakasi 25
Katika gazeti kwenye sehemu ya habari kwa
ujumla/hadithi
An advertisement in a newspaper 12 Community rally/road showmaonyesho ya 26
jamii/maonyesho ya barabarani
Tangazo katika gazeti
Billboard – large poster on road side or side of building, 13 From an organic farming movement 27
Bango – matangazo makubwa pembeni mwa barabara
au kwenye kuta za majengo
A small poster like on a wall or similar (e.g. in hospital 14 Don’t know Hajui 99
etc), Tangazo dogo kama lililowekwa kwenye ukuta au
linalofanana na hilo (k.m kama katika Hospitali)
Other WRITE IN FULL DETAILS Nyingine
ANDIKA MAELEZO KWA KIREFU
C3) Can you please describe the advertisement / material to me? Probe fully
C4) Which messages do you remember from it? WRITE IN FULL DETAILS: PROBE: what exactly?
Anything else?
C3: Description:
Don’t know / can’t remember 99
41
C4: Messages:
C5) Did you believe the message as was communicated through this advert / material? Was it
credible?
Yes 1 No 2 Don’t know 99

C6) I want you to tell me how much you liked the advert / promotion / informational material on a scale
of 1 to 10 where 1 is didn’t like it at all and 10 is liked it very much.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
C7) I am now going to mention to you an existing / past advertisement / promotional event /
informational material on organic products in Kenya / Tanzania / Uganda. I will then ask you some
questions about it.
KENYA Ecofest 2005

TANZANIA TOAM Mr. Juma’s TV advert.
UGANDA NOGAMU Day.
C7a) Have you ever heard of / seen this advert / promotion / informational material?
Yes 1 Continue No 2 Go to D1 Don’t know 99 Go to D1
C7b) Can you please describe it to me? Anything else? Probe fully
C7b): Description:
C7c) What messages do you remember from it / What did you learn from it?
C7c): Messages:
C7d) Did you believe the message as was communicated through this advert / material? Was it
credible?
Yes 1 No 2 Don’t know 99
C7e) I want you to tell me how much you liked the advert / promotion / informational material on a
scale of 1 to 10 where 1 is didn’t like it at all and 10 is liked it very much.
Increasing importance
42
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
D. MEDIA USAGE & HABITS
D1) I would like to ask you about your past 7 day activities in general, not relating to organic products.
Which of the following have you done in the past seven days Show card or read out and rotate
order of starting at each new respondent.
D2) I would like to ask you about your yesterday activities in general, not relating to organic products.
Which of the following did you do yesterday? Show card or read out and rotate order of
starting at each new respondent.
D1 D2 D1 D2 D1 D2
Watched TV 01 01 Read a magazine 08 08 Attended a lecture or class 15 15
Niliangalia TV Nilisoma jarida Nilihudhuria darasa
Listened to the radio 02 02 Read a book 09 09 Read a leaflet or brochure 16 16
Nilisikiliza Redio Nilisoma kitabu Nilisoma kipeperushi au broshua
Seen a billboard – large 03 03 Seen a film 10 10 Browsed on the internet or 17 17
poster on road side or side of received or sent an e-mail
building Niliangalia sinema
Nilienda kwenye mtandao
Niliona tangazo – bango
kubwa pembeni ya barabara
au kwenye majengo
Seen a small poster on a wall 04 04 Been out with friends 11 11 Went to a restaurant or hotel for a 18 18
meal
Niliona tangazo dogo kwenye Nilikuwa nje na marafiki
kuta Nilienda kwenye baa
Seen a wall painting on a 05 05 Attended a club meeting 12 12 Shopped at a supermarket (where 19 19
shop or similar you serve yourself)
Ulihudhuria mkutano wa
Niliona picha ya ukutani klabuni Kununua katika
kwenye duka au sehemu supermarket(kujihudumia
kama hiyo mwenyewe)
Attended a social function / 06 06 Seen a live drama / play or 13 13 Shopped at an open market or 20 20
community meeting puppet show from a hawker or small kiosk or
shop
Ulihudhuria katika shughuli za Umeona michezo ya kuigiza
jamii Nilinunua bidha kutoka kwa
wauzaji wadogowadogo kwenye
soko la wazi
Read a newspaper 07 07 Been to a health facility – 14 14 None 99 99
center or doctor
Soma gazeti
kuenda kwenye kituo
chochote cha afya
If listened to radio in the past seven days ask

