The aim of this study was to characterize the consumer market of organic foods in Belo Horizonte, M.G., including the socioeconomic profile and consumer's behavior, their perception and knowledge regarding organic food, and also the main motivations and limitations towards the consumption of these products. A direct descriptive and structured research (survey) was carried out with 400 consumers, by using semi-structured questionnaires. Most consumers were female (76.0%), aged over 30 years (90.3%), in a stable relationship (81.3%), degree holders (81.5%), with high household income (over 12 M.S.⁄month) (78.7%). The majority defined organic food as foods without pesticide residues (69.7%). Organic foods were mentioned to contain higher levels of nutrients than conventional foods (82.0%), no genetically modified organisms (75.0%) and no synthetic chemical products (86.0%). The majority was worried about healthy life habits, since 80.5% regularly exercised and 49.2% had already gone on a diet or followed nutritional orientation. All believed in health benefits from consumption of these foods and almost all (98.8%) had already noticed health improvements derived from consumption. Only 16.3% consumed organic food other than fruits and vegetables. Heath concern as well as the higher content of nutrients and more pronounced taste than conventional food were the major motivations for consumption of organic fruit and vegetables. A great part of consumers showed superficial knowledge regarding the issue, evidencing the need for better elucidation about the subject. A repressed demand for these products was observed, since, despite of high interest in organic foods, the high price and low quality limited the consumption of these products in Belo Horizonte.
Organic food; Behavior; Fruit; Vegetables; Perception