D3) Please tell me all the radio stations you have listened to in the past 7 days – even if for only a few
minutes. Any other? Do not read out. Code answers mentioned as appropriate under relevant
country.
D4) Which ONE radio station have you listened to MOST in the past 7 days? Ask with regard to all
stations mentioned at D3
KENYA D3 D4 D3 D4 D3 D4
East Africa FM 01 01 Inooro FM 13 13 Murembe FM 25 25
Baraka FM 02 02 Iqra FM 14 14 Musyi FM 26 26
43
Bibilia Husema FM 03 03 Jesus is Lord FM 15 15 Pulse FM 27 27
Capital FM 04 04 Kameme FM 16 16 Pwani Fm 28 28
Citizen FM 05 05 Kass FM 17 17 Radio Victoria FM 29 29
Classic FM 06 06 KBC – English Service 18 18 Radio Waumini FM 30 30
Coro FM 07 07 KBC – Kiswahili Service 19 19 Ramogi FM 31 31
Easy FM 08 08 KBC – Regional Service 20 20 Sayari FM 32 32
Nation FM 09 09 Kiss FM 21 21 Sheki FM 33 33
Family FM 10 10 Metro East FM 22 22 Simba FM 34 34
Hope FM 11 11 Metro FM 23 23 Y-FM 35 35
Sound Asia FM 12 12 VOA 24 24
TANZANIA D3 D4 D3 D4 D3 D4
East Africa FM 01 01 Radio Free Africa 12 12 Radio Ukweli 23 23
City FM 02 02 Radio Koran 13 13 Radio 5- Arusha 24 24
City Radio 03 03 Radio Milimani 14 14 RI Channel 2(BBC) 25 25
Clouds FM 04 04 Radio One 15 15 RTD External service 26 26
Country Radio 05 05 Radio TZ 16 16 Saui ya imani 27 27
Feba Radio 06 06 Radio Mwangaza 17 17 Sauti ya injili 28 28
Kiss FM 07 07 Radio station 1 18 18 Times FM 29 29
Magic FM 08 08 Radio Tumaini 19 19 Upendo FM 30 30
Praise radio 09 09 Radio Tanzania (RTD) 20 20 Wapo Radio 31 31
PRT 10 10 Radio Uhuru 21 21 Zanzibar Radio 32 32
Radio Abood 11 11 Radio Maria 22 22
UGANDA D3 D4 D3 D4 D3 D4
East Africa FM 01 01 Dembe FM 21 21 Mama FM 41 41
Akaboozi (Radio 2) 02 02 Dunanis FM 22 22 Mbale FM 42 42
Alpha FM 03 03 Endigito FM 23 23 Nile Broadcasting Service 43 43
Arua One 04 04 Family FM 24 24 Open Gate Radio 44 44
BBC 05 05 Hoima FM 25 25 Power FM 45 45
Beat FM 06 06 Impact Radio 26 26 Prime Radio 46 46
Busoga FM 07 07 Kagadi Radio 27 27 Radio Apac 47 47
Capital FM 08 08 Kamwenu-wenu 28 28 Radio Buddu 48 48
CBS One 09 09 KFM 29 29 Radio Equator 49 49
CBS Two 10 10 Kiira FM 30 30 Radio Maria (Radio 1) 50 50
Colour FM 11 11 Koboko FM 31 31 Radio Paidha 51 51
Radio Pisces 12 12 Rhino FM 32 32 Ventus FM 52 52
Radio Sapiensa 13 13 Rock FM 33 33 Voice of Africa 53 53
Radio Simba 14 14 Sanyu FM 34 34 Voice of Kigezi 54 54
Radio Uganda 15 15 Skynet FM 35 35 Voice of Life 55 55
AM/SW
Radio Uganda 16 16 Spirit Radio 36 36 Voice of Teso 56 56
Green Channel
Radio Unity 17 17 Star Radio 37 37 Voice of Toro 57 57
Radio Wa 18 18 Super FM 38 38 Word of Life 58 58
Radio West 19 19 Top Radio 39 39
Radio France (RFI) 20 20 Touch Fm 40 40
If watched TV in the past seven days ask

D5) Please tell me all the TV stations you have watched in the past 7 days – even if for only a few
minutes. Any other? Do not read out. Code answers mentioned as appropriate under relevant
country.
D6) Which ONE TV station have you watched MOST in the past 7 days? Ask with regard to all
Citizen TV 01 01 Metro TV 05 05 KBC 08 08
East Africa TV 02 02 NTV 06 06 KTN 09 09
Family TV 03 03 Sayari 07 07 STV 10 10
DSTV 04 04
Abood TV 01 01 CTN 07 07 TV Burudani-Arusha 13 13
Agape Television 02 02 East Africa News Network 08 08 TV Zanzibar 14 14
Network (ATN)
44
C2C 03 03 EAST Africa TV (EATV) 09 09 TVT 15 15
CEN 04 04 ITV 10 10 DSTV/Super sport 16 16
Channel Ten 05 05 Star TV 11 11
1130 06 06 SUA TV- Morogoro 12 12
DSTV 01 01 UTV 04 04 STV 07 07
East Africa TV 02 02 WBS 05 05 Top TV 08 08
Pulse Africa 03 03 LTV 06 06
If read a newspaper or magazine in the past seven days ask

D7) Please tell me the newspapers you have read in the past 7 days – even if for only a few minutes.
Any other? Do not read out. Code answers mentioned as appropriate under relevant country.
D8) Which ONE newspaper have you read MOST in the past 7 days? Ask with regard to all
Daily Nation 01 01 Kenya Times 04 04 The East African 07 07
People Daily 02 02 The Standard 05 05 The Citizen 08 08
Taifa Leo 03 03 The Monitor 06 06 New Vision 09 09
Aonur 01 01 Kiu 14 14 Sunday News 27 27
Alasiri 02 02 Komesha 15 15 Sunday Observer 28 28
Al-Huda 03 03 Lete Raha 16 16 Taifa Leo 29 29
Business Times 04 04 Msanii 17 17 The African 30 30
Champion 05 05 Msema kweli 18 18 The East African 31 31
Daily News 06 06 Mtanzania 19 19 The Express 32 32
Dar Leo 07 07 Mwananchi 20 20 Majira 33 33
Dimba 08 08 Mwanaspoti 21 21 The Guardian 34 34
Financial times 09 09 Mzalendo 22 22 Times 35 35
Hako 10 10 Nipashe 23 23 Uhuru 36 36
Ijumaa 11 11 Nyakati 24 24 Uwazi 37 37
Kasheshe 12 12 Rai 25 25 Wasaa 38 38
Kiongozi 13 13 Sanifu 26 26 Yanga 39 39
Bukkedde 01 01 New Vision Daily Nation
The Monitor 02 02 Red Pepper The Standard
The East African 03 03
E. DEMOGRAPHICS
E1) Are you the head of this household?
Yes 1 No 2
E2) What is the highest level of education you have completed? Je, kiwango cha masomo yako ni
kipi?
If respondent is not the head of the household at E1 then ask:

E3) What is the highest level of education the head of your household has achieved? Je, kiwango
cha masomo yako ni kipi?
E2 E3 E2 E3
No formal schooling 00 00 Post-secondary qualifications, other than 06 06
university e.g. a diploma from a polytechnic
or college
Informal schooling only (including 01 01 Some university 07 07
Koranic schooling)
Some primary schooling 02 02 University completed 08 08
Primary school completed 03 03 Post-graduate 09 09
Some secondary school / high school 04 04 Don’t know [DO NOT READ] 99 99
45
Secondary school / high school 05 05
completed
E4 Which of the following age-groups do you fall in to? Show card Katika vikundi vya umri
vifwatavyo, je uko kikundi kipi?
18-24 1 45 – 55 4
25-34 2 56 + 5
35-44 3 Don’t know [DO NOT READ] 9
E5) What is your occupation, if any? Unafanya kazi gani kama unayo? Write exact occupation
below
___________________________________________________________________
ASK IF RESPONDENT IS NOT HEAD OF HOUSEHOLD

ULIZA KAMA ANAYEJIBU SIYE KICHWA CHA BOMA
E6) What is the occupation of the head of this household? Mwenye boma hili hufanya kazi gani?
Write exact occupation below
___________________________________________________________________
Now Interviewer code below
(E5) (E6)
Respondent Head of hhold
Anayejibu Mwenye nyumba
NOT WORKING HAFANYI KAZI
Unemployed Hajaajiriwa 01 01
Student / pupil mwanafunzi 02 02
Retired Amestaafu 03 03
Housewife Mke wa nyumbani 04 04
WORKING ANAFANYA KAZI
Own business – small – no full time employees 05 05
Ana biashara yake – ndogo - kibarua
Own business – medium – up to 10 employees 06 06
Ana biashara yake – kiasi tu – wafanyi kazi 10
Own business – large – over 10 employees 07 07
Ana biashara yake – kubwa – zaidi ya wafanya kazi 10
Working for a private company Anafanyia kazi kampuni ya kibinafsi 08 08
Working for government / parastatal Anafanyia kazi serikali/idara moja 09 09
Working for non-governmental organization 10 10
Anafanyia shirika lisilo la serikali
Other WRITE IN 11 11
Zingine ANDIKA HAPA
Don’t know [DO NOT READ] Sijui (USISOME) 99 99

Refused [DO NOT READ] Kataa (USISOME) 89 89
E7) Fill in Socio-economic class of respondent based on occupation of head of household
AB 1 D 4
C1 2 E 5
C2 3
E8) What is the average monthly income of your family? Show card Je kwa kadiri, mapato ya jamaa
yako ni ngapi?
KENYA (Kshs)
Less than 5,000 01 40,001 – 50,000 06 90,001 – 100,000 11
5,001 – 10,000 02 50,001 – 60,000 07 Over 100,000 12
10,001 – 20,000 03 60,001 – 70,000 08 Refused 13
20,001 – 30,000 04 70,001 – 80,000 09 Don’t know 99
46
30,001 – 40,000 05 80,001 – 90,000 10
UGANDA (Ushs)
Less than 125,000 01 1,000,001 – 1,250,000 06 2,250,001 – 2,500,000 11
125,001 – 250,000 02 1,250,001 – 1,500,000 07 Over 2,500,000 12
250,001 – 500,000 03 1,500,001 – 1,750,000 08 Refused 13
500,001 – 750,000 04 1,750,001 – 2,000,000 09 Don’t know 99
750,001 – 1,000,000 05 2,000,001 – 2,250,000 10
TANZANIA (Tshs)
Less than 75,000 01 600,001 – 750,000 06 1,350,001 – 1,500,000 11
75,001 – 150,000 02 750,001 – 900,000 07 Over 1,500,000 12
150,001 – 300,000 03 900,001 – 1,050,000 08 Refused 13
300,001 – 450,000 04 1,050,001 – 1,200,000 09 Don’t know 99
450,001 – 600,000 05 1,200,001 – 1,350,000 10
THANK RESPONDENT & CLOSE INTERVIEW
Annex 7.2 Survey Instruments (Key Informant Screener)
PROJEC Key Informant Screener

T:
NAME: (BLOCK CAPITALS, inc. initials)
Country: KENYA
BUSINESS ADDRESS: TANZANIA
UGANDA
POSTCODE:
Telephone
No.:
Q1. Have you ever heard of the term “organic food products”?
Yes 1 CONTINUE
No 2 CLOSE
Q2. To what extent would you say you are involved in making decisions on the types of food
products that this business stocks / sells? READ OUT
To a great extent 1 CONTINUE

To a good / significant extent 2
To a small / minimal extent 3 GO TO Q.5
Not at all 4
Q3. What types of food products or foods does this business stock / sell? READ OUT
Organic 1 CONTINUE
Non-organic 2
Both 3
Don’t know 4 GO TO Q.5
47
Q4 To what extent would you say you are involved in the day to day management of the
business in as far as customer relations are concerned? READ OUT
To a great extent 1 RECRUIT AS PER

To a good / significant extent 2 INSTRUCTIONS BELOW
To a small / minimal extent 3 CLOSE
Not at all 4
Q.5. Who would be the person in this business who is significantly involved in decision-
making on food types to stock or sell as well as day to day customer relations? WRITE IN
NAME & POSITION OF PERSON BELOW THEN FIND THEM AND FILL OUT A
NEW SCREENER QUESTIONAIRRE TO CERTIFY THAT THEY ARE THE
APPROPRIATE RESPONDENT
NAME POSITION
Thank and close

Recruitment instruction:
Hotel representatives: 6 per country Supermarkets: 4 per country

Restaurant representatives: 6 per country Greengrocers: 4 per country
Appointment Time:
date:
Location:
48
7.3 Annex 3 Discussion Guide
ORGANIC SURVEY
Key Informant Interview Guide with Hotels, Restaurants, Supermarkets and Greengrocers
Greetings and introductions, explanation of purpose of the research:

- To better understand current perceptions and attitudes towards organic products
1. Background and business issues (with consumers on food products) (5 minutes)
• What are the three most common issues you encounter in your business as relating to
consumers / customers preferences of food products?
→ How easy / difficult it is to accommodate these preferences
→ If you are to rank these preferences starting with the most common, how would you
do it?
• What are the three most common issues you take into consideration when stocking up /
purchasing food products which you then in turn sell to your customers? Why are these
important?
• How would you rank them starting with the most common?
2. Attitudes towards organic foods (15 minutes)
• Now concentrating on types of foods, what are your views on organic foods?
→ Why?
→
• What types of foods do you buy / sell? Organic or non-organic? Why? Is this a deliberate
decision to buy / sell this type of food / products? Why?
Probe on:
→ Customer preferences
→ Quality
→ Cost
49
• What level of priority do you place on buying and selling organic products / foods? What
level of priority do you place on buying and selling of non-organic products / foods?
→ Explore reasons /benefits or organic vs. non-organic
• How do you ensure that what you buy and sell is organic? Please explain.
• How satisfied are you with organic foods / products in terms of availability? What of cost?
Quality? Why?
• What would motivate you to buy and sell organic foods / products or more of them?
→ Explore motivations fully
• Would you at all advocate for consumption of organic products to your customers? Why /
why not?
• What challenges do you face (or would restrain you) when buying/selling organic foods?
Please explain
3. Consumer awareness building and education on organic products (10 minutes)
• What in your opinion are the key issues that consumers need to be educated about on organic
products? Why do you say so?
• How best do you think this knowledge can be imparted?

Probe:
→ Formats (field days, farmers markets)
→ Types of media
→ Message bearers
→ Stakeholders / participants
50
• Have you as a business played any role currently and / or in the past on building awareness
surrounding organic food products? Why / why not?
→ If yes probe how and whether felt it was worthwhile and would like to continue doing
so
→ If no probe whether would like to be involved in future.
4. Questions on verification system (10 min)
• How do your customers identify organic products that they are buying from you?
Probe:
→ Arranged on one shelf or a corner?
→ Have a logo?
→ Are labelled?
→ Ask for your guidance or assistance?
→ Other?
• Are your customers comfortable with that? Do they ask any questions regarding the source,
and the organic integrity of the products?
• Are you aware of the available standards of organic products? If so, can you please describe
them to me?
• Do you have any suppliers who have certification on these standards?
5. Other (2 minutes)
• Do you have any other suggestions or comments that you would like to share as regards
organic food products?
Thank and close
51
7.4 Annex 4: PR Questionnaire
Organic Farming / Products Promotional Material
1. Please list all the educational / promotional material on organic farming / products
that your organization has developed / used / come across in the last two years or so
(PR materials include posters, brochures,
TV spots, radio advertisements, car stickers etc)
2. For each material listed please provide a brief description including message being
relayed by each
MATERIAL DESCRIPTION & MESSAGE

1
52
3. Out of all these materials, please state in your opinion and from experience, which
three have been most successful in order from most successful and give reasons
why. Also state which ones have been least successful in order from least
successful and give reasons why.
MOST SUCCESSFUL REASONS

1
LEAST SUCCESSFUL REASONS

1
4. Please provide any other useful insights / comments / suggestions as you deem fit
for future development of promotional and educational material based on the
materials you have currently
THANK YOU
53
7.5 Annex 5: Instruction Manual for Field Surveyors
INSTRUCTION MANUAL FOR

FIELD SURVEYORS
September, 2006
September 2006
This publication was prepared and implemented under the Organic Attitudes and
Perceptions Survey for IFOAM
TABLE OF CONTENTS
54
INSTRUCTION MANUAL FOR FIELD SURVEYORS ................................................................................. 54
1. INTRODUCTION........................................................................................................................................ 56
1.1 PROJECT INFORMATION ......................................................................................................................... 56
1.2 THE PURPOSE OF THIS MANUAL.................................................................................................. 56
1.3 APPROACH TO THIS TRAINING...................................................................................................... 56
1.4 RESPONSIBILITIES OF FIELD SURVEY SUPERVISORS............................................................ 56
1.5 DAILY FIELDWORK SCHEDULE ............................................................................................................... 58
2. SELECTING AND LOCATING RESPONDENTS................................................................................. 58

2.1 OVERVIEW ......................................................................................................................................... 58
2.2 SAMPLING .......................................................................................................................................... 59
3. ADMINISTERING THE INSTRUMENTS.............................................................................................. 60
3.1 KEY INFORMANT SCREENER QUESTIONNAIRE ....................................................................................... 60
3.2 KEY INFORMANT DISCUSSION GUIDE .................................................................................................... 60
3.3 CONSUMER QUESTIONNAIRE .................................................................................................................. 60
3.3.1 DETERMINING SOCIO-ECONOMIC CLASS ............................................................................................... 60
4. INTERVIEWING RESPONDENTS.......................................................................................................... 63
4.1 PREPARING FOR THE INTERVIEW ............................................................................................... 63
4.2 CONDUCTING THE INTERVIEW.................................................................................................... 64
55
1. INTRODUCTION
1.1 Project Information
In the frame of the project with the objective to improve income and livelihood of rural
communities in East Africa through facilitation of trade in organic products by means of a
regional standard and certification cooperation, there is a plan to develop and implement a
concept for “consumer education and awareness building”. The rationality is based on the
fact that a standard has no value if it is not known, and regional trade of organic products can
only emerge if there is knowledge about the standards and the production.
The overall objective of the project thus is to increase consumers understanding of Organic
Agriculture and to inform consumers in East Africa about the new standard in the Region
including the importance of Standards.
Specific objectives include:
• Identify consumers’ attitudes towards organic products and different verification
systems in East Africa
• Screen existing consumer awareness materials in East Africa
• Produce recommendations for consumer awareness activities to be carried out in
2007.
1.2 THE PURPOSE OF THIS MANUAL

This manual will serve as a reference for surveyors while they are in the field interviewing
respondents. It is important that data be collected as carefully and completely as possible.
Information collected on the questionnaires will be coded and entered into a database where it
will be analyzed to summarize findings from the survey. Carefully collected and reported
information is critical to avoiding biases and errors in the later data tabulation and analysis.
If surveyors have any questions at all about the information in this manual or
instructions on the questionnaire, they should consult their supervisors before
proceeding with any further interviews.
1.3 APPRoaCH TO THIS TRAINING

Behaviours:
Listen
Join in
Speak up and share ideas
Ask questions – as many as possible; you are probably asking for everyone
else
Attitudes:
Question and challenge us
Bring up any problems or potential problems now – not later!
Have fun
Help each other
1.4 RESPONSIBILITIES OF FIELD SURVEY SUPERVISORS

If you are a field survey supervisor you will:
56
1. Read and become fully familiar with this survey manual and with the survey
questionnaire to be used to collect information from respondents in your geographic
area.
2. Participate in and direct the process of selecting respondents to be interviewed
3. Organize and direct the work of the survey teams in one of six towns – either Nairobi,
Mombasa, Dar es Salaam, Zanzibar, Kampala or Jinja; draw up the interviewer and
supervision itinerary for your area
4. Allocate activities each morning – a half hour meeting should take place before the
start of each day
5. Manage funds required during fieldwork days
6. Accompany field survey enumerators when they are conducting interviews
a. To assess interviewing and interpersonal relationships quality.

b. Feedback to the entire team on errors / problems and solutions.
7. Review completed questionnaires at the end of each day of fieldwork to assure they
have been filled in correctly and accurately and work with field survey enumerators to
correct any errors found in recording responses. Be on hand each evening to solve
queries
8. Send interviewers back to repeat sections / or personally back-check those that seem
to have problems.
9. Code and inventory all questionnaires and send the questionnaires to Nairobi for
coding and data entry.
If you are a field survey enumerator you will:
1. Read and become fully familiar with this survey manual and with the survey
questionnaire to be used to collect information from respondents in your geographic
area.
2. Take your own detailed notes about each question in the questionnaire during training
3. Follow instructions from your field survey supervisor in selecting respondents to be

interviewed.
4. Conduct survey interviews at the respondent’s house but in a location that will allow
the respondent to give answers in privacy.
5. Set up a good relationship with the respondent
6. Conduct 5 -6 interviews per day
7. Interview using all the relevant questions AS THEY ARE WRITTEN
57
8. Read and understand the questionnaire completely in order to be able to assist the
respondent where they are not clear
9. Write down verbatim answers as spoken WORD FOR WORD
10. Probe properly for all the information under verbatim answers
11. Consult your supervisor when you have any questions or concerns about the
questionnaire or about methods of selecting respondents or collecting information.
12. Complete answers to all questions and make any corrections or additions as directed
by your supervisor.
1.5 daily fieldwork schedule

7.30 am Meet with team leader
Go through problems with yesterdays questionnaires
with the whole team – not just those who made the
errors
Answer any questions / forward questions on to team
leader
Receive allocations and location of today’s interviews
Receive and sign for transport money for today
8.00 am Leave for field
Travel in teams of 1 / 2 / 3 /4 / 5 depending on the
sample locations
5.30 pm Leave field for base
But not if halfway through an interview!
6.00 pm Rest
Team leaders continue to work until all the
questionnaires are checked and any issues are
highlighted and summarized for the following
morning’s meeting
2. SELECTING AND LOCATING RESPONDENTS

2.1 OVERVIEW
The survey will collect data from final consumers, representatives of hotels, restaurants,
greengrocers and supermarkets of the selected towns. The major sections of the
questionnaire cover awareness and understanding of organic products and their benefits,
perceptions and attitudes towards organic products, post-test of existing awareness materials,
media usage and demographics.
The primary aim of the survey is to collect quantitative data that will be entered into a
database that will be subjected to statistical analysis focused on the consumers’ satisfaction.
However, a smaller qualitative sample will be conducted with the key informants namely
hotels, restaurants, greengrocers and supermarkets.
58
2.2 SAMPLING
Sample Selection Procedure

The procedure for sample selection will be to distribute the sample across identified towns in
proportion to population size. Random sampling of smaller administrative units with PPS,
and subsequent distribution of sampling points would follow this.
Starting points will be located randomly by identifying at least 3 landmarks and drawing one
out of a hat after which a random procedure will be used to determine direction, and then the
interviewer will proceed on a random walk following the left hand rule. Interviews will be
conducted at every 3rd household on the left hand-side until the prescribed sample for the
given sampling unit (SP) is achieved. After a successful interview, 2 households will be
skipped.
Respondent selection procedure

At the selected household, the interviewer will apply the alphabetical order of names
technique to ascertain which respondent is to be interviewed. In this method, all members of
a selected household are listed on the questionnaire using their first names and numbers are
then assigned to each name in order of the alphabet. The selected respondent will be the one
whose name has been assigned the number one. Up to three visits should be made to the
household to try to interview the chosen respondent.
Closed-door methodology
This occurs when interviewers find a household locked up. If the interview finds a closed
door, he or she tries to find a household member in the surrounding area. If no one is
available he or she adds that on to the end of the number of households he or she has to visit
on his random route.
Substitution methodology
Substitution is only permitted after the interviewer has attempted three times to contact the
selected respondent, over a 2-day period. This is very important because if we do not find the
selected respondent and substitute for someone else who happens to be around, this will bias
the sample towards those who are at home. When the interviewer has randomly selected the
respondent, he will then immediately include on the questionnaire the age, the gender and
education status of the selected respondent. Then if, after the 3rd call back, the selected
respondent is not located, the interviewer may continue the random route, and then once
completed, search for a substitute for the kind of respondent he missed. The substituted
respondent will be a match, as far as possible, by gender, age group and education status. For
example, an interviewer starts at her starting point at house No 1. She does the random
selection of respondent and is able to interview the respondent who happens to be at home.
She then skips 2 houses and does another successful interview at house no 2. She skips
another 2, but at house no 3 after applying the random selection of respondent she does not
get the respondent. She arranges to call back later on in the day, and the following day, but
still does not get that respondent. She notes that a substitution is to be made. At house
numbers 4, 5, 6 she finds closed doors. She does successful interviews within the 2-day
fieldwork period at houses 7, 8, 9. She does not find the respondent selected at house no 10,
and so this is another substitution, and then she completes successful interviews at 11. She
has then completed 6 successful interviews. She then tries to re-do interviews for house
number 3 and 10 by using the respondent demographics of age, gender and education status
as a "quota" to look for two similar respondents.
Refusal methodology.
59
In the case of a refusal, the respondent who refused is not substituted in any way, but the
random selection continues at the next eligible household (after skipping 2 households), until
the total for that SP is reached.
3. ADMINISTERING the instruments

3.1 Key informant screener questionnaire
This will be administered to potential key informants as will be decided upon by the team
leaders. The questionnaire should be followed to the letter so as to determine the suitability
of the respondent. The objective is therefore to select a suitable respondent and to obtain an
appointment for the interview. If willing, the respondent may be interviewed on successful
completion of the screener. This will save project time and resources as it will avoid making
another trip there on another day.
3.2 Key informant discussion guide

This will be administered to representatives of hotels, restaurants, supermarkets and
greengrocers who qualify after being screened. It is simply a guide and not a structured
questionnaire that must be followed word for word. Instead ensure you cover the areas listed,
and MOST IMPORTANTLY, pay attention to the discussion so as to be able to probe for
more interesting details and overall steer the discussion in the direction it is meant to go so as
to achieve the stated objectives. Take clear notes and responses to each question – write the
responses given underneath the relevant question. Take time after the interview to rewrite the
responses on a clean discussion guide in detail, and legibly as you may have had to rush or
use shorthand during the interview so as to speed up the discussion.
3.3 consumer questionnaire

This will be administered to the public (consumers) selected through a random procedure at
the household level. Ensure you have read the questionnaire fully and understood it. Follow
the interviewer instructions provided in the questionnaire in bold typeface carefully. The
questionnaire should be administered word for word.
3.3.1 Determining socio-economic class

After establishing the occupation of the head of household, use the following categories of
occupations to determine their SEC.
A. AB CLASS
(Senior Professionals/ Managers)
• Senior Government Officers

Ministers /Permanent, Deputy, Under Secretaries/MP’s, Senior Local Government
Officers, Mayors
Principal Assessors (tax, insurance)
Provincial / District Heads and Deputy Heads (all branches)
60
Chief Inspectors/Superintendents (Police, Prisons, Schools, Health etc
• Senior Staff of Companies/Corporations, Proprietors of big businesses

Chairmen/Directors
Company Secretaries
Senior Managers (of at least 15 people)/Senior Executives
Senior Buyers
Regional/District Sales Managers (Graduates)
Senior Secretaries/Personal Assistants/Aides
• Agricultural
Proprietors of large farms
Managers of large farms
• Teaching
University/College Professors/Senior Lecturers
Bursars
Secondary School Heads/Graduate teachers/Tutors
• Other Professionals
Doctors/Dentists
Pharmacists/Physiotherapists/Radiographers
Hospital Matrons/Senior Sisters
Judges/Magistrates/Advocates/Lawyers
Architects/Senior Surveyors
Armed Forces- Majors, Squadron Leaders, Lieutenants
Commanders and upwards
Aircraft Pilots/Ship Captains
Senior Scientists (Chemists, Botanists, e.t.c)
Senior Qualified Engineers
Economists
Bishops/Cardinals
Computer Systems Analysts/Senior Programmers
Senior Qualified Chefs.
B. C1 CLASS
(Junior Middle Managers Professionals)
• Government Officers
County/City/Town Councillors
Junior Assessors (tax, insurance)
District Officers ii-iii
Land Adjudicators
Customs Officers
Inspectors(Police, Prisons, Schools, Health e.t.c)
Welfare Officers
Estate /Housing Officers
Junior Librarians
• Companies/Corporations Employees
Proprietors of medium-sized businesses
61
Managers (of less than 15 people)
Junior/Middle managers
Junior Executives
Senior Supervisors/Foremen
Senior Clerks
Cashiers/Bank Tellers
Salesmen/Representatives
Secretaries
• Agricultural
Proprietors of middle-sized farms
Managers of medium-sized farms
• Other Professional
Medical Assistants Church Ministers
Nurses Armed Forces Officers below Major,
Reporters/Journalists Squadron Leader,
Laboratory Technicians Lieutenant
Professional Photographers
Announcers
Junior Computer Programmers
C. C2 CLASS
• (Unqualified Traders/Professions, Skilled Manuals)
Skilled manual workers (Mechanics/Carpenters/Electricians/Drivers,

Chiefs/Sub-chiefs e.t.c.)
Teachers (P2.P3) and untrained Bus conductors/Train Guards
(Education Level: Completed at Cooks (Middle Grade, Trainees/Learners,
least form IV 2nd Class hotels, e.t.c)
Receptionists Bar-men
Copy-typists Proprietors of small farms
Junior Clerks Manyapara (Junior Supervisors)
Unqualified nurses/dressers Church Elders/Quran Teachers
Meter-readers
Sergeant/Corporals(Police,
Prisons, Armed Forces)
D. D-CLASS
• (Semi-skilled i.e. some training)
62
Cooks/House Forestry workers
servants/Maids/Ayahs Game scouts
Waiters/Stewards Fishermen – for own account
Petrol Station Attendants Kiosk owner
Shop Assistants Owner of small plot selling produce
Untrained Teachers (Education Fire Fighters
Level below form IV) Packers
Tin-Smiths Cargo Handlers
Shutters/Points men Dhobis
Painters Butchers
Cobblers
E. E-CLASS
• (Unskilled: May own a small plot but sells none or very little produce)
Labourers
Part time/Casual, Unskilled Workers
Watchmen/Askaris
Messengers
Turnboys/loaders
Sweepers/Cleaners
Waiters in Small Kiosks
Herdsmen/Milkers
Coffee/Tea pluckers
Slaughterhouse attendants/Meat cutters (Low-class Butcheries)
Fishermen
4. INTERVIEWING RESPONDENTS
4.1 PREPARING FOR THE INTERVIEW
Dress — When interviewing, it is important to look professional at all times. Your dress
should be appropriate and comfortable. Do not necessarily wear your best clothes, or clothes
that would make you stand out (such as a business suit). Do not wear expensive jewelry that
may make you appear to be much richer than the people that you are interviewing. Such
considerations are important, and have been found to influence how comfortable people feel
about being interviewed.
Supplies required—Before leaving for the field, check to make sure you have adequate
supplies for the day’s work. These supplies include:
1. A sufficient supply of questionnaires (bring extras)

2. This Field Survey Interviewer’s Manual
3. Identification documents
4. Information sheets on the survey study
5. A clipboard
6. Blue ballpoint pens
7. A briefcase or bag to carry the questionnaires
8. Any personal items you will need to be comfortable
63
Finding a Good Interview Location—Try to conduct the interview in a location that is private
and where there are not many distractions. This could be a room in the house or outside at
some other location. It is important that the respondent is listening carefully during the
interview.
4.2 CONDUCTING THE INTERVIEW

4.2.1 AT THE BEGINNING OF THE INTERVIEW
Remember to build rapport with respondents. At the beginning of an interview, you and the
respondent are strangers to each other. The respondent's first impression of you will
influence his/her willingness to cooperate with the survey. Be sure that your manner is
always friendly.
1. Make a good first impression—When first approaching the respondent, do your best
to make him or her feel at ease. Open the interview with a smile and greeting such as
"Good Afternoon" and then proceed with introducing yourself and the purpose of
your visit.
2. Always have a positive approach—Never adopt an apologetic manner, and do not use
words such as "Are you too busy?", "Would you spare a few minutes?" or "Would
you mind answering some questions?" Such questions invite refusal before you start.
3. Stress confidentiality of responses when necessary—If the respondent is hesitant

about responding to the interview or asks what the data will be used for, explain that
the information you collect will remain confidential, no individual names will be used
for any purpose, and that all information will be grouped together to write a report.
Never mention other interviews or show completed questionnaires to other
interviewers or supervisors in front of a respondent or any other person. Request
honesty and openness.
4. Give the respondent the opportunity to ask questions before continuing with the
interview—Before agreeing to be interviewed, the respondent may ask you some
questions about the survey or how she was selected to be interviewed. Be direct and
pleasant when you answer. Answer any questions from the respondent frankly.
5. Explain that the purpose of the survey and research—is to better understand the
experiences and views of consumers of food products, and that the questions will be
related to their own experiences and views.
6. Indicate that the interview should take no more than half an hour—ask if the
respondent has available that much time. If not indicate your willingness to return at
another time if it is inconvenient for her to answer questions then.
7. Before starting the actual interview make sure you have already filled in the following
information—
• Interviewer name;
• Date, time start interview;
• Location of interview; and
• How respondent was selected
64
8. Be neutral throughout the interview—Most people are polite and will tend to give
answers that they think you want to hear. It is therefore very important that you
remain absolutely neutral as you ask the questions. Never, either by the expression on
your face or by the tone of your voice, allow the respondent to think that he has given
the "right" or "wrong" answer to the question. Never appear to approve or disapprove
of any of the respondent's replies.
9. If the respondent gives an ambiguous answer—try to probe in a neutral way, asking

questions such as:
• “Can you explain a little more?”
• “I did not quite hear you, could you please tell me again?”
• “There is no hurry. Take a moment to think about it.”
10. Never suggest answers to the respondent—If a respondent's answer is not relevant to a
question, do not prompt him by saying something like "I suppose you mean that..... Is
that right?" Rather, you should probe in such a manner that the respondent himself
comes up with the relevant answer.
11. Do not change the wording or sequence of questions—The wording of the questions
and their sequence in the questionnaire were carefully chosen for a reason. If the
respondent has misunderstood the question, you should repeat the question slowly and
clearly. If he still does not understand, you may reword the question, being careful
not to alter the meaning of the original question. Provide only the minimum
information required to obtain an appropriate response.
12. Handle hesitant respondents tactfully—If the respondent is reluctant or unwilling to

answer a question, try to overcome his or her reluctance by explaining that the same
question is being asked of citizens all over the 3 cites and that the answers will all be
merged together. If he still refuses, simply write REFUSED next to the question and
proceed as if nothing had happened. If you have successfully completed the interview,
you may try to obtain the missing information at the end but the respondent should
not be forced to give an answer.
13. Do not make assumptions—You should also be careful not to jump to conclusions
based on previous information. Do not assume the answer to any question based on
your previous experience with ‘the way people behave or think.’
14. Do not skip questions—Do not skip a question even when you think the answer if
obvious. Some of the questions are purposefully overlapping in order to check for
consistency in answering.
15. Do not hurry the interview—Ask the questions slowly to ensure the respondent
understands what he is being asked. After you have asked a question, pause and give
him time to think. If the respondent feels hurried or is not allowed to formulate his
own opinion he may respond with "I don't know" or give an inaccurate answer. If you
feel the respondent is answering without thinking, just to speed up the interview, say
to the respondent, "There is no hurry. Your opinion is very important so consider
your answers carefully."
65
16. Do not show the questionnaire to anyone, including the respondent—You must not
show the questionnaire to anyone, unless otherwise told to by your supervisor or field-
editor. For example, sometimes a respondent may want to complete the questionnaire
himself, or to read a question himself. It is important that you do not show the
document to him. If respondent does request this, be polite but firm about your
refusal.
17. If you are ever unsure, write out all of the respondent’s reply on the questionnaire—
Anything out of the ordinary can also be noted on the front page in the comments box
or in the margins directly on the survey.
18. Use “Show Cards”—Use a show card for relevant questions so as to give the
respondent something visual and concrete to help him/her answer. Be clear in
indicating out loud and by pointing to which ends of the scale correspond to which
statements. If the respondent points to a number, repeat the answer verbally in order
to confirm what he/she meant. Also use a show card for sensitive information such as
education and income. In this case, do not repeat the answer verbally, but rather point
to confirm the respondent’s answer.
19. Write legibly—It is important that those who will be entering the data from your
survey can decipher what you have marked. Checks should be clearly within one box
and not another. If you are circling an item, be sure not to circle other items nearby.
4.2.2 AT CONCLUSION OF THE INTERVIEW
Say that the interview is now over and thank the respondent for their participation.
66

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The Development of a Consumer awareness and

Education Concept Based on A Consumer

Report Prepared for:

Report Submitted by:

Date: 1st December 2006

IFOAM is the international umbrella organization of organic agriculture movement’s world

1.2 Aim of the survey:

1.3 Overall Objective of the OSEA Project:

1.4 Overall Objective of the assignment:

1.5 Key Research objectives were:

2.2 Supply-side issues:

2.3 Existing information resources and institutional capacity:

3. Research Methodology and Process

3.2 Survey instruments

3.3 Fieldwork and other logistics

33% 197 34% 203 34% 202 100% 602 TOTAL

0% 0 0% 0 100% 154 100% 154 Nairobi

0% 0 0% 0 100% 48 100% 48 Mombasa

0% 0 100% 26 0% 0 100% 26 Zanzibar

100% 163 0% 0 0% 0 100% 163 Kampala

100% 34 0% 0 0% 0 100% 34 Jinja

35% 108 38% 118 27% 84 100% 310 Male

15% 5 61% 20 24% 8 100% 33 E

36% 41 16% 18 49% 56 100% 115 18 - 24

bases by these breaks are robust enough.

32% 46 35% 50 32% 46 100% 142 35 - 44

3% 1 97% 28 0% 0 100% 29 Don't know

7% 2 90% 27 3% 1 100% 30 No formal schooling

19% 3 63% 10 19% 3 100% 16 (including Koranic

30% 12 60% 24 10% 4 100% 40 Some primary schooling

43% 20 30% 14 26% 12 100% 46 Primary school completed

26% 33 16% 20 58% 72 100% 125 qualifications, other than

26% 6 30% 7 43% 10 100% 23 Some university

qualitative survey was analyzed through grid preparation so as to enable comparison of

51% 30 7% 4 42% 25 100% 59 University completed

0% 0 0% 0 100% 12 100% 12 Post-graduate

0% 0 100% 20 0% 0 100% 20 DIDN'T MENTION

Hotels Restaurants Green-grocers Supermarkets

4.2 Quantitative Survey Findings

4.21 Awareness and usage of organic food products

Understanding of 'Organic Foods'

Don't know / not sure Natural foods

Table 3: Source of information on what organic foods are HEALTHY / NUTRITIOUS

FOODS GROWN WITH

BASE (n =) 154 104 54 47 36 20 19

Are you aware that...?

Table 4: Awareness of facts on organic products / farming

TOTAL Kenya Uganda Tanzania

Are you aware of... and if so that it is organic?

Some secondary school/high

Primary school completed

qualifications, other than

Table 6: Reasons for consumption of organic food type

Makes me feel in touch with my indigenous 19 15 11 9 10

Total Kenya Tanzania Uganda

Table 7: Trust of verification methods

“Organic produce or products are those produced and processed

How important is it for you to now consume organic food products?

Those who had ever consumed 8.3

Is for the elite 30 Is safe

__